Antibodies are produced by the immune system in response to antigens (material perceived as foreign. The antibody response to a particular antigen is highly specific and often involves a physical association between the two molecules. This association...

Antigenic mimicry is the sharing of antigenic sites between microorganisms and mammalian tissue. An immune response can be directed both at the microorganism and at the host site that shares the antigenic determinant. This autoimmune response due to...

A foreign substance, usually a protein, capable of stimulating an antibody response for body defense. Any substance that, when introduced parenterally into an individual lacking the substance, stimulates the production of an antibody that, when mixed...

Any substance (usually a foreign protein) that stimulates the production of ANTIBODIES. See also: ALLERGY;...

An antigen or immunogen is a molecule that sometimes stimulates an immune response. The word originated from the notion that they can stimulate antibody generation. We now know that the immune system does not only consist of antibodies. The modern...

Blood banks look at the United States' Hispanic population boom and see an unexpected potential to save thousands of lives: The possibility of more so-called universal blood donors.It turns out that Latinos are more likely than the average American to have Type O blood, the...

The government ordered enough vaccine Monday to protect an additional 2.7 million people against bird flu, adding to a stockpile for use in an outbreak of the deadly virus. The $199 million in contracts went to three companies _ Novartis...

Blood banks look at the nation's Hispanic population boom and see an unexpected potential to save thousands of lives: the possibility of more so-called universal blood donors.It turns out that Latinos are more likely than the average American to have Type O blood, the type...