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Different antibodies have the potential to discriminate among specific epitopes present on the antigen surface. A hapten is a small molecule that can only induce an immune response when attached to a larger carrier molecule, such as a protein. Antigens can be proteins, polysaccharides, lipids, nucleic acids or other biomolecules. [4]
Antigen presentation stimulates immature T cells to become either mature "cytotoxic" CD8+ cells or mature "helper" CD4+ cells. An antigen-presenting cell (APC) or accessory cell is a cell that displays an antigen bound by major histocompatibility complex (MHC) proteins on its surface; this process is known as antigen presentation.
This antigen presentation pathway enables the immune system to detect transformed or infected cells displaying peptides from modified-self (mutated) or foreign proteins. [ 5 ] [ 6 ] In the presentation process, these proteins are mainly degraded into small peptides by cytosolic proteases in the proteasome , but there are also other cytoplasmic ...
The immunoglobulin superfamily (IgSF) is a large protein superfamily of cell surface and soluble proteins that are involved in the recognition, binding, or adhesion processes of cells. Molecules are categorized as members of this superfamily based on shared structural features with immunoglobulins (also known as antibodies); they all possess a ...
The term immunoglobulin can then refer to both forms. Since they are, broadly speaking, the same protein, the terms are often treated as synonymous. [4] To allow the immune system to recognize millions of different antigens, the antigen-binding sites at both tips of the antibody come in an equally wide variety.
An epitope, also known as antigenic determinant, is the part of an antigen that is recognized by the immune system, specifically by antibodies, B cells, or T cells.The part of an antibody that binds to the epitope is called a paratope.
The human leukocyte antigen (HLA) system is a complex of genes on chromosome 6 in humans that encode cell-surface proteins responsible for regulation of the immune system. [1] The HLA system is also known as the human version of the major histocompatibility complex (MHC) found in many animals.
However, strictly speaking, immunogenicity refers to the ability of an antigen to induce an adaptive immune response. Thus an antigen might bind specifically to a T or B cell receptor, but not induce an adaptive immune response. If the antigen does induce a response, it is an 'immunogenic antigen', which is referred to as an immunogen.