Milstein, César (1927-)

Argentine-born British molecular biologist who developed monoclonal antibodies, giving immunity against specific diseases. He shared the Nobel Prize for Physiology or Medicine 1984 with Georges Köhler and Niels Jerne (1911-1994). Monoclonal antibodies are cloned cells that can be duplicated in limitless quantities and, when introduced into the body, can be targeted to seek out sites of disease. Milstein and his colleagues had thus devised a means of accessing the immune system for purposes of research, diagnosis, and treatment. Milstein was born in Bahia Blanca and studied at Buenos Aires. From 1963 he worked in the UK at the Laboratory of Molecular Biology, Cambridge, and later became joint head of its Protein Chemistry Division. Milstein and his colleagues were among the first to determine the complete sequence of the short, low-molecular-weight part of the immunoglobulin molecule (known as the light chain). He then determined the nucleotide sequence of a large portion of the messenger RNA for the light chain. His findings led him to the technique for preparing monoclonal antibodies.