A monoclonal antibody is a type of protein made using various techniques that binds to certain targets in the body, such as antigens on the surface of cancer cells or other types of cells. Today there are many different types of monoclonal antibodies, and each monoclonal antibody is produced to bind to a specific, unique antigen. Monoclonal antibodies have a variety of uses, including in the diagnosis and treatment of many diseases.

They can be used alone, or they can be used to carry drugs, toxins, or radioactive substances directly to target cells.

It all started with the concept of the “magic bullet”

Paul Ehrlich ( Nobel 1908) was a German physician and immunologist who pioneered the term “complement” in 1899 as part of his research on immunology.

In the 1890s, Emil von Behring and Kitasato Shibasaburo had observed that blood taken from animals infected with diphtheria or tetanus could provide immunity to other animals that had not previously been exposed to those diseases. Paul Ehrlich identified the source of protection in blood as coming from antibodies and hypothesized that antibodies could one day be used as magic bullets for medicine.

Ehrlich then created the concept and idea of ​​the “ magic bullet” to refer to “ ideal therapeutic agents” that can act specifically against a particular aggressor, but without causing damage to healthy host cells.

The fascinating empire of monoclonal antibodies was beginning to take shape…..