What Are Monoclonal Antibodies? Uses, Benefits, and How They Work
Monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) are laboratory-made proteins that mimic the immune system's ability to fight off harmful pathogens such as viruses and bacteria. They are engineered to bind to a specific target (antigen) —which could be a protein on the surface of a cell, virus, or toxin—with high precision. ✅ Definition Monoclonal antibodies are identical antibodies produced by a single clone of B cells. Unlike natural (polyclonal) antibodies, which recognize multiple parts of an antigen, mAbs recognize one specific epitope of a target antigen. ✅ How They're Made Monoclonal antibodies are typically produced using: Hybridoma technology : Fusing a B-cell that produces a desired antibody with a myeloma (cancer) cell that can grow indefinitely. Recombinant DNA technology : Cloning human or animal antibody genes and expressing them in cultured mammalian cells. ✅ Main Features Specificity : Binds to a single target with high affinity. Uniformity : All molecules are gene...