Engineering Multivalent Antibody Fragments for In Vivo Targeting

Antibodies, especially in the genetically engineered form, provide a powerful and diverse set of reagents for the recognition of biological structures. Of key importance to those in the antibody field are advances in genomics and proteomics, fostered by technology such as gene-expression profiling, protein microarrays, and high-throughput validation assays, which are providing a multitude of new protein targets for investigation. In parallel, antibody technologies such as phage display (Chapter 8 ) and ribosome display (Chapter 9 ), are providing agents to specifically recognize these novel targets, with broad future applications in detection and intervention in fields as diverse as human health, agriculture, and the environment.