The Benefits Of Using Antibody Conjugation To Deliver Drugs
Antibody conjugation has been a major step in the development of new therapies for different types of treatments. In this process, drugs are coupled with antibodies so as to enhance their delivery to the desired site of action. It is a treatment technique that has come to be popularly known as targeted therapy. The entire complex is known as an antibody drug complex or simply, ADC. ADCs are now commonly used in the treatment of cancer and other conditions.
There are numerous advantages of conjugating drugs. The traditional chemotherapeutic techniques had very little ability to differentiate between normal and abnormal tissues and frequently resulted in great damage to the normal tissues. With the advantage of ADCs, this side effect is slowly becoming a thing of the past. The synergism between the monoclonal antibodies and the chemotherapeutic agents has been shown to significantly reduce hospital stay.
The science behind this process is quite complex but we will try and look at the main things that happen. The main components that are required are an anticancer drug that may be either be a cell toxin or a cytotoxin is joined to a monoclonal antibody which specifically targets specific tumour markers. Each tumour in the body secretes specific substances and it is these substances that are not produced by any other tumour types.
When the complex enters the blood stream, the monoclonal antibodies react with antigens found on target cells and form a link. A signal is sent into the cell and absorption of the complex takes place. Once internalization takes place, the drug is released from the complex and destroys the cancer cell. This makes it a very target specific process and large doses of the complex can be administered without the fear of serious side effects.
It is important that the link between the two components is stable. There are many types of links that exist including peptides, disulfides and thioethers. The peptides and the disulfides are cleavable while the thioethers are non-cleavable. Both types have been shown to be safe through clinical trials. The ADCs that are available commercially may either fall in either category. Those that have cleavable links are usually combined with some type of an enzyme.
Apart from using this process for drug delivery, many other applications exist. For instance, it is used in delivering radionuclide agents to specific targets. This process is a variant of radiotherapy and is known as immunotherapy. It has a huge advantage over conventional radiotherapy due to its ability to deliver the agents to the precise targets hence has very limited side effects. It is also a good method for treating metastatic tumours.
There are several advantages attributable to the use of this technique. For instance, the tumours have to be tested for identification of tumour markers. This undertaking is not only expensive but requires technical knowhow that may not be always readily available. The other advantage is that the dose of drug that eventually reaches the targeted site may not be lethal enough due to dilution in the blood stream.
Antibody conjugation has greatly helped in the development of new therapies and their delivery. Research efforts to fine tune this technique are ongoing. The main aims are to reduce the associated disadvantages and to enhance drug potency at the site of action.
There are numerous advantages of conjugating drugs. The traditional chemotherapeutic techniques had very little ability to differentiate between normal and abnormal tissues and frequently resulted in great damage to the normal tissues. With the advantage of ADCs, this side effect is slowly becoming a thing of the past. The synergism between the monoclonal antibodies and the chemotherapeutic agents has been shown to significantly reduce hospital stay.
The science behind this process is quite complex but we will try and look at the main things that happen. The main components that are required are an anticancer drug that may be either be a cell toxin or a cytotoxin is joined to a monoclonal antibody which specifically targets specific tumour markers. Each tumour in the body secretes specific substances and it is these substances that are not produced by any other tumour types.
When the complex enters the blood stream, the monoclonal antibodies react with antigens found on target cells and form a link. A signal is sent into the cell and absorption of the complex takes place. Once internalization takes place, the drug is released from the complex and destroys the cancer cell. This makes it a very target specific process and large doses of the complex can be administered without the fear of serious side effects.
It is important that the link between the two components is stable. There are many types of links that exist including peptides, disulfides and thioethers. The peptides and the disulfides are cleavable while the thioethers are non-cleavable. Both types have been shown to be safe through clinical trials. The ADCs that are available commercially may either fall in either category. Those that have cleavable links are usually combined with some type of an enzyme.
Apart from using this process for drug delivery, many other applications exist. For instance, it is used in delivering radionuclide agents to specific targets. This process is a variant of radiotherapy and is known as immunotherapy. It has a huge advantage over conventional radiotherapy due to its ability to deliver the agents to the precise targets hence has very limited side effects. It is also a good method for treating metastatic tumours.
There are several advantages attributable to the use of this technique. For instance, the tumours have to be tested for identification of tumour markers. This undertaking is not only expensive but requires technical knowhow that may not be always readily available. The other advantage is that the dose of drug that eventually reaches the targeted site may not be lethal enough due to dilution in the blood stream.
Antibody conjugation has greatly helped in the development of new therapies and their delivery. Research efforts to fine tune this technique are ongoing. The main aims are to reduce the associated disadvantages and to enhance drug potency at the site of action.
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Title: The Benefits Of Using Antibody Conjugation To Deliver Drugs
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