title: Therapeutic potential of yeast killer toxin-like antibodies and mimotopes.
abstract: This review focuses on the potential of yeast killer toxin (KT)-like antibodies (KTAbs), that mimic a wide-spectrum KT through interaction with specific cell wall receptors (KTR) and their molecular derivatives (killer mimotopes), as putative new tools for transdisease anti-infective therapy. KTAbs are produced during the course of experimental and natural infections caused by KTR-bearing micro-organisms. They have been produced by idiotypic vaccination with a KT-neutralizing mAb, also in their monoclonal and recombinant formats. KTAbs and KTAbs-derived mimotopes may exert a strong therapeutic activity against mucosal and systemic infections caused by eukaryotic and prokaryotic pathogenic agents, thus representing new potential wide-spectrum antibiotics.
authors.affiliation: Sezione di Microbiologia, Dipartimento di Patologia e Medicina di Laboratorio, Università degli Studi di Parma, Viale Antonio Gramsci 14, 43100 Parma, Italy. magliwal@unipr.it
authors.forename: Walter
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Magliani
authors.forename: Stefania
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Conti
authors.forename: Antonella
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Salati
authors.forename: Simona
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Vaccari
authors.forename: Lara
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Ravanetti
authors.forename: Domenico L
authors.initials: DL
authors.lastname: Maffei
authors.forename: Luciano
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Polonelli
mesh_terms: D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D000888:Antibodies, Anti-Idiotypic / Q000276:immunology / Q000627:therapeutic use; D000908:Antibodies, Fungal / Q000276:immunology* / Q000627:therapeutic use; D000911:Antibodies, Monoclonal / Q000276:immunology / Q000627:therapeutic use; D002176:Candida albicans / Q000276:immunology; D002177:Candidiasis / Q000276:immunology / Q000628:therapy; D006801:Humans; D007116:Immunization, Passive / Q000379:methods; D055646:Killer Factors, Yeast; D018716:Molecular Mimicry / Q000276:immunology*; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D009183:Mycotoxins / Q000276:immunology*; D010843:Pichia / Q000276:immunology*; D014611:Vaccination / Q000379:methods
chemical_list: D000888:Antibodies, Anti-Idiotypic; D000908:Antibodies, Fungal; D000911:Antibodies, Monoclonal; D055646:Killer Factors, Yeast; D009183:Mycotoxins; C087906:killer toxin, Pichia