Pinegin BV, Kulakov AV, Yarilin DA, Klimova SV, Khaitov RM
Institute of Immunology, Ministry of Public Health, Moscow, Russia
Russ. J. Immunol. 1998, July 15, 3 (2), 141-146.
The natural antibodies against glucosaminylmuramyl dipeptide (GMDP), the epitope of peptidoglycan of bacterial cell wall, isolated from human serum by thermal extraction possess a capability to cross-react with determinant of glycan chain - tetrasaccharide consisting of N-acetylglucosamine and N-acetylmuramic acid. The intensity of interaction of natural anti-GMDP-antibodies with specific ligand is significantly higher than with tetrasaccharide. The natural antibodies against tetrasaccharide carry properties of heteroclitic antibodies, i.e. the intensity of their interaction with heterologous ligand, GMDP, is significantly higher than with homologous one, tetrasaccharide GMGM. GMDP is supposed to be specific antigenic peptidoglycan determinant against which the antibodies reacting with various intensity to homologous (GMDP) and relative (tetrasaccharide) hapten are formed in the process of natural immunization.