Antibodies, experimentally induced

In a longitudinal study of experimentally induced malarial infection in rodents, the serum IgM made a relatively higher contribution early in infection, but both IgG and IgM malarial antibody persisted throughout the period of study for 2 months (C20). 

With this background information, we outline the experimental data that supports the notion that anti-ganglioside antibodies can induce nerve fiber injury in animal models and briefly review the effects of these antibodies on nodes of Ranvier and motor nerve terminals. Two animal models that provide proof of concept that anti-ganglioside antibocUes with -GMl and -GDla specificities can induce neuropathy. 

Experimentally induced vitamin A deficiency in animats results in anorexia (loss of appetite), lack of growth, infections, and xerophthalmia. Often death from infections precedes the onset of xerophthalmia. Vitamin A deficiency results in an impairment of antibody production, as well as damage to the epithelial linings of the respiratory and gastrointestinal tracts. Both results allow invasion by pathogenic organisms. 

The interpretation of experimentally derived infected/vaccinated antibody response must be done carefully. The particular strain of organism, route of exposure, and dose are just a few variables that may stimulate an antibody response be that is quantitatively and qualitatively atypical of natural infection in the target population. The same is true of vaccination. Therefore, it is essential that experimentally induced antibody responses are relevant to those occurring in natural outbreaks of disease caused by the same infectious agent, otherwise the estimates of relative D-SN and D-SP may be in error. Because of the difficulty of equivalence in responses of naturally infected and experimentally infected/vaccinated animals, the relative D-SN and D-SP data derived from such animals should be considered as an adjunct criterion and should not be used alone to determine a new assay s relative D-SN and D-SP. 

In contrast, immunochemical techniques which have already shown a sensitivity sufficient to distinguish single from double-stranded complexes and two-stranded hehces from triple-stranded complexes may be extremely useful in such studies. Indeed, recent work using spontaneous antibodies such as those found in systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) sera, as well as experimentally induced antibodies, has demonstrated immunochemical differences between different double-stranded hehcal complexes and it is clear that development of this approach will be extremely fruitful. 

III. Experimentally-Induced Antisynthetic-Polynucleotide Complex Antibodies. Role of the Conformation of the Immimogen 1. General Considerations... 

Although in most cases the experimentally induced antibodies react like the natural antibodies with nucleic acids from various sources, it is possible to induce antibodies specific for a particular DNA, for a polydeoxyribonuc-leotide complex or even to obtain antibodies reacting selectively with certain kinds of natural RNA. 

Studies of the specificities of experimentally induced antipolynucleotide antibodies have yielded some information on the antigenic determinants which could exist in a molecule of nucleic acid. Like the antibodies to proteins or synthetic polypeptides, antibodies to polynucleotides can be directed against different antigenic determinants derived from sequential regions as well as conformational factors in the molecule. Since antibodies in which the specificity is associated with the heterocyclic bases are obtained by use of single-stranded polynucleotides or certain components of nucleic acids it is thus evident that the bases themselves can be included among the antigenic determinants of polynucleotides. 

In addition to antibodies targeting the CD3 subunit of the TCR complex, antibodies against the a and (3 subunits of the TCR have been tested as therapeutic agents. A benefit for the treatment experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis or collagen induced arthritis could be shown in animal models [8]. 

Lavasani S, Dzhambazov B, Andersson M (2007) Monoclonal antibody against T-cell receptor alphabeta induces self-tolerance in chronic experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis. Scand J Immunol 65 39-47... 

Wada T, Tomosugi N, Naito T, et al. Prevention of proteinuria by the administration of anti-interleukin 8 antibody in experimental acute immune complex-induced glomerulonephritis. J Exp Med 1994 180 1135-1140. 

A reasonable objection to any in vitro model is whether it accurately mirrors the actual process. A strength of this model is that the peptides in the array, mounted on the microscope glass slide, are the very same as the antibody epitopes in the native proteins. Therefore, the types of formaldehyde-induced chemical reactions at or near the epitope are the same as would likely occur in a tissue sample. An additional strength of the model is that the experimental data using the peptide array completely account for the loss of immunoreactivity after formalin fixation and the recovery of immunoreactivity after antigen retrieval (Fig. 16.5). Nonetheless, our data do not prove that the model accurately represents formaldehyde reactions in tissue specimens. For example, our data do not exclude other causes of steric interference. 

Treatment — Because patients generally are exposed to small amounts of S. enterotoxin B toxin as a result of eating contaminated food (e.g., ham, salads with mayonnaise, and unrefrigerated cream dishes), they often have some protective antibodies. However, if the antibodies are overwhelmed by a terrorist-induced dosage, treatment with steroids should mollify patients symptoms. Further treatment would be supportive care, especially compensating for oxygen and fluid losses. While no vaccines are available, experimental vaccines in development have shown promise.3... 

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