antibody

antibody A complex protein that is produced in response to the introduction of a specific antigen (which is normally foreign to it) into an animal. Antibodies are usually highly specific, combining only with antigens of a particular kind. Antibodies belong to a class of proteins called immunoglobins, which are formed by plasma cells in the blood as a defence mechanism against invasion by parasites, notably bacteria and viruses, either by killing them or rendering them harmless. The specificity of their binding reaction with a particular antigen is due to the configuration of a particular small area, known as the active site, on the surface of the antigens. Thus when a parasite (or its poisonous products) enters the tissues of its host, the antigens deriving from the parasite each produce a particular response according to the specific antibody that binds to that antigen. This ‘recognition’ by the host of the species or strain of parasite which has entered is sometimes applicable to other parasites should they share the same antigen. For example, the vaccinia and smallpox viruses share the same antigen so that immunity to one confers immunity to the other. Antibodies may persist in the body long after the disappearance of the antigen, so conferring immunity to any new infection by the same strain or species of parasite. Vaccination or inoculation provides immunity to an organism by the injection of particular foreign proteins (not necessarily from a parasite) which then stimulate the production of antibodies.