Making high-affinity T-cell receptors: a new class of targeted therapeutics

The last two decades have seen the development of an expanding array of monoclonal antibodies, which are proving to be effective treatments for both cancer and autoimmune disease. A related protein, the human T-cell receptor (TCR), is able to access a new range of targets for which antibodies are unsuitable, and is being developed as a new class of protein therapeutics. Similar to antibodies, TCRs have a specific target and therefore a limited potential for side effects; however, a possible drawback with these receptors is that their natural affinity is low. This problem has recently been overcome using phage display to increase TCR affinity up to a million-fold.