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Immunology Lecture Notes: Antigens and Antigenicity

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Immunology Lecture Notes: Antigens & Antigenicity. Dept. Microbiology & Parasitology-

Antigens and Antigenicity

Antigen: A substance that can induce an immune response.

Essential features of antigens:

1- It is essential that molecules first be recognized as foreign if they are to
stimulate the immune system.
2- Processing that antigens must undergo places physical and chemical
restrictions on the types of foreign molecules that can stimulate the
immune system.
3- Most effective antigens are:
a. Large.
b. Rigid.
c. Chemically complex. “Molecules that are not totally chemically
inert”.

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Immunology Lecture Notes: Antigens & Antigenicity. Dept. Microbiology & Parasitology-

Factors that influence antigenicity:

Antigenicity: The ability of a molecule to be recognized by antibodies or
lymphocytes.

1- Molecular size: Large molecules are better antigens then small molecules.
a- Hemocyanin a very large protein from the blood of invertebrates (6.7x10 )
KDa is a potent antigen.

b- Serum albumin from other mammal (69 KDa) is a fairly good antigen.

c- Hormone angiotensin (1031 Da) is a poor antigen.

Very small molecules may, however, bind to large proteins, and the resulting complexes
may provoke an immune response.

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Immunology Lecture Notes: Antigens & Antigenicity. Dept. Microbiology & Parasitology-

2- Complexity: The more complex an antigen is the better.

a- Starch and other simple repetitive polysaccharides are poor

antigens.
b- Complex bacterial lipopolysaccharides (LPS) are good antigens.
c- Complex proteins are better antigens than large repeating polymers
such as lipids, carbohydrates and nucleic acids.

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Immunology Lecture Notes: Antigens & Antigenicity. Dept. Microbiology & Parasitology-

3- Structural stability:
In order to recognize a molecule as a foreign the immune system must
recognize its shape.

a- Highly flexible molecules that have no fixed shape are poor

antigens, e.g. gelatin (protein with structural instability). It is poor
antigen unless it is stabilized by incorporation of tyrosine or
tryptophan molecules.
b- Flagellin, major protein of bacterial flagella, is structurally
unstable weak antigen.

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Immunology Lecture Notes: Antigens & Antigenicity. Dept. Microbiology & Parasitology-

4- Degradability:
Not all foreign molecules are capable of stimulating an immune
response.
e.g. Stainless steel pins and plastic joints are implanted in the body
without triggering an immune response.
The lack of antigenicity of the large, inert organic polymers is due to
their molecular uniformity and their inertness.
Foreign molecules that are unstable and destroyed very rapidly may not
provide sufficient antigen to stimulate an immune response.

5- Foreignness:
The suppression of cells that react with normal body components (self-
antigens) occur because these cells are exposed to self-antigen when
immature (usually early in fetal life) and consequently eliminated
(selectively killed or otherwise suppressed).

a- Trauma testes (or vasectomy) ---------------- Anti-sperm antibodies.

b- Extensive cell destruction (heart attack) ------- anti-mitochondrial
antibodies.
Immunogenicity: The difference in the ability of foreign molecules to
stimulate an immune response.

Autoantigens:
In some situations (and not always abnormal ones) an animal may mount immune
responses against normal body components. These are called autoimmune
responses. Antigens that induce autoimmunity are called autoantigens.

Autoantigens ------------------------ Autoimmune responses --------Autoantibodies.

1- Hormones (thyroglobuline).

2- Structural components (basement membranes).

3- Complex lipids (myelin).

4- Introcellular components (mitochondrial proteins).

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Immunology Lecture Notes: Antigens & Antigenicity. Dept. Microbiology & Parasitology-

5- Nuclic acids.

6- Nucloproteins.

7- Cell surface proteins.

Some specific antigens

General comments:

Any molecule that is immunogenic must also be antigenic, but the reverse need to
be true.

1- Proteins are the best antigens because of:

a. Molecular size.
b. Structural complexity.
2- Polysaccharides (starch and glycogen) are not good antigens:
a. Readily degraded within cells.
3- Lipids are poor antigens:
a. Relative simplicity.
b. Structural instability.
c. Rapid metabolism

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Immunology Lecture Notes: Antigens & Antigenicity. Dept. Microbiology & Parasitology-

Non microbial antigens :

- Snake venoms.
- Mosquito bite.
- Pollen grains.
- Serum proteins.
- Milk and food proteins (Macromolecules of diet).
- Antibody molecules.
- Histocompatibilty antigens (Organ grafts).

Bacterial antigens
1- Capsule (K-antigen) capsular antigen.

2- Cell wall (O-antigen) somatic antigen.

3- Flagellum (H-antigen) flagellar antigen.

4- Pili (F-antigen).

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Immunology Lecture Notes: Antigens & Antigenicity. Dept. Microbiology & Parasitology-

Salmonella has been classified into more than 2000 species on the basis of O-
antigen.

Anticapsular antibodies ------------------ help infected animals.

Viral antigens
The capsid proteins are good antigens, highly capable of provoking antibodies.

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 Immunology Lecture Notes: Antigens & Antigenicity. Dept. Microbiology & Parasitology-

Cell-surface antigens
1- Histocompatibility antigens: on WBCs ------------ graft rejection.

2- Clusters of Differentiation (CD): Lymphocytes possess large number of

different surface proteins each of which possesses many distinct epitopes.

e.g. CD ------------- denotes a protein of specific function.

CD4 is associated with cells that help immune response.

CD8 is found on cells that suppress immune response.

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