Monoclonal antibody production and applications

Abstract

Antiserum is a heterogeneous mixture of antibodies produced against an antigen. Antigens usually have multiple epitopes and separate antibodies are produced against each by an individual clone of B cell. Monoclonal antibody produced by hybridoma technique is a single homogeneous antibody population which is specific for one epitope and exhibits no cross-reaction. The technique involves fusion of B cell with the myeloma cell and cultivation of the fused clone for indefinite production of the desired antibody. Myeloma cells are the tumor cells and impart immortality to the clone while B cells contribute to the antibody production ability. Selection of the fused cell is carried out in hypoxanthine-aminopterin-thymidine (HAT) containing medium so that unfused myeloma cells are unable to grow by virtue of their HGPRT negative character. Hybridomas once produced can be cryopreserved in liquid nitrogen for indefinite storage. It is possible to antibodies in culture medium or as ascitic fluid in mice. Both procedures allow sizeable harvest of the antibody. Monoclonal antibodies have proven to be valuable tools in immunodiagnostic, immunotherapy, and in biological and biochemical research. Monoclonal antibody-based immunodiagnostic kits are available for detection of pregnancy, for diagnosing numerous pathogenic microorganisms, measuring level of drug in blood or urine, matching histocompatibility antigens, and detecting antigens shed by various tumors. A sizable number of monoclonal antibodies are available as therapeutic agents.