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Q.Draw a well-labelled diagram of an antibody.

Meghalaya MboseMBOSE Meghalaya Intermediate Board 2020Subjective· 3mImportance★★★★★
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Figure — The stem explicitly asks to draw a well-labelled antibody; the canonical antibody-structure figure shows the Y
Figure — The stem explicitly asks to draw a well-labelled antibody; the canonical antibody-structure figure shows the Y

An antibody (immunoglobulin) is a Y-shaped protein built from two pairs of polypeptide chains, with the two "arm-tips" of the Y forming the specific antigen-recognition sites and the "stem" mediating other immune functions.

Structure of an antibody

An antibody (immunoglobulin) molecule is composed of four polypeptide chains: two identical, longer heavy (H) chains, and two identical, shorter light (L) chains. These four chains are held together by disulfide bonds, arranged in the shape of a "Y."

Each of the four chains has two regions:

  • A variable region, located at the two tips of the "Y" (formed jointly by parts of one heavy chain and one light chain); this region differs between different antibodies and forms the specific antigen-binding site, allowing each antibody to recognise and bind one particular antigen. …

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