Autoantibodies - enemies, and/or potential allies?

Area of Science:

• Immunology
• Biochemistry
• Clinical Diagnostics

Background:

• Autoantibodies target self-antigens, causing autoimmune diseases.
• Despite harmful potential, autoantibodies are crucial for disease management.

Purpose of the Study:

• To critically assess the dual role of autoantibodies.
• To highlight their utility in diagnosis, prognosis, and therapy.
• To discuss challenges in autoantibody detection.

Main Methods:

• Literature review of autoantibody functions and applications.
• Analysis of autoantibodies in autoimmune diseases, cancers, and COVID-19.
• Evaluation of detection methodologies and their implications.

Main Results:

• Autoantibodies offer early disease detection and stability advantages over antigens.
• They enable enhanced diagnostics and prognostic predictions.
• Potential therapeutic applications of autoantibodies are being explored.

Conclusions:

• Autoantibodies present both detrimental and beneficial aspects in human health.
• Their detection is vital for advancing diagnostics and therapeutics.
• Further research into autoantibody detection and application is warranted.