The therapeutic potential of intracellular antibodies

Antibody engineering techniques permit the exploitation of the highly specific and diverse nature of the humoral immune system. Intracellular antibodies, consisting minimally of the antigen-binding domains of the parent immunoglobulin protein, may be used to manipulate microbial and cellular target molecules. Applications of this technology described to date include inhibition of replication of an infectious virus, downregulation of growth factor receptors, and inactivation of oncoproteins in cell culture systems. The ability to functionally manipulate virtually any target molecule using intracellular antibodies is clearly beneficial to basic science and molecular medicine.