Abstract
THE variable (V) regions of each immunoglobulin molecule carry unique antigenic determinants (idiotopes, Id)1,2. Anti-Id antibodies recognise not only the antibody, but also the V regions of antigen receptors on both T and B lymphocytes3,4, and it has been postulated that auto-anti-Id antibody5–10 (anti-antibody) may be an important homeostatic mechanism in immunoregulation11–13. An essential prerequisite for such a mechanism is that idiotypic determinants should be highly autoimmunogenic. In fact, although it has proved relatively easy to induce anti-Id antibodies by immunising allogeneic or xenogeneic individuals with immunoglobulins, induction of auto- or iso-anti-Id antibodies usually requires prolonged hyper-immunisation using potent adjuvants7,8,10. Recently, I showed that antibody, given as an antigen–antibody complex, acts as a very effective adjuvant for inducing immunological memory for antibody production14,15, and show here that antigen–antibody complexes also enhance the production of anti-antibodies.
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KLAUS, G. Antigen–antibody complexes elicit anti-idiotypic antibodies to self-idiotopes. Nature 272, 265–266 (1978). https://doi.org/10.1038/272265a0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/272265a0
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