Canadian Medical Guide > Biological Sciences > Biological Phenomena, Cell Phenomena, and Immunity > Immunity > Antibody Diversity Terms and Definitions

Antibody Diversity

Medical Definition:	The phenomenon of immense variability characteristic of ANTIBODIES, which enables the IMMUNE SYSTEM to react specifically against the essentially unlimited kinds of ANTIGENS it encounters. Antibody diversity is accounted for by three main theories: (1) the Germ Line Theory, which holds that each antibody-producing cell has genes coding for all possible antibody specificities, but expresses only the one stimulated by antigen; (2) the Somatic Mutation Theory, which holds that antibody-producing cells contain only a few genes, which produce antibody diversity by mutation; and (3) the Gene Rearrangement Theory, which holds that antibody diversity is generated by the rearrangement of VARIABLE REGION gene segments during the differentiation of the ANTIBODY-PRODUCING CELLS.
Also Called:	Germ Line Theory
Previously Indexed:	Antibodies (1966-1969),Antibody Specificity (1970-1979)

CANADIAN MEDICAL GUIDE

Thank you for visiting Canadian Medical Guide .com