virus: BIO: Darwinian antibodies
Twirlip of Greymist (phoenix@ugcs.caltech.edu)
Tue, 24 Oct 1995 10:44:27 -0700 (PDT)
I read an interesting article in today's New York Times Science Times
section. Basically it was suggesting that antibodies may be developed
through variation and selection. Lots of antibodies are in storage, a
few of which will roughly match some new intruder. Those are selected
and extremely mutated in "the dark zone" and sent out to the "light
zone" to do battle. The more successful ones make it back to the dark
zone and are remutated and sent back out. This goes on for a few cycles
and is thought by the consulted immunologists to be a good explanation
of how the immune system churns out advanced antibodies in a short time.
Slainte,
-xx- Damien R. Sullivan X-) <*> http://www.ugcs.caltech.edu/~phoenix