5. Molecs of Spec Recog I Flashcards
antigen (def)
a molecular structure that can be recognized by lymphocytes
immunogen (def)
subset of antigens that actually induces an immune response in an individual
epitope (def)
antigenic determinant
3 things that determine immunogenicity of an antigen?
- induction of the innate immune system and adjuvants 2. induction of B and T cell collaboration 3. discrimination of self and foreign antigens
T-dependent vs T-indep antigens
T dependent: some protein antigen is required for activation of a helper T cell and then a B cell; T independent: fraction of B cells can recognize a subset of structures (complex polysaccharides or LPS) without T cell help
hapten
How can small, even inorganic, compounds serve as antigens? Such small molecules are called haptens. They do not elicit antibody responses by themselves, but can induce responses if chemically bound to a large protein antigen called carrier. The hapten-carrier complex will induce a response that consists of some antibodies that are specific for the hapten and some that are specific for the carrier. The antibody recognizes the hapten. The carrier is neede to stimulate T-cells which help the humoral response
T cell receptors only recognize ____ epitopes
linear
how do you separate the antigen binding andeffector domains of antibodies/immunoglobulin?
proteolytic cleavage: papain (2 fab and 1 fc) or pepsin (fab2 [both arms together] and 1 fc)….50,000-70,000 Da = heavy chains (so two together are 100,000 to 140,000….27,0000 Da = light chains (so 54,000 for two together)
what does Fab stand for?
fragment antigen binding
what does Fc stand for?
fragment crystallizable (it’s the effecotr portion of the Ab)
what regions of antibodies determine the hypervariability?
CDR (complementarity determining regions) they are portions that are very different, even between two otherwise very closely realted V domains (are hypervariable)
PCN hypersensitivity
Penicillin is a hapten that normally cannot induce an immune response. It is also a drug, however, that binds to plasma proteins (“carrier”) at a certain concentration shortly after administration. While most people are naturally tolerant to their plasma proteins, in some the drug coupled to its carrier induces immune recognition and, typically, IgE production (sensitization). Upon re-exposure to the drug, circulating IgE can bind to the free, soluble penicillin (hapten recognition), the complex is bound by Fc receptors on mast cells which induces rapid degranulation and release of histamine and other inflammatory mediators that cause an immediate hypersensitivity reaction, occasionally leading to fatal anaphylactic shock. 3-6% of people react to penicillin at least in a skin test, and about 0.004-0.015% develop anaphylactic shock.
what are the two major light chains?
kappa and gamma
in most cases, the light chains are joined to the heavy chains by what?
intermolecular disulfide bonds
the heavy chains of antibodies are composed of how many Ig domains?
5-6
immunoglobulins bind the antigen with which domain?
N-terminal V-domains (7-8 Beta sheets connected by alpha helices)
what are Framework regions (FRs)?
very similar portions of discrete immunoglobulin V domains
There are __ CDRs and ___ FWRs in Ig proteins
3; 4
what are the two heterodimers of TCRs?
aBTCR and the gdTCR, which are always expressed mutually exclusively in two different lineages of T cells, the aBT cells and the gdT cells, respectively. In humans, aBT cells make up >95% of all T cells and represent the major arm of the adaptive cellular immune response. The functions of gdT cells are less well understood. gdTCRs typically recognize antigens that are structurally very different from the aBTCR, in many aspects more similar to immunoglobulins, as some gdTCRs may interact with soluble non-peptidic molecules, as well as with soluble proteins. The aBTCR, with very few exceptions, recognizes only linear, peptide antigens associated with MHC proteins.
immunoglobulins bind to antigens with a wirde range of affinities on the order of what?
10^-7 to 10^-11
Antibodies undergo __________ to increase their binding or form _________ in order to achieve higher avidity of binding.
affinity maturation; multimeric complexes
what are the three levels that lead to diversity of the human antigen receptor repertoire?
combinatorial diversity, junctional diversity, heterodimerization