Monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) are highly specific proteins with diverse diagnostic and therapeutic applications.
Cryptosporidium parvum is a protozoan parasite that causes severe diarrhoeal illness, particularly dangerous in immunocompromised patients. Researchers have developed monoclonal antibodies targeting the parasite's surface proteins.
Cryptosporidium parvum can be diagnosed by detecting oocysts in a patient's stool sample. A thin smear of the stool sample is fixed onto a microscope slide. Describe how monoclonal antibodies conjugated to a green fluorescent marker could be used to detect and identify the presence of Cryptosporidium parvum oocysts on the slide.
In laboratory trials, these therapeutic mAbs were shown to bind to a specific surface glycoprotein on Cryptosporidium parvum, preventing the parasite from attaching to and invading the host's intestinal epithelial cells. Explain how preventing this attachment and invasion helps the patient recover from the infection.
The therapeutic mAb has successfully cleared infections in animal models and tissue cultures without showing toxicity. It is now ready for clinical trials on humans. Describe how these clinical trials should be designed and conducted.
Suggest one reason why monoclonal antibodies containing humanised protein regions are more successful in treating patients than fully mouse-derived monoclonal antibodies.