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Recombinant Neutralizing Antibodies, A New Generation of Antivenoms

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Toxinology

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Abstract

The detailed knowledge of the medically important components within the venoms from poisonous animals has prompted the rational generation of improved antivenoms. The new generation of antivenoms, in the case of scorpion envenoming, will be based on the neutralization of the toxins directed against mammalian ion channels, specifically sodium channels. The neutralization of the major toxic molecules declines the lethality of the whole venom. The next generation of antivenoms will depend substantially on the advancements in the field of antibody engineering. The accumulation of detailed information of antibody structure and function proposes that human recombinant antibodies in combination with phage display and directed evolution as a powerful in vitro biotechnological platform alternative to classical antivenoms or monoclonal antibodies for the generation of outstanding therapeutic antibodies. This biotechnological platform has allowed the isolation of safety and efficient recombinant neutralizing antibodies. Many antibody fragments generated using this platform bear exceptional properties that had not been reached using classical approaches. This review describes the great progress that has been achieved on the improvement of antivenoms against scorpion envenoming which have been generated using the already mentioned platform as compared with classical and/or hybridoma approaches.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Departamento de Medicina Molecular y Bioprocesos, Instituto de Biotecnología, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México (UNAM), Avendia Universidad No. 2001, Apartado Postal 510-3, 62250, Cuernavaca, Morelos, México

    Everardo Remi Rodríguez Rodríguez, Dr. Lidia Riaño Umbarila, Dr. Lourival D. Possani & Prof. Dr. Baltazar Becerril

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  1. Everardo Remi Rodríguez Rodríguez
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  2. Dr. Lidia Riaño Umbarila
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  3. Dr. Lourival D. Possani
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  4. Prof. Dr. Baltazar Becerril
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Correspondence to Baltazar Becerril .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, Singapore, Singapore

    P. Gopalakrishnakone

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Rodríguez, E.R.R., Umbarila, L.R., Possani, L.D., Becerril, B. (2013). Recombinant Neutralizing Antibodies, A New Generation of Antivenoms. In: Gopalakrishnakone, P. (eds) Toxinology. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-007-6647-1_25-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-007-6647-1_25-1

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