This is a vivid portrayal of the life and achievements of Georges Köhler, who at age 38 shared a 1984 Nobel Prize with N.K. Jerne and C. Milstein for inventing the technique that generates monoclonal antibodies. That same year, Köhler became a co-director of the Max-Planck-Institute for Immunobiology; his unfortunate death in 1995 cut short an extraordinary career. Written to commemorate the 10 th anniversary of his passing, this scientific biography explains Köhler's pivotal discovery and its momentous influence on research, medicine and the biotech industry in a style understandable to the general public and discussed in the historical context of immunological research.

Describes the discovery of a pivotal technology Vivid portrayal of a Nobel Prize Winner Tribute to an outstanding figure in immunological research Important contribution to the history of immunology

Inhalt
The time before.- A short history of the antibody problem.- The immunological scene around Köhler.- Köhler's entry into science.- The quest for monoclonal antibodies.- Cell fusion.- Köhler in Cambridge.- Back in Basel.- The patent disaster.- The time after.- The Max-Planck-Institute of Immunobiology.- Getting Köhler to Freiburg.- Köhler's Max-Planck-Institute.- Human relations.- Post-Nobel science I.- Post-Nobel science II.- Köhler's death.- Magic bullet.- The antibody problem today not quite solved.