TY - CHAP M1 - Book, Section TI - Functions of B Lymphocytes and Plasma Cells in Immunoglobulin Production A1 - Kipps, Thomas J. A2 - Kaushansky, Kenneth A2 - Lichtman, Marshall A. A2 - Prchal, Josef T. A2 - Levi, Marcel M. A2 - Press, Oliver W. A2 - Burns, Linda J. A2 - Caligiuri, Michael PY - 2015 T2 - Williams Hematology, 9e AB - SUMMARYMuch of our immune defense against invading organisms is predicated upon the tremendous diversity of immunoglobulin molecules. Immunoglobulins are glycoproteins produced by B lymphocytes and plasma cells. These molecules can be considered receptors because the primary function of the immunoglobulin molecule is to bind antigen. A single person can synthesize 10 to 100 million different immunoglobulin molecules, each having a distinct antigen-binding specificity. The great diversity in this so-called humoral immune system allows us to generate antibodies specific for a variety of substances, including synthetic molecules not naturally present in our environment. Despite the diversity in the specificities of antibody molecules, the binding of antibody to antigen initiates a limited series of biologically important effector functions, such as complement activation and/or adherence of the immune complex to receptors on leukocytes. The eventual outcome is the clearance and degradation of the foreign substance. This chapter describes the structure of immunoglobulins and outlines the mechanisms by which B cells produce molecules of such tremendous diversity with defined effector functions. SN - PB - McGraw-Hill Education CY - New York, NY Y2 - 2024/10/06 UR - accessmedicine.mhmedical.com/content.aspx?aid=1121097100 ER -