Strategies for the selection of catalytic antibodies against organophosphorus nerve agents

Abstract

Among the strategies aimed at biocompatible means for organophosphorus nerve agents neutralization, immunoglobulins have attracted attention in the 1990's and 2000's both for their ability to immobilize the toxicants, but also for their ability to be turned into enzymatically active antibodies known as catalytic antibodies or abzymes (antibodies--enzymes). We will present here a critical review of the successive strategies used for the selection of these nerve agent-hydrolyzing abzymes, based on hapten design, namely antibodies raised against a wide variety of transition state analogs, and eventually the strategies based on anti-idiotypic antibodies and reactibodies.