Abstract:SummaryAntibodies have multiple biological activities. They can both recognize and act on specific antigens. They can protect against and cause serious diseases, enhance and inhibit antibody responses, enable survival, and threaten life. Which among their many, often antagonistic properties explains that antibodies were selected half a billion years ago and transmitted to mammals across millions of generations? In other words, what is the function of antibodies? Here I examine how their structure endows antibo… Show more
Set email alert for when this publication receives citations?
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.