Although the utility of human antibodies as medical therapeutics for cancer and immune diseases has been well-established, it is only beginning to be realized for the treatment of viral infectious diseases. Polyclonal immunoglobulins have long been used for some viral diseases, but they have limited potency and disease scope. It should theoretically be possible to create monoclonal or oligoclonal antibody preparations that capture the essential curative functions of the humoral immune response to viral pathogens, yet only a single humanized monoclonal antibody (pavilizumab) has been approved as a viral countermeasure. Reliable technologies for creating human or humanized antibodies with defined viral antigen specificities are well-established. Accordingly, current antibody development efforts are focused on identifying and cloning the particular antibodies that contain the fundamental curative potency of the polyclonal humoral immune response.

Therapeutic Control of Hepatitis C Virus: The Role of Neutralizing Monoclonal Antibodies.- Antibodies for HIV Treatment and Prevention: Window of Opportunity?.- Human Monoclonal Antibody and Vaccine Approaches to Prevent Human Rabies.- Immunoprophylaxis of RSV Infection: Advancing from RSV-IGIV to Palivizumab and Motavizumab.- The Molecular Basis of Antibody Protection Against West Nile Virus.- Exploring the Native Human Antibody Repertoire to Create Antiviral Therapeutics.