Antibody fragments produced by recombinant and proteolytic methods

Abstract

While monoclonal antibodies provide the means to specifically target radioisotopes to tumors, the initial clinical radioimmunotherapy trials were largely unsuccessful. In the past decade, the field of molecular biology has matured to the point where we can re-engineer antibodies to overcome the limitations that were likely responsible for the early failures of radioimmunotherapy. In this chapter the wide variety of engineered and proteolytically produced antibody fragments are described along with their potential benefits for radioimmunotherapy. © 2008 Springer Science+Business Media B.V.