Scheme of Work Cambridge International as & a level

11.2.2 Outline the hybridoma method for the production of monoclonal antibodies.

11.2.3 Outline the principles of using monoclonal antibodies in the diagnosis of disease and in the treatment of disease.

11.2.4 Describe the differences between active immunity and passive immunity and between natural immunity and artificial immunity.

11.2.5 Explain that vaccines contain antigens that stimulate immune responses to provide long-term immunity.

11.2.6 Explain how vaccination programmes can help to control the spread of infectious diseases.

Illustrate the importance of complementary molecule binding by asking learners to work in pairs to model antibody action. One member of each pair makes a range of shapes using modelling clay, representing antigens. The other member of the pair makes antibodies that will bind to these antigens. (I)

Give learners statements that describe the stages of the process to make monoclonal antibodies and ask them to arrange them into a logical order. Learners undertake independent research into current developments in the use of monoclonal antibodies in medicine. Learners prepare a poster or presentation to summarise the use of a specific antibody for this purpose. (I)

Learners suggest meanings for the term immunity and write out a common definition. Help them construct a table to compare natural active, artificial active, natural passive and artificial passive immunity. The comparisons must consider the exposure to antigen, presence or absence of an immune response, clonal selection, secretion of antibody molecules by plasma cells and immunological memory.

Learners read online sources related to monoclonal antibodies, such as www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/cancer/in-depth/monoclonal-antibody/art-20047808. They think of appropriate analogies to describe the action of these molecules. One example is as a magnet: show how passing a magnet over the top of a range of magnetic items will result in only some binding.

Learners consider the effective features of a global vaccination programme.