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From Cancer to Crops: How Antibody Engineering is Changing EverythingArticleThe discovery of monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) in 1975 heralded a remarkable breakthrough in precision medicine, opening up many doors for personalized diagnosis and care. Just over a decade later, in 1986, the FDA approved the first mAb product to prevent kidney transplant rejection.1 Since then, advances in mAb engineering have been monumental, fundamentally changing how we approach the treatment of cancer, infectious diseases, and autoimmune conditions. Beyond healthcare, antibody technology is now essential for developing new tools to monitor the health of our environment, improve agricultural products, and build more resilient food sources.
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Clinically used broad-spectrum antibiotics compromise inflammatory monocyte-dependent antibacterial defense in the lungArticleHospital-acquired pneumonia (HAP) is the most common cause of hospital-acquired infections in the US and Europe. Antibiotic use is a significant risk factor for HAP but the mechanisms involved in this risk factor remain poorly understood. This recent study explored microbiome diversity and the impact of transplanting microbiota samples from antibiotic treated and antibiotic naive patients into wild type mice or those lacking short chain fatty acid (SCFA) receptors. These experiments highlighted the role of the naïve microbiota for inducing SCFAs that play a critical role in antimicrobial activity of inflammatory monocytes in the lung.
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Antibody-based sensors for multiplex point-of-care drug monitoringArticleTo improve point-of-care drug detection, scientists developed a multiplex drug monitoring sensor that uses antibodies to bind amphetamine, cocaine, or benzodiazepine1. The binding of these drugs reduces the oxidation current in a concentration dependent manner where higher concentrations of the drug cause a greater decrease in oxidation current. The sensor is selective for these drugs as interferences from analgesics and other illicit drugs had minimal effects on the current change.
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Boosting lateral flow immunoassay sensitivity by increasing antigen-antibody interaction time and test line antibody concentrationArticleLateral flow immunoassays (LFIAs) are useful tools for point of care diagnostic testing. Improving their sensitivity can help prevent the spread of viruses like SARS-CoV-2 by detecting infections earlier. In effort of lowering the limit of detection of their COVID-19 rapid antigen test, scientists at Hilab have developed a rapid test prototype called “lateral flow intermembrane immunoassay test” that brings the limit of detection to 2.0 ng/mL of SARS-CoV-2 nucleocapsid protein1.
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Beyond mAbs: The Unrealized Potential of VHH AntibodiesArticleWhen Georges Köhler and César Milstein cracked the code of fusing B cells with myeloid cells to create hybridomas in 1975, they didn’t just make a scientific breakthrough—they propelled the possibilities of personalized medicine into the future. This method of producing monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) to target specific antigens was so revolutionary it earned them the Nobel Prize in 1984.