What is a key characteristic of monoclonal antibodies?

Monoclonal antibodies are indeed clones of a single parent immune cell. This characteristic is fundamental to their production and function. The process begins with the immunization of an animal, typically a mouse, which produces a diverse array of antibodies in response to an antigen. The specific immune cells that produce antibodies against this antigen are then isolated. These cells can be fused with myeloma cells to create hybridomas, which can proliferate indefinitely and produce large quantities of identical antibodies, or monoclonal antibodies.

This characteristic allows monoclonal antibodies to be consistent and specific to a single epitope on an antigen, making them invaluable for research, diagnostic, and therapeutic applications. The high specificity means that they can target specific cells or proteins, making them extremely useful in treatments for diseases, including various cancers and autoimmune disorders.

In contrast, the other options do not accurately define monoclonal antibodies. For instance, the production process does not rely on natural selection as in the case of polyclonal antibodies, which are produced from multiple immune cell clones. The functionalities of monoclonal antibodies are not diverse in the same way as polyclonal antibodies; they are specifically designed to target one particular epitope. Lastly, monoclonal antibodies are not