Characteristics of Antigen
There are certain properties of an antigen that makes them a good immunogen. These are:
- With exceptions to auto-antigens (self-antigens), all antigens should be foreign to the host’s body.
- Chemically they should be proteins, peptides, polysaccharides, lipids, or nucleic acids only.
- Their chemical structure should be more complex in nature to be more immunogenic i.e. combination of different types of amino acids, monosaccharides, or even a combination of lipid and nucleic acid with proteins and carbohydrates.
- Their molecular size should be greater than 5000 Da to be considered immunogenic. However, partial antigens or haptens have lower molecular weight but they have to be coupled with large-sized carriers to show immunogenicity.
- They must possess regions called antigenic determinants which get involved in the antigen-antibody reaction.
- Antigens must show species specificity.
What is an Antigen?
Antigen is a substance that can trigger an immune response in the body. It is typically a foreign substance, such as a microorganism, a toxin, or a particle, that the immune system recognizes as being “non-self” and potentially harmful. When the immune system encounters an antigen, it produces specific proteins called antibodies that can recognize and neutralize the antigen, or stimulate other immune cells to attack and destroy it
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