
Polyclonal B cell response is a natural mode of immune response exhibited by the
adaptive immune system
The adaptive immune system (AIS), also known as the acquired immune system, or specific immune system is a subsystem of the immune system that is composed of specialized cells, organs, and processes that eliminate pathogens specifically. The ac ...
of
mammals
A mammal () is a vertebrate animal of the class Mammalia (). Mammals are characterised by the presence of milk-producing mammary glands for feeding their young, a broad neocortex region of the brain, fur or hair, and three middle e ...
. It ensures that a single
antigen
In immunology, an antigen (Ag) is a molecule, moiety, foreign particulate matter, or an allergen, such as pollen, that can bind to a specific antibody or T-cell receptor. The presence of antigens in the body may trigger an immune response.
...
is recognized and attacked through its overlapping parts, called
epitope
An epitope, also known as antigenic determinant, is the part of an antigen that is recognized by the immune system, specifically by antibodies, B cells, or T cells. The part of an antibody that binds to the epitope is called a paratope. Although e ...
s, by multiple
clones of
B cell
B cells, also known as B lymphocytes, are a type of the lymphocyte subtype. They function in the humoral immunity component of the adaptive immune system. B cells produce antibody molecules which may be either secreted or inserted into the plasm ...
.
In the course of normal immune response, parts of
pathogen
In biology, a pathogen (, "suffering", "passion" and , "producer of"), in the oldest and broadest sense, is any organism or agent that can produce disease. A pathogen may also be referred to as an infectious agent, or simply a Germ theory of d ...
s (e.g.
bacteria
Bacteria (; : bacterium) are ubiquitous, mostly free-living organisms often consisting of one Cell (biology), biological cell. They constitute a large domain (biology), domain of Prokaryote, prokaryotic microorganisms. Typically a few micr ...
) are recognized by the immune system as foreign (non-self), and eliminated or effectively neutralized to reduce their potential damage. Such a recognizable substance is called an
antigen
In immunology, an antigen (Ag) is a molecule, moiety, foreign particulate matter, or an allergen, such as pollen, that can bind to a specific antibody or T-cell receptor. The presence of antigens in the body may trigger an immune response.
...
. The immune system may respond in multiple ways to an antigen; a key feature of this response is the production of
antibodies
An antibody (Ab) or immunoglobulin (Ig) is a large, Y-shaped protein belonging to the immunoglobulin superfamily which is used by the immune system to identify and neutralize antigens such as bacteria and viruses, including those that caus ...
by B cells (or B lymphocytes) involving an arm of the immune system known as
humoral immunity
Humoral immunity is the aspect of immunity (medical), immunity that is mediated by macromolecules – including secreted antibodies, complement proteins, and certain antimicrobial peptides – located in extracellular fluids. Humoral immunity is ...
. The antibodies are soluble and do not require direct cell-to-cell contact between the pathogen and the B-cell to function.
Antigens can be large and complex substances, and any single antibody can only bind to a small, specific area on the antigen. Consequently, an effective immune response often involves the production of many different antibodies by many different B cells against the ''same'' antigen. Hence the term "polyclonal", which derives from the words ''poly'', meaning many, and ''clones'' from Greek ''klōn'', meaning sprout or twig;
a clone is a group of cells arising from a common "mother" cell. The antibodies thus produced in a polyclonal response are known as
polyclonal antibodies
Polyclonal antibodies (pAbs) are antibodies that are secreted by different B cell lineages within the body (whereas monoclonal antibodies come from a single cell lineage). They are a collection of immunoglobulin molecules that react against a s ...
. The
heterogeneous
Homogeneity and heterogeneity are concepts relating to the uniformity of a substance, process or image. A homogeneous feature is uniform in composition or character (i.e., color, shape, size, weight, height, distribution, texture, language, i ...
polyclonal antibodies are distinct from
monoclonal antibody
A monoclonal antibody (mAb, more rarely called moAb) is an antibody produced from a cell lineage made by cloning a unique white blood cell. All subsequent antibodies derived this way trace back to a unique parent cell.
Monoclonal antibodie ...
molecules, which are identical and react against a single epitope only, i.e., are more specific.
