Targeted therapy of autoimmune diseases using monoclonal antibodies

Abstract

Autoimmune diseases are chronic immune-mediated disorders characterized by loss of tolerance to self-antigens and persistent inflammation that leads to progressive tissue damage. Rheumatoid arthritis, multiple sclerosis, and Crohn’s disease belong to the most clinically significant autoimmune conditions because of their chronic course, relapsing activity, and major impact on quality of life. Over the last decades, monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) have become one of the most important classes of biological therapeutics in modern medicine. Their clinical value is based on high specificity toward defined molecular targets and the possibility of selective modulation of pathogenic immune pathways rather than nonspecific immunosuppression. European Medicines Agency (EMA) recognizes mAbs as a large and important class of therapeutic biologicals with a very broad range of clinical indications, while also emphasizing that many mAbs are associated with unwanted immunogenicity that may impair response or contribute to adverse reactions. The therapeutic significance of mAbs in autoimmune diseases is determined by their ability to interfere with key pathogenic mechanisms