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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 .
Epitope spreading, also known as determinant spreading, is another common way in which autoimmunity can occur which uses the molecular mimicry mechanism. Autoreactive T cells are activated de novo by self epitopes released secondary to pathogen-specific T cell-mediated bystander damage. [16]
A well-known example of a hapten is urushiol, which is the toxin found in poison ivy. When absorbed through the skin from a poison ivy plant, urushiol undergoes oxidation in the skin cells to generate the actual hapten, a reactive quinone -type molecule, which then reacts with skin proteins to form hapten adducts.
Note how the segments widely separated in the primary structure have come in contact in the three-dimensional tertiary structure forming part of the same epitope [1] In immunology, a conformational epitope is a sequence of sub-units (usually amino acids) composing an antigen that come in direct contact with a receptor of the immune system.
Recognition of epitopes in a linear fashion. Note: the same (colored) segment of protein can be a part of more than one epitopes. In immunology, a linear epitope (also sequential epitope) is an epitope—a binding site on an antigen—that is recognized by antibodies by its linear sequence of amino acids (i.e. primary structure).
A neoepitope is an epitope the immune system has not encountered before. Therefore it is not subject to tolerance mechanisms of the immune system. [4] As the mutant gene product is only expressed in tumors and is not found in non-cancerous cells, neoepitopes may evoke a vigorous T cell response. [5]
In a cell, protein molecules of the host's own phenotype or of other biologic entities are continually synthesized and degraded. Each MHC molecule on the cell surface displays a small peptide (a molecular fraction of a protein) called an epitope. [3] The presented self-antigens prevent an organism's immune system from targeting its own cells ...
An epitope that can be attacked by many different B cells is said to be highly immunogenic. In these cases, the binding affinities for respective epitope-paratope pairs vary, with some B cell clones producing antibodies that bind strongly to the epitope, and others producing antibodies that bind weakly. [1]