Theories of antibody formation

Mankind has for decades benefited from the in vitro use of antibodies. Nevertheless, the basic mechanisms of antibody formation in vivo have been known for less 

Pauling s theory differed from those of the others in that he suggested that the primary structure of any antibody was identical and that selectivity arose from differences in the conformation of the antibody induced by the antigen template. Although this theory was later proven to be incorrect, the method he suggested to validate this hypothesis was imaginative  

---

While MIPs are part of the current nanorevolution, its roots are found in Pauling s theory of antibody formation. Although the particulars were wrong, the general concept is good. 

Jeme, N.K. (1955). The natural-selection theory of antibody formation. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 41, 849-857. 

For 15 years, however, until a new, more powerful theory of antibody formation was put forward, Paulings idea led the field. His antibody work again expanded his growing reputation as a master of many fields. 

MIMs are also included in this group, as their development was inspired by the instructional theory of antibody formation, and they have often been referred to as artificial antibodies . 

Mazumdar, P.M.H. The template theory of antibody formation and the chemical synthesis of the twenties. In Immunology 1930 1980 Essays on the History of Immunology, Mazumdar, P.M.H., Ed. Wall and Thompson Toronto, 1989, 13-33. 

Perhaps not surprisingly the development of molecular imprinting in polymers has been stimulated by the development of theories for antibody formation and the mechanism of enzymatic reactions. As early as 1932, Mudd [31] postulated not only that ... antibody synthesis occurs from amino acids or peptides at the... 

The first experimental application of this concept was reported in the seminal work of Dickey, who, in 1949, stated that silica, adsorbed with methyl orange, showed preferential absorption properties towards the same structure. Dickey, hypothesising the mechanism with which the specific adsorption was generated, invoked Pauling s antibody formation theory This mechanism is the same as that proposed by Pauling for the formation of antibodies with use of antigen molecules as a template. [4],... 

At a lecture delivered in Philadelphia s Franklin Institute on March 17, 1949, Pauling reported some of the results from Dickey s experiments [23]. Silica gels had been prepared by procedures analogous to the formation of antibodies , i.e. in accordance with the selective theory, and the study was published later the same year [24]. The method described involved polymerisation of sodium silicate in the presence of a dye. Four different dyes were used, namely methyl, ethyl, /i-propyl and -butyl orange (Fig. 1.3). As much as possible of the dye was subsequently removed, and in rebinding experiments it was found that silica prepared in the presence of any of these pattern moleeules would bind the pattern molecule in preference to the other three dyes. Table 1.2 shows the selective increase in pattern dye sorption capacities of the gels as related to a control gel, prepared in the absence of dye. 

The concept of this technique was inspired by Pauling s antibody formation theory. An antigen is used as a template to aid in the rearrangement of antibody polypeptide chains, so that the antibody having a three-dimensional configuration complements the antigen molecule. " Successful imprints on synthetic organic polymers were achieved in the 1990 and the MIP... 

In a historical perspective, the inspiration for molecular imprinting may be traced to two main sources. The first is Linus Pauling, who proposed an instructional theory for the formation of antibodies [8]. Figure 2 depicts Pauling s theory, which suggested that an antibody in some initially nonspecific configuration adopts a new. 

Figure 2 A cartoon of Pauling s instructive theory for the formation of how antibodies may be formed. An unspecific antibody precursor, represented as an oligomeric entity here, comes in contact with an antigen and engulfs a portion of the antigenic surface. In this contact formation, the antibody precursor would adopt a complementary structure to the antigen. In Pauling s theory, the antibody precursor would then mature to a specific antibody for that particular antigen and would then retain its conformation and specificity even after dissociation. Note it is now known that the conformation and specificity of antibodies is purely dependent on the genetic code. Antibodies originate from specific cell clones and details about the mechanism of the immune system can be found in biochemistry textbooks [9].

---