Although the polyclonal response confers advantages on the immune system, in particular, greater probability of reacting against pathogens, it also increases chances of developing certain autoimmune diseases resulting from the reaction of the immune system against native molecules produced within the host.
Humoral response to infection
Diseases which can be transmitted from one organism to another are known as
infectious disease
An infection is the invasion of tissue (biology), tissues by pathogens, their multiplication, and the reaction of host (biology), host tissues to the infectious agent and the toxins they produce. An infectious disease, also known as a transmis ...
s, and the causative biological agent involved is known as a
pathogen
In biology, a pathogen (, "suffering", "passion" and , "producer of"), in the oldest and broadest sense, is any organism or agent that can produce disease. A pathogen may also be referred to as an infectious agent, or simply a Germ theory of d ...
. The process by which the pathogen is introduced into the body is known as
inoculation
Inoculation is the act of implanting a pathogen or other microbe or virus into a person or other organism. It is a method of artificially inducing immunity against various infectious diseases. The term "inoculation" is also used more generally ...
,
[The term ''"inoculation"'' is usually used in context of active immunization, i.e., deliberately introducing the antigenic substance into the host's body. But in many discussions of infectious diseases, it is not uncommon to use the term to imply a spontaneous (that is, without human intervention) event resulting in introduction of the causative organism into the body, say ingesting water contaminated with ]Salmonella typhi
''Salmonella enterica'' subsp. ''enterica'' is a subspecies of ''Salmonella enterica'', the rod-shaped, flagellated, aerobic, Gram-negative bacterium. Many of the pathogenic serovars of the ''S. enterica'' species are in this subspecies, includin ...
—the causative organism for typhoid fever
Typhoid fever, also known simply as typhoid, is a disease caused by '' Salmonella enterica'' serotype Typhi bacteria, also called ''Salmonella'' Typhi. Symptoms vary from mild to severe, and usually begin six to 30 days after exposure. Often th ...
. In such cases the causative organism itself is known as the ''inoculum'', and the number of organisms introduced as the "dose of inoculum". and the organism it affects is known as a
biological host. When the pathogen establishes itself in a step known as
colonization
475px, Map of the year each country achieved List of sovereign states by date of formation, independence.
Colonization (British English: colonisation) is a process of establishing occupation of or control over foreign territories or peoples f ...
,
[
] it can result in an
infection
An infection is the invasion of tissue (biology), tissues by pathogens, their multiplication, and the reaction of host (biology), host tissues to the infectious agent and the toxins they produce. An infectious disease, also known as a transmis ...
,
consequently harming the host directly or through the harmful substances called
toxin
A toxin is a naturally occurring poison produced by metabolic activities of living cells or organisms. They occur especially as proteins, often conjugated. The term was first used by organic chemist Ludwig Brieger (1849–1919), derived ...
s it can produce.
This results in the various
symptom
Signs and symptoms are diagnostic indications of an illness, injury, or condition.
Signs are objective and externally observable; symptoms are a person's reported subjective experiences.
A sign for example may be a higher or lower temperature ...
s and
signs characteristic of an infectious disease like
pneumonia
Pneumonia is an Inflammation, inflammatory condition of the lung primarily affecting the small air sacs known as Pulmonary alveolus, alveoli. Symptoms typically include some combination of Cough#Classification, productive or dry cough, ches ...
or
diphtheria
Diphtheria is an infection caused by the bacteria, bacterium ''Corynebacterium diphtheriae''. Most infections are asymptomatic or have a mild Course (medicine), clinical course, but in some outbreaks, the mortality rate approaches 10%. Signs a ...
.
Countering the various infectious diseases is very important for the survival of the
susceptible organism, in particular, and the species, in general. This is achieved by the host by eliminating the pathogen and its toxins or rendering them nonfunctional. The collection of various
cell
Cell most often refers to:
* Cell (biology), the functional basic unit of life
* Cellphone, a phone connected to a cellular network
* Clandestine cell, a penetration-resistant form of a secret or outlawed organization
* Electrochemical cell, a de ...
s,
tissues and
organ
Organ and organs may refer to:
Biology
* Organ (biology), a group of tissues organized to serve a common function
* Organ system, a collection of organs that function together to carry out specific functions within the body.
