ABSTRACT
In this chapter the reader encounters the discovery of antibodies, beginning with Edward Jenner’s pioneering (if unethical) development of a vaccine against smallpox. Described within are the studies of Nobel laureates Emil Von Behring and Shibasaburo Kitasato who found that the protective antibodies or immunoglobulins, although not yet discovered at a molecular level, could be transferred from the serum of one animal to another to provide protection against diphtheria and foreign substances. The research of Paul Ehrlich is also described, with his famous side chain model of immunity and identification of receptors on the surface of cells. The work of Mogens Bjørneboe and Harald Gormsen, as well as Astrid Fagreus, further clarified the understanding of immunity by demonstrating that plasma cells secrete antibodies. The contributions of Niles Jerne, David Talmadge, and Frankl Burnet led to the “clonal selection theory” in which individual B cells generate a single antibody and that each B cell proliferates in response to encountering a specific antigen. Antibody-dependent cell cytotoxicity (ADCC) is addressed as a mechanism by which antibodies function in pathogen neutralization. The Y-like structure of antibodies is discussed, as well as the complex mechanisms by which antibody diversity is generated. Monoclonal antibodies that recognize a single antigen or epitope are explained, including the method developed by Nobel laureates Cesar Milstein and Georges Kohler to generate them. Finally, emphasis is placed on explaining the immense usefulness of monoclonal antibodies to the biomedical research enterprise, for clinical treatments to an array of diseases, and for diagnostics. The discovery of antibodies is an example demonstrating that the more fundamental knowledge gained, the greater their basic and clinical use has become.
