title: [Monoclonals antibodies: a recent and major therapeutic advance].
abstract: Starting in the eighties, therapeutic monoclonal antibodies have profoundly modified the treatment of a number of diseases, such as cancer and chronic inflammatory diseases. The first monoclonal antibodies were of murine origin and had several drawbacks, notably low efficacy and immunogenicity. However, they initiated a breakthrough in therapeutics. Thanks to the development of biotechnology, the human part of the antibody was indeed progressively increased, leading to chimeric, humanized and, finally, fully human monoclonal antibodies. Even if the development of monoclonal antibodies is a complex process, and if some of them may trigger worrying adverse effects, their contribution to therapeutics is major. At present, about twenty monoclonal antibodies are on the market, and a large number is under development.
authors.affiliation: Université François-Rabelais de Tours, GICC, Tours, France. paintaud@med.univ-tours.fr
authors.forename: Gilles
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Paintaud
authors.forename: Fabien
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Lejarre
authors.forename: David
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Ternant
authors.forename: Philippe
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Goupille
authors.forename: Hervé
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Watier
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000911:Antibodies, Monoclonal / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D049673:History, 20th Century; D049674:History, 21st Century; D006801:Humans; D007074:Immunoglobulin G / Q000276:immunology / Q000627:therapeutic use; D007167:Immunotherapy / Q000266:history / Q000639:trends*; D009626:Terminology as Topic
chemical_list: D000911:Antibodies, Monoclonal; D007074:Immunoglobulin G