Q&A: A discussion on monoclonal antibodies in veterinary medicine

Tirnovetmab (Befrena; Elanco Animal Health) injection, a new anti-IL-31 monoclonal antibody (mAb) treatment, was recently announced as launching for canine allergic and atopic dermatitis treatment¹ and is one of the latest mAb therapies USDA-approved for veterinary medicine. In a dvm360 interview Jennifer Miller, DVM, medical strategic lead of dermatology at Elanco Animal Health, discusses some mAb therapies, the federal approval process that is bringing them to market and how they are advancing veterinary medicine.

The following is a partial transcript of the interview that has been edited for clarity and length:

Jennifer Miller, DVM: Hi, I'm Dr. Jennifer Miller. I'm a veterinarian at Elanco Animal Health. I'm a Purdue University graduate and practiced for a while in small animal general practice in Chicago area, and in central Indiana. I then joined Elanco and had a variety of roles: product support, adverse event reporting, the medical strategy team for our pet health vaccines, and then moving over to US dermatology.

dvm360: Let’s talk about your work with monoclonal antibodies. First, what is a monoclonal antibody therapy?

Miller: A monoclonal antibody therapy is really the forefront of innovation for veterinary medicine. We've seen this on the human medicine side, and then now we're adapting some of that for veterinary medicine. It's really exciting. These are highly purified, targeted therapies for a specific condition, and so what we've seen in veterinary medicine, we've seen this for infectious disease, like what we saw with canine parvovirus monoclonal antibody coming to market, now known as Trutect.²

We've also seen this in the dermatology space. Elanco received USDA approval in December 2025 for an anti-IL-31 monoclonal antibody targeting itch [tirnovetmab injection (Befrena; Elanco Animal Health)],¹ and then we do have other monoclonal antibodies in veterinary medicine for pain, and there's even some for in the oncology space as well. So this is really a targeted innovation for veterinary medicine of these highly purified, very targeted molecules directed for these specific conditions.

dvm360: What can you tell us about the approval process for bringing monoclonal antibodies to market?

Miller: So for Trutect, we first saw this come to market as a conditional approval for USDA, and at that time it was known as canine parvovirus monoclonal antibody.² What I want people to know is that conditional approval for USDA products is granted whenever there's a true unmet need for a product, so for the case of Trutect, that product was granted USDA conditional approval, because there was nothing in the market to treat canine parvovirus before that moment in time. We just had symptomatic and supportive care to get these puppies through their illness.

The USDA was really encouraged by the safety and efficacy data that we submitted to them, and said, ‘Hey, this stuff looks like it's really working. Let's go ahead and grant conditional approval for this molecule, and get this into veterinarian's hands to go ahead and save these puppies' lives sooner rather than later.’ After that conditional approval, we had some time in market where we were getting additional data, and then we received the full approval, and that also included the passive immunity claim. So now Trutect is fully approved in market,² we have both a treatment claim and a passive immunity claim for parvovirus. What that impact is for veterinarians, is now they have this this molecule in their clinic that can treat parvovirus and can also be a very good prevention for parvovirus and [help] these guys from even getting sick in the first place.

dvm360: And how can veterinarians and pet owners access Trutect?

Miller: If you're wanting to learn more about Trutect, I would encourage veterinarians and animal owners to go first to defeatparvo.com There. are a lot of resources on that website. There's even ordering information. If you're looking at it from a clinic, you can find out how to order Trutect from that website, but there's a lot of great resources there on defeatparvo.com

dvm360: What drew your interest towards working with monoclonal antibodies, and especially for its use in fighting parvovirus? And what motivates you to stay in the field?

Miller: I really had this interest in working in infectious disease and with monoclonal antibodies, because this is groundbreaking innovation, right? Like, we really don't have a ton of monoclonal antibodies in veterinary medicine, and seeing more and more of these molecules come to market is the embodiment of advancement in veterinary medicine. In my practice career, I worked in an area where we saw a lot of parvovirus, and it's such a devastating disease. So, whenever I heard that the first monoclonal antibody that Elanco was coming to market with was against parvovirus, I was like, ‘hey, sign me up. I've seen this disease. It is terrible. I would be happy to be part of the team to bring this molecule to market and to educate veterinarians on how this molecule can really change the game and how they treat parvovirus.’ That was really an exciting project to be part of, whenever that one came to market.

Now I've switched over my professional focus into dermatology, and dermatology has its own, set of challenges, right? These are chronic conditions, dogs with itch tend to have itch for a long time. We talk about managing that condition. We're not typically curing that condition, and so now see being part of the team that's brought forth Befrena to market as a second anti-IL-31 monoclonal antibody, that's just been really exciting, because we know how devastating itch is for animal owners and for pets. We need more options as veterinarians to provide itch relief for these dogs, and so it's super exciting to see Befrena come to market here with product getting to veterinarians here soon to see how that's going to work in their hands.

dvm360: What's next for your work with monoclonal antibody therapies?

Miller: I started with infectious disease, supporting the pet health vaccines, and then the parvovirus monoclonal antibody. Now I've shifted professional focus over to dermatology and focusing on solutions for those itchy dogs. We know that dogs struggle with itch, and that these are chronic conditions, so I have focused my professional attention to working on products like Zenrelia [ilunocitinib tablets], our once daily JAK inhibitor, an oral JAK inhibitor, and then now with Befrena, our USDA-approved anti-IL-31 mAb… I'm just really excited to be bringing more advancement into the dermatology space, offering veterinarians more options to provide itch relief for their pets.

dvm360: Lastly, what else would you like other veterinary professionals to know?

Miller: I just would really like to emphasize to veterinarians out there [that] the veterinary degree is so broad and so exciting. It opens so many doors for you. I personally thought I was going to own a private practice, and I was going to be a general practitioner, and that I was going to hang my name on the shingle, and that was going to be my career path. But I leaned in and said ‘yes’ to different opportunities along my career path, and it has opened all these doors. Now I'm working on the forefront of dermatology, JAK inhibitors, monoclonal antibodies, things that I've never thought I would work on in my life, and it's been so exciting. So lean in to the opportunities don't feel isolated, reach out to your friends and coworkers and colleagues, because this degree is vast and there's a lot of opportunity here.

References

1. Crossley KC. New mAb injection is launching for canine allergic and atopic dermatitis treatment. dvm360. May 18, 2026. Accessed May 22, 2026. https://www.dvm360.com/view/new-mab-injection-is-launching-for-canine-allergic-and-atopic-dermatitis-treatment
2. Crossley KC. USDA grants full approval for novel canine parvovirus therapy. dvm360. December 16, 2026. Accessed May 22, 2026. https://www.dvm360.com/view/usda-grants-full-approval-for-novel-canine-parvovirus-therapy