Kohler’s Invention

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.