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By defying the classical rules of antibody engineering, researchers have constructed an antibody that is readily shuttled into the brain. The results suggest that the approach could be used to generate antibody-based therapies for brain diseases.
Antibodies — proteins used by the immune system to neutralize damaging foreign substances — are prized both in nature and in the laboratory because they are highly specific. But researchers in academia and industry are increasingly striving to make antibodies that bind to more than one target.
"We're about to see a wave of bispecific antibodies," says Ryan Watts, a neurobiologist at Genentech, a biotechnology firm based in San Francisco, California, that pioneered the development of therapeutic antibodies and is now a division of the Swiss pharmaceutical giant, Roche. "They are the hot topic in the field."
But few of those antibodies will be able to penetrate the shield of tightly packed cells known as the blood–brain barrier, which protects the brain from blood-borne intruders such as bacteria, but also keeps out most large drug molecules. Antibody concentrations in the brain are typically about a thousand times lower than in the blood, says Watts. Continue to read: nature.com
Prebiotics may keep students healthy during stressful periods
Daily supplements of prebiotic fibers may boost the immune system and gut health during periods of heightened stress, suggests a new study with students at exam time. Read more: nutraingredients-usa.com
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