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View synonyms for antibody

antibody

[ an-ti-bod-ee ]

noun

, plural an·ti·bod·ies.
  1. any of numerous Y -shaped protein molecules produced by B cells as a primary immune defense, each molecule and its clones having a unique binding site that can combine with the complementary site of a foreign antigen, as on a virus or bacterium, thereby disabling the antigen and signaling other immune defenses. : Ab
  2. antibodies of a particular type collectively.


antibody

/ ˈæntɪˌbɒdɪ /

noun

  1. any of various proteins produced in the blood in response to the presence of an antigen. By becoming attached to antigens on infectious organisms antibodies can render them harmless or cause them to be destroyed See also immunoglobulin


antibody

/ ăntĭ-bŏd′ē /

  1. Any of numerous proteins produced by B lymphocytes in response to the presence of specific foreign antigens, including microorganisms and toxins. Antibodies consist of two pairs of polypeptide chains, called heavy chains and light chains , that are arranged in a Y-shape. The two tips of the Y are the regions that bind to antigens and deactivate them.
  2. Also called immunoglobulin


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Word History and Origins

Origin of antibody1

First recorded in 1895–1900; anti- + body

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A Closer Look

Like other vertebrates, humans possess an effective immune system that uses antibodies to fight bacteria, viruses, and cancer cells. Antibodies are complex, Y-shaped protein molecules. The immune system's B lymphocytes, which are produced by the bone marrow, develop into plasma cells that can generate a huge variety of antibodies, each one capable of combining with and destroying an antigen, a foreign molecule. Antibodies react to very specific characteristics of different antigens, binding them to the top ends of their Y formation. Once the antibody and antigen combine, the antibodies deactivate the antigen or lead it to macrophages (a kind of white blood cell) that ingest and destroy it. High numbers of a particular antibody may persist for months after an invasion, eventually diminishing. However, the B cells can quickly manufacture more of the same antibody if exposure to the antigen recurs. Vaccines work by “training” B cells to recognize and react quickly to potential disease molecules.

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Compare Meanings

How does antibody compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:

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Example Sentences

It can be done via a vaccine or via prior illness that you develop the antibodies.

We want better treatments, yes, but we also want to have enough people with antibodies against the virus that it can’t easily jump across different populations.

Called nanobodies, these proteins help fight off invaders in the body, but are smaller and thought to be hardier than their human antibody kin.

The idea is that a small enough dose of the virus will prevent the person from getting severely ill but will be enough that their immune system’s develop antibodies for future protection.

If plasma wasn’t tested for antibody levels, well—it was probably better than nothing.

From Quartz

Most people—at least 95 percent of adults—have pre-existing antibody to measles.

In general, a person who has had an infection maintains detectable antibody against that infection for life.

She, unlike the other millions, has no detectable antibody to HIV.

For example, though I had chicken pox decades ago, I still have antibody to chicken pox.

But in health, people with HIV always maintain readily detectable antibody.

I should say the antibody titer has reached the danger point.

If this is a virus infection, we might only need to find an antibody for inoculation to stop it in its tracks.

Controls were needed, to be certain that the antibody suspension alone was bringing about the changes seen and not something else.

Back aboard the ship they started preparing a larger quantity of the antibody suspension.

Preliminary skin-tests of the antibody suspension showed no sign of untoward reaction.

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antibodiesantibody-mediated immunity