Anti-GM1 antibodies as a model of the immune response to self-glycans

NORES GA; LARDONE RD; COMIN R; ALANIZ ME; MOYANO AL; IRAZOQUI FJ

Elsevier

Lugar: Holanda; Año: 2008 vol. 1780 p. 538 - 538

p class="MsoNormal" style="MARGIN: 0cm 0cm 0pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 200%; tab-stops: 36.0pt 72.0pt 167.3pt">Glycans are potentially high variable molecules, frequently found in the plasma membrane facing the extracellular space. These characteristics lead to consider glycans as putative recognizing molecules involved in the social events of the cells but also as target of pathological factors causing diseases. The induction of anti-glycan antibodies is one of early events in the defence toward bacterium that colonize the body. As a consequence of this natural infection, antibodies recognizing a variety of bacteria glycans are found in adult sera of human and animals. The immune response to glycans is restricted by self-tolerance and normally no antibodies to self-glycans should exist. Nevertheless antibodies recognizing structures close related to self-glycans exist and can be the source of harmful anti-self antibodies. Norm