Which process is used to prepare monoclonal antibodies?

The preparation of monoclonal antibodies primarily involves the process of fusing B lymphocytes with a plasma myeloma cell. This fusion creates hybrid cells known as hybridomas, which have the ability to both produce a specific antibody and replicate indefinitely.

The first step typically includes immunization of the host organism (like a mouse) with an antigen to stimulate the immune response. The B lymphocytes are then harvested from the spleen of the immunized animal, as these cells are responsible for producing antibodies specific to the introduced antigen. By fusing these B lymphocytes with myeloma cells (cancerous plasma cells that can divide indefinitely but do not produce antibodies), researchers create hybridomas that can proliferate and produce a uniform, high-yield source of a specific antibody. This capacity to grow continuously while producing the desired antibody is critical for generating monoclonal antibodies for various applications, including diagnostics and therapeutics.

Other methods, like using recombinant DNA technology, can be employed to produce different types of antibodies or modify them but are not the foundational method for creating traditional monoclonal antibodies. Similarly, injecting an antigen into a host organism is part of the initial process to induce an immune response but does not specifically pertain to the creation of monoc