How Avelumab works

Avelumab (Avelumab) is a human recombinant monoclonal IgG1 antibody directed against programmed cell death ligand-1 (PD-L1). It has unique immunomodulatory activity and is used as a checkpoint inhibitor in cancer immunotherapy. Programmed cell death receptor 1 (PD-1) is an important checkpoint molecule expressed on activated T and B cells. Binding of ligands to PD-1 activates the programmed cell death pathway and terminates or downregulates cytotoxic T cell responses. Monoclonal antibodies that bind PD-L1 prevent its binding to the PD receptor and subsequently induce cellular pathways that downregulate T cell responses. Inhibition of this pathway allows sustained activation and proliferation of T cell responses.