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The first correct description of the antigen-antibody reaction was given by Richard J. Goldberg at the University of Wisconsin in 1952. [1] [2] It came to be known as "Goldberg's theory" (of antigen-antibody reaction). [3] There are several types of antibodies and antigens, and each antibody is capable of binding only to a specific antigen.
In immunology the particular macromolecule bound by an antibody is referred to as an antigen and the area on an antigen to which the antibody binds is called an epitope. In some cases, an immunoassay may use an antigen to detect for the presence of antibodies, which recognize that antigen, in a solution.
Each antibody binds to a specific antigen in a highly specific interaction analogous to a lock and key.. An antibody (Ab) or immunoglobulin (Ig) is a large, Y-shaped protein belonging to the immunoglobulin superfamily which is used by the immune system to identify and neutralize antigens such as bacteria and viruses, including those that cause disease.
If an antibody binds to an antigen's epitope, the paratope could become the epitope for another antibody that will then bind to it. If this second antibody is of IgM class, its binding can upregulate the immune response; if the second antibody is of IgG class, its binding can downregulate the immune response. [citation needed]
The cis-AB phenotype has a single enzyme that creates both A and B antigens. The resulting red blood cells do not usually express A or B antigen at the same level that would be expected on common group A 1 or B red blood cells, which can help solve the problem of an apparently genetically impossible blood group. [33]
In addition to the formed antibodies in the body there remains a small number of memory T and B cells that make up the cellular component of the immunological memory. They stay in blood circulation in a resting state and at the subsequent encounter with the same antigen these cells are able to respond immediately and eliminate the antigen.
The IgG, IgE and IgA antibody isotypes are generated following class-switching during germinal centre reaction and provide different effector functions in response to specific antigens. IgG is the most abundant antibody class in the serum and it is divided into 4 subclasses based on differences in the structure of the constant region genes and ...
Antibody-dependent cellular cytotoxicity. Antibody-dependent cellular cytotoxicity (ADCC), also referred to as antibody-dependent cell-mediated cytotoxicity, is a mechanism of cell-mediated immune defense whereby an effector cell of the immune system kills a target cell, whose membrane-surface antigens have been bound by specific antibodies. [1]