APPLICATIONS OF MONOCLONAL ANTIBODIES:

Monoclonal antibodies are proving to be very useful as diagnostic, imaging, and therapeutic reagents in clinical medicine. Initially, monoclonal antibodies were used primarily as in vitro diagnostic reagents. Among the many monoclonal antibody diagnostic reagents now available are products for detecting pregnancy, diagnosing numerous pathogenic microorganisms, measuring the blood levels of various drugs, matching histocompatibility antigens, and detecting antigens shed by certain tumors. Radiolabeled monoclonal antibodies can also be used in vivo for detecting or locating tumor antigens, permitting earlier diagnosis of some primary or metastatic tumors in patients. For example, monoclonal antibody to breast-cancer cells is labeled with iodine-131 and introduced into the blood to detect the spread of a tumor to regional lymph nodes. This monoclonal imaging technique can reveal breast-cancer metastases that would be undetected by other, less sensitive scanning techniques.

Mainly monoclonal antibodies applied in two fields namely, d iagnostic and t herapeutic field

I. Diagnostic Field:

For the following purposes, monoclonal antibodies used:

• Leucocyte Identification
• Lymphocyte subset determination
• HLA typing
• Viral detection and sub typing
• Parasitic determination
• Polypeptide hormone detection
• Detection of cancer with tumor marker determination
• Detection of cardiac myosin in cardiac injury
• Pregnancy detection

In the above mentioned conditions, the basic principle is production of antibodies against antigen and identification or quantification of antigen and antibody complex.

II. Therapeutic Field:

There are four different headings available in this field namely,


- Anti-tumor therapy : In anti-tumor therapy, antibodies against tumor antigen produced and they are converted into either Immunotoxins, or chimeric Immunotoxins or Heterconjugate antibodies. When these antibodies utilized, they damage tumor cells and tumor growth controlled. These anti-tumor antibodies are called as “magic bullets”.

- Immunosuppression : During transplantation between partially incompatible individuals, host versus graft rejections are suppressed using monoclonal antibodies against TCR, BCR, Co-receptor complex and cytokines etc., Hypersensitivity reactions are also treated with blocking monoclonal antibodies.
- Fertility control : By producing antibodies against HCG or trophoblast, fertility controlled.
- Drug toxicity reversal : Toxicity produced by drugs is treated using monoclonal antibodies against drugs, so that the functions of drugs are blocked and effect reversed.