The present invention provides novel monoclonal antibodies that bind specificallyto IL- 6. The antibodies of the invention comprise a variable heavy chain (VH)region selected from any of the VH regions disclosed herein as well as amino acidvariants thereof, and/or a variable light chain (VL) region selected from anyof the VL regions disclosed herein as well as amino acid variants thereof. Theinvention also provides methods of treating diseases and disorders associatedwith IL-6 expression and/or activity.