Glossary

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Antibody-dependent cellular cytotoxicity (ADCC): A mechanism of monoclonal antibody-based cancer therapy by which natural killer cells, T cells, and macrophages recognize and kill antibody-labeled target cells.
Auristatin: A cytotoxic agent that functions as an inhibitor of tubulin polymerization.

Calicheamicin: A natural product member of the enediyne class of antitumor antibiotics that generates double strand DNA breaks.
CC-1065: A novel antibiotic, produced by Streptomyces zelensis, active against several experimental tumors in vivo and a broad spectrum of human tumor cells in vitro.
Cytotoxic: Pertaining to a toxin or antibody that has a specific toxic action upon cells of special organs.

Disulfide: A compound of a base with 2 atoms of sulfur.
Doxorubicin: An anthracycline antibiotic produced by Streptomyces peucetius var. caesius having one of the widest spectrums of antitumor activity of any antineoplastic agent.

Endocytosis: The uptake by a cell of material from the environment by invagination of its plasma membrane.

Hydrazone: A compound containing the group –NH·N:C–, formed from an aldehyde or ketone by the action of phenylhydrazine or other hydrazine.

Linker: The chemical structure connecting an antibody with a cytotoxic drug in an ADC.

Maytansinoid: A derivative of the natural product originally derived from the African shrub Maytenus ovatus.
Methotrexate: A folic acid antagonist that inhibits the synthesis of DNA, RNA, thymidylates, and protein. It is used as a cytotoxic in a wide range of malignancies, including breast cancer.
Microtubule inhibitors: Microtubule inhibitors (MTIs) are a class of cytotoxic agents that act on microtubules, which play an important role in cell division and are therefore critical for rapidly dividing cancer cells. Microtubule inhibitors include agents such as taxanes, vinca alkaloids, and epothilones that are used against many solid and hematologic malignancies.

Stroma: The matrix or supporting tissue of an organ, as distinguished from its parenchyma, or functional element.

Target antigen: A tumor-specific antigen, usually a protein, found on the surface of a tumor cell that is the binding target for the monoclonal antibody component of an ADC.
Thioether: A sulfur ether; an ether in which sulfur replaces oxygen.

Vinca alkaloids: Vinca alkaloids are a class of microtubule inhibitor that prevent polymerization of microtubules by blocking the region involved in tubulin dimer attachment. They have also been shown to induce apoptosis in some solid tumors.