Zvaná přednáška – Hidde Ploegh

Antibodies have long been essential reagents in the biochemist’s toolbox to characterize and manipulate the antigens they recognize. The discovery that camelids produce immunoglobulins lacking light chains enabled the development of nanobodies, the recombinantly expressed variable regions of ‘heavy chain only’ immunoglobulins. Their small size, exceptional stability and ease of chemical modification have expanded the use of nanobodies across all realms of biology. Specific applications will be discussed. Of particular interest has been the deployment of nanobodies to manipulate the immune response and to visualize the cells that participate in adaptive immunity. This includes the imposition of antigen-specific tolerance by means of nanobodies that recognize Class II Major Histocompatibility antigens and the use of nanobodies for non-invasive imaging of the anti-tumor immune response by positron emission tomography (PET). Further examples include the generation of novel and potent nanobody-based anti-viral agents. While current approaches for the development of nanobodies continue to rely on immunization of llamas or alpacas, de novoprotein design methods will likely play an increasingly important role and may eliminate the need for immunization altogether.