Antibodies, produced in our bodies by specialized immune cells, are capable of binding, blocking, and eliminating a wide variety of invaders, such as the viruses that cause flu or COVID-19. Monoclonal antibodies with a highly specific target and function can now be designed and produced in the laboratory, and used to treat conditions from viral infection to autoimmune inflammation to cancer. The Rawlings and Pepper labs have developed a collaborative platform to discover, copy, produce, and test new antibodies that may be useful in treating a wide range of diseases, from malaria to a bacterial lung infection that is a common complication of cystic fibrosis. This platform incorporates technologies for isolating and sequencing single rare cells of interest; cloning, expressing, and purifying useful quantities of the desired antibodies; and testing antibody function in biochemical assays, cell cultures, and living animals.
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