Search results
Results From The WOW.Com Content Network
Molecular mimicry has been characterized as recently as the 1970s as another mechanism by which a pathogen can generate autoimmunity. Molecular mimicry is defined as similar structures shared by molecules from dissimilar genes or by their protein products.
An autoimmune disease is a condition that results from an anomalous response of the adaptive immune system, ... This phenomenon, known as molecular mimicry, ...
Molecular mimicry – An exogenous antigen may share structural similarities with certain host antigens; thus, any antibody produced against this antigen (which mimics the self-antigens) can also, in theory, bind to the host antigens, and amplify the immune response.
However, if detected, this can lead to an autoimmune response because of the similarity of the epitopes on the microorganism and host antigen. Examples of this are seen in Streptococcus pyogenes and Borrelia burgdorferi. [2] It is possible, but uncommon for molecular mimicry to lead to an autoimmune disease. [2]
Molecular mimicry occurs when epitopes are shared between host antigens and Streptococcus antigens. [21] This causes an autoimmune reaction against native tissues in the heart that are incorrectly recognized as "foreign" due to the cross-reactivity of antibodies generated as a result of epitope sharing. The valvular endothelium is a prominent ...
Molecular mimicry may be particularly relevant to the tolerance breakdown linked to autoimmune neuropathies. The process known as "molecular mimicry" occurs when an infectious organism that shares epitopes from its host's afflicted tissue triggers an immune response in the host. However, only a small number of convincingly identified specific ...
Since these native molecules, as normal parts of the body, will naturally always exist in the body, the attacks against them can get stronger over time (akin to secondary immune response). Moreover, many organisms exhibit molecular mimicry, which involves showing those antigens on their surface that are antigenically similar to the host ...
In the early 1980s, Oldstone, with Robert Fujinami and others in his laboratory, discovered the phenomenon they named molecular mimicry, whereby viral products that are similar to host proteins can result in an autoimmune response because antibodies to the virus cross-react with host tissues.