The use of monoclonal antibodies in human prion disease

Detection of PrP and its pathological isoform(s) is the key to understanding the etiology and pathogenesis of transmissible spongiform encephalopathy. There is ample evidence that PrP isoforms constitute a major component of an unknown and per- haps unconventional infectious agent. An etiological relationship between human and zoonotic transmissible spongiform en- cephalopathies may be revealed with monoclonal antibodies. Knowledge of the conformational transition rendering a non- pathogenic, almost ubiquitous cellular protein into a pathogenic one is crucial to defining pathomechanisms. The stepwise or even continuous formation of pathogenic molecules can be monitored. Any improvement in the early diagnosis could help to conceive new therapeutic measures which are not currently available. Determination of PrP isoforms in tissue, cells, or body fluids may be of prognostic value. Many experimental approaches in molecular medicine and molecular biology of the prion protein already rely on monoclonal antibodies. Recombinant antibodies such as the single-chain Fv may soon replace traditional hybridoma techniques. Binding affinity can easily be manipulated by a number of techniques, including in vitro mutagenesis – a step which could never be carried out using the traditional hybridoma technology. Monoclonal antibodies are and will remain an essential support for ongoing research on the prion protein in general and on the unconventional infectious prions.