antibodies Flashcards
why are antibodies examples of a protein with a quaternary structure
it has 4 polypeptide chains in total
what is the variable region on an antibody
contains antigen binding site
varies between antibodies due to differences in primary structure
what do disulfide bridges act between
2 cystenine amino acids
explain why antibodies are specific to 1 antigen
the antibody has a specific tertiary structure
the antibody has a binding site that is only complementary to 1 antigen
due to specific amino acid sequence
so antibody can only form an antigen-antibody complex with one antigen
when antibodies bind to antigens, what is the structure formed called
an antibody- antigen complex
how do antibodies destroy pathogens?
the pathogens clump together
(AGGLUTINATION)
this attracts phagocytes as more chemicals are released by the pathogens in one area therefore there is an increased rate of phagocytosis (due to phagocytes being able to engulf multiple pathogens at the same time
