Monoclonal
1022111
215139385
2008-05-26T21:54:35Z
Brutha
645336
[[Monoclonal]] cells are defined as a group of cells produced from a single ancestral cell by repeated cellular replication. Thus they can be said to form a single "[[cloning#Cellular cloning|clone]]".<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.medterms.com/script/main/art.asp?articlekey=4424|title=Medterms dictionary definition}}</ref> The process of replication can occur ''[[in vivo]]'', or may be stimulated ''[[in vitro]]'' for laboratory manipulations. The use of the term typically implies that there is some method to distinguish between the cells of the original population from which the single ancestral cell is derived, such as a random genetic alteration, which is inherited by the progeny.
The most common usages of this term are:
*[[Monoclonal antibodies]]: A single [[hybridoma]] cell, which by chance includes the appropriate [[V(D)J recombination]] to produce the desired antibody, is cloned to produce a large population of identical cells. In informal laboratory jargon the monoclonal antibodies isolated from [[cell culture]] [[supernatant]]s of these hybridoma clones (hybridoma "lines") are simply called "'''monoclonals'''".
*Monoclonal [[neoplasm]]s (tumors): A single aberrant cell which has undergone a [[oncogenic]] event unfortunately reproduces itself into a large cancerous mass.
==References==
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[[Category:Biology]]