Antigenicity of Polypeptides (Poly-α-Amino Acids). II

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Abstract
Summary: Employing adjuvant techniques of immunization in rabbits, sufficient antibody can be produced against synthetic copolymers of glutamic acid and lysine so that precipitin reactions can be observed. When the copolymer was injected intramuscularly in a saline vehicle no detectable antibody was produced in man. Based on this fact the possible future utility of these macromolecules as plasma expanders has been mentioned. The antibody response in rabbits was shown to be heterogeneous and to vary among rabbits injected with the same antigen. Although the copolymers were produced by the same synthetic procedures, their heterogeneity has been demonstrated by immunochemical techniques. It has been suggested that the antigenicity of copolymers without tyrosine may be dependent upon the presence of some areas of rigidity and a certain amount of randomness in the amino acid sequences.