Use and Interpretation of Diagnostic Immunologic Laboratory Tests

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Abstract
ANTIBODIES AND IMMUNOGLOBULINS Antibodies—The Secreted Products of Plasma Cells ANTIBODIES are synthesized and secreted primarily by plasma cells, the progeny of B lymphocytes. Since many different clones of cells participate in the immune responses to a single antigen, antibodies are heterogeneous with respect to their structure and function. However, proteins carrying antibody activity, all of which migrate electrophoretically as γ-globulins, belong to different immunoglobulin classes (ie, IgG, IgA, IgM, IgD, and IgE). All immunoglobulins are composed of two polypeptide chains of different molecular size, the light and heavy chains. A monomeric immunoglobulin molecule consists of two heavy and two light chains. These polypeptide chains are arranged in the shape of a Y. The arms of the Y are composed of the aminoterminal halves of the heavy chain and the entire light chain, while the carboxy-terminal halves of the two heavy chains constitute the stem. The arms and the stem are

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