MCIM 321 Lecture Notes - Lecture 7: Syngenic, Hapten, Epitope

• School: U of S
• Department: Microbiology and Immunology
• Course: MCIM 321
• Professor: Bretscher Peter

Document Summary

Clonal selection and the origin of antibody genes. In 1955, jerne put forward his selection theory of antibody formation, the first time a selection theory was proposed since ehrlich proposed his around 1901. These pre-existing antibodies he referred to as natural antibodies. He further suggested that natural antibodies specific for self antigens were eliminated during fetal life and therefore not available for later selection and multiplication. Jerne also proposed that the natural antibody, after binding to antigen, is brought to a random cell able to produce antibodies, where exact copies of it are produced. This proposal assumed that a protein, the natural antibody in this case, could give instructions to a cell for the protein"s own replication. This was inconsistent with the emerging discipline of molecular biology, according to which only the genetic material, composed of nucleic acid, could replicate and have an instructional role. In 1957, talmage proposed a modification of jerne"s theory.