CLINICAL MEDICINE

Detailed explanation-1: -Antibodies. Antibodies help the body to fight microbes or the toxins (poisons) they produce. They do this by recognising substances called antigens on the surface of the microbe, or in the chemicals they produce, which mark the microbe or toxin as being foreign. The antibodies then mark these antigens for destruction.

Detailed explanation-2: -An antigen is a foreign substance that enters your body. This can include bacteria, viruses, fungi, allergens, venom and other various toxins. An antibody is a protein produced by your immune system to attack and fight off these antigens.

Detailed explanation-3: -Antibodies attack antigens by binding to them. The binding of an antibody to a toxin, for example, can neutralize the poison simply by changing its chemical composition; such antibodies are called antitoxins.

Detailed explanation-4: -When antibodies attach to an antigen (think a lock–key configuration), it signals other parts of the immune system to attack and destroy the invaders. This is how the human body develops immunity (acquired) to a particular disease. But some germs and viruses are very adaptive.

Detailed explanation-5: -Examples of antibody functions include neutralization of infectivity, phagocytosis, antibody-dependent cellular cytotoxicity (ADCC), and complement-mediated lysis of pathogens or of infected cells.