Bispecific antibodies and targeted cellular cytotoxicity.

The Second International Conference on Bispecific Antibodies (BsAbs) and Targeted Cellular Cytotoxicity considered how targeted cytotoxicity can be used (1) to increase understanding of the general mechanisms of cellular cytotoxicity and (2) clinically in the treatment of cancer and infectious disease. BsAbs, the main mediators of targeted cellular cytotoxicity, can be made by chemical crosslinking, by fusing hybridoma cells and by molecular genetic approaches. BsAbs bind to target cells via one V region and trigger molecules such as T-cell receptors (TCRs) or FcR for IgG (Fc gamma R) on cytotoxic cells via their other V region. This linking of triggering structures to target cells induces target cell lysis and provides important clues to the signals used to elicit the lytic process.