Monoclonal Antibodies Practice Questions

Doctors can use a laboratory blood test to measure the level of the hormone thyroxine in a patient's blood. The test uses monoclonal antibodies.

The venom of some snakes contains a protein toxin that damages nerve cells.

Scientists have produced monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) that bind to this toxin. The mAbs can be injected into a person who has been bitten.

An ovulation test tells a woman when she is most likely to become pregnant. The test detects a hormone called LH in urine. LH is a protein.

Figure 1 shows the inside of an ovulation test strip.

• Zone A contains mAbs joined to a blue dye. These mAbs are not attached to the strip, so they move along the strip with the urine. They bind to LH.
• The results window contains a second type of mAb, which is fixed to the strip. This mAb also binds to LH.
• The control window contains antibodies, fixed to the strip, which bind to the mAbs from zone A.

A monoclonal antibody (mAb) has been developed that binds to a protein antigen found on the surface of bowel cancer cells. This protein is not found on the surface of healthy body cells.

A radioactive substance that kills cells is attached to the mAb. The mAb is then injected into the patient's blood.

Rheumatoid arthritis is a disease in which the joints become inflamed and painful.

Inflammation in the joints is caused by a protein called TNF. TNF causes inflammation by binding to receptors on the surface of cells in the joint.

Drug X is a monoclonal antibody that binds to TNF.

Table 1 shows the results of a study comparing drug X with a standard tablet treatment.

Treatment	Patients whose joint pain was reduced after 6 months in %	Patients with serious side effects in %	Cost per patient per year in £
Standard tablet	42	8	250
Drug X	68	19	9500