1927- . Argentine molecular biologist who
developed monoclonal antibodies, giving
immunity against specific diseases. He shared
the Nobel Prize for Medicine 1984. Milstein,
who settled in Britain 1961, was engaged on
research into the immune system at the
Laboratory of Molecular Biology in Cambridge.
He and his colleagues devised a means of
accessing the immune system for purposes of
research, diagnosis, and treatment. They
developed monoclonal antibodies (MABs),
cloned cells that, when introduced into the
body, can be targeted to seek out sites of
disease. The full potential of this
breakthrough is still being investigated.
However, MABs, which can be duplicated in
limitless quantities, are already in use to
combat disease. Milstein shared the Nobel
Prize for Medicine with two colleagues,
George Kohler and Niels Jerne. Milstein and
his colleagues, while working at Britain's
Cambridge University, devised a means of
accessing the immune system for purposes of
research, diagnosis, and treatment. They
developed monoclonal antibodies (MABs),
cloned cells that, when introduced into the
body, can be targeted to seek out sites of
disease. The full potential of this
breakthrough is still being investigated.
However, MABs, which can be duplicated in
limitless quantities, are already in use to
combat disease. Milstein shared the Nobel
Prize for Medicine with two colleagues,
George Kohler and Niels Jerne.