Role of bi-specific monoclonal antibodies in immunodiagnostic assay

This review paper highlights the use of bi-specific monoclonal antibodies (bsMAb) inthe diagnostic assays for the early detection of pathogens of human infectious diseases suchas severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS), chikungunya (CHIKV), tuberculosis (TB) anddengue. Bi-specific monoclonal antibodies (bsMAb) are unique and artificially engineeredmacromolecules with two distinct binding sites, and are capable of binding two differentantigens non-covalently. However, the traditional methods of diagnosis such as virus orbacterial isolation, and PCR amplification are quite expensive and time consuming. Bispecificmonoclonal antibodies (bsMAb) are versatile, and can increase the specificity andsensitivity of detection in the suspected individuals. Therefore, immunodiagnostic assaysusing bsMAb are less expensive, and a large number of clinical samples could be analyzed ata faster rate for the detection of pathogens within a stipulated time. This could allow indeveloping a cost effective diagnostic kit, which is very useful particularly in the developingcountries for the early assessment of the disease outbreak.