Musical instruments
...
s that specializes in protecting the body against infections is known as the
immune system
The immune system is a network of biological systems that protects an organism from diseases. It detects and responds to a wide variety of pathogens, from viruses to bacteria, as well as Tumor immunology, cancer cells, Parasitic worm, parasitic ...
. The immune system accomplishes this through direct contact of certain
white blood cell
White blood cells (scientific name leukocytes), also called immune cells or immunocytes, are cells of the immune system that are involved in protecting the body against both infectious disease and foreign entities. White blood cells are genera ...
s with the invading pathogen involving an arm of the immune system known as the
cell-mediated immunity, or by producing substances that move to sites ''distant'' from where they are produced, "seek" the disease-causing cells and toxins by specifically
[''Specificity'' implies that two different pathogens will be actually viewed as two distinct entities, and countered by different antibody molecules.] binding with them, and neutralize them in the process–known as the
humoral arm of the immune system. Such substances are known as soluble antibodies and perform important functions in countering infections.
[Actions of antibodies:
* Coating the pathogen, preventing it from adhering to the host cell, and thus preventing colonization
* Precipitating (making the particles "sink" by attaching to them) the soluble antigens and promoting their clearance by other cells of immune system from the various tissues and blood
* Coating the microorganisms to attract cells that can engulf the pathogen. This is known as ]opsonization
Opsonins are extracellular proteins that, when bound to substances or cells, induce phagocytes to phagocytose the substances or cells with the opsonins bound. Thus, opsonins act as tags to label things in the body that should be phagocytosed (i.e. ...
. Thus the antibody acts as an ''opsonin''. The process of engulfing is known as phagocytosis
Phagocytosis () is the process by which a cell (biology), cell uses its plasma membrane to engulf a large particle (≥ 0.5 μm), giving rise to an internal compartment called the phagosome. It is one type of endocytosis. A cell that performs ph ...
(literally, ''cell eating'')
* Activating the complement system
The complement system, also known as complement cascade, is a part of the humoral, innate immune system and enhances (complements) the ability of antibodies and phagocytic cells to clear microbes and damaged cells from an organism, promote inf ...
, which most importantly pokes holes into the pathogen's outer covering (its cell membrane
The cell membrane (also known as the plasma membrane or cytoplasmic membrane, and historically referred to as the plasmalemma) is a biological membrane that separates and protects the interior of a cell from the outside environment (the extr ...
), killing it in the process
* Marking up host cells infected by viruses for destruction in a process known as Antibody-dependent cell-mediated cytotoxicity
Antibody-dependent cellular cytotoxicity (ADCC), also referred to as antibody-dependent cell-mediated cytotoxicity, is a mechanism of Cell-mediated immunity, cell-mediated immune defense whereby an effector cell of the immune system kills a target ...
(ADCC)
White blood cell
White blood cells (scientific name leukocytes), also called immune cells or immunocytes, are cells of the immune system that are involved in protecting the body against both infectious disease and foreign entities. White blood cells are genera ...
in protecting the host against the pathogen. Their soluble forms which carry out these functions are produced by
s, a type of white blood cell. This production is tightly regulated and requires the activation of B cells by activated
s (another type of white blood cell), which is a sequential procedure. The major steps involved are:
*Specific or nonspecific recognition of the pathogen (because of its antigens) with its subsequent engulfing by B cells or
s. This activates the B cell only ''partially''.
*
of the B cell by ''activated'' T cell resulting in its ''complete'' activation.
*
of B cells with resultant production of soluble antibodies.
"'' antigens; they may express the molecules on their surface or release them into the surroundings (body fluids). What makes these substances recognizable is that they bind very specifically and somewhat strongly to certain host proteins called ''
''. The same antibodies can be anchored to the surface of cells of the immune system, in which case they serve as
, or they can be secreted in the blood, known as soluble antibodies. On a molecular scale, the proteins are relatively large, so they cannot be recognized as a whole; instead, their segments, called
s, can be recognized.