Explain the following statement: "antibody is specific"?

Question

Short and simple;)

Answer 1

Antibody is specific to the infectious agent producing it in the body, so that the body is better ready next time.

Answer 2

Short (but not simple) answer:

Your body makes antibodies with a wide variety of "specificity" by recombining portions of the antibody genes at random. Think of it like the body randomly making a bunch of different keys without knowing what locks it may encounter in the future.

These antibodies are screened by the body to help ensure that they don't accidentally recognize your body's own components - if they do, your body will attack itself, and this is bad - this sort of thing is known as "autoimmune disease".

Your body's immune system then stands vigilent, waiting for invaders. When a foreign object is encountered, antibodies that recognize that invader (the key fits the lock, as it were) then stimulate those antibody producing cells to replicate and make more of that specific antibody. Furthermore, the antibody cells generate "memory cells" that recognize the invader quickly if re-encountered in the future. This is how vaccines work - they exposure your body to non-infectious parts of the invader, or a weakened invader, so that your body can recognize it in the future, quickly mount a response and prevent disease.

This is an oversimplification of a complex process, but I hope it helps.

Answer 3

Certain types of cells in your body cruise around and find things that don't belong in you. They may be viral, bacteria, fungal, or other materials. When it finds them, it captures a piece (called an antigen) and takes it to where antibodies are made. After determining that this piece doesn't match any of the antibodies already in your body, it goes to the unfinished antibody section. Antibodies here have ends that aren't specific yet. Think of this as an adjustable wrench, except with many more parts. This wrench then adjusts to this piece, and sets itself there. It then goes over to the manufacturing plant with the specifications for the new antibody. the new ones that are produced are made to that mold. They go out an fight the invader, and the original one goes to wait to check out stuff that our original cells are bringing back up.

So, one antibody fits one antigen.

Answer 4

The "antibody" is specific to the virus it affects and attaches to when you are exposed to the same virus again, usually resulting in immunity or a milder case of the same.

Answer 5

fro each organism that enters ur body the body produces antibodies which fight against the organism........easch antibody is specific..and is capable of fighting against only the same specific organism if it enters again

Answer 6

that cant be explained without more information