MadSci Network: Immunology |
I'm not exactly sure what you are refering to in your question, but i'll do the best I can. B cells are the white blood cells in the body responsible for making antibodies. Basically, B cells in the body have a preformed specificity for a particular foreign material (the foreign material, often a protein, is called the antigen). When a single B cell develops in the bone marrow, it acquirs this intrinsic specificity for a particular antigen randomly. The body has never encountered this antigen before, yet the B cell has been programmed randomly to have the ability to make an antibody molecule which will recognize this antigen molecule. The B cell will just sit around forever waiting and not secreting any antibody molecules into the blood, until the body happens to encounter the particular antigen molecule for which a given B cell is specific. At this point, the B cell will secrete lots of antibody against this antigen. There is a deeper level answer regarding the molecular mechanism whereby a B cell rearranges its DNA to be programmed to have a particular specificity for antigen, although i can't tell from your question if this is what you are asking. This process is called V(D)J recombination, and I suggest looking in a textbook of immunology at your local library. Hope this helps.
Try the links in the MadSci Library for more information on Immunology.