Therapeutic applications of superantibodies

Superantibody technology represents a method to enhance the potency and utility of monoclonal antibodies. The blueprint for superantibody technology is taken from rare naturally occurring superantibodies with unique sequence regions, conferring specific biological functions not detected on most antibodies. In superantibody technology, peptides with specific amino acid sequences are crosslinked to antibodies using affinity-site-specific chemistry. Three types of superantibodies have been engineered: dimerizing superantibodies with enhanced effector potency, superantibodies with the ability to penetrate living cells and superantibodies as vaccines with built-in molecular adjuvant. Collectively, superantibody technology generates a new class of antibodies with higher levels of therapeutic potency.