Read this article to learn about B Lymphocytes and the Immune Response ! To understand how B lymphocytes are caused to secrete antibodies during an immune response, let's consider a case in which a person acquires either a bacterial or viral infection. Two events must generally occur if B lymphocytes are to be activated (Fig. 25- 12). First, antigens present [...]
If cells taken from various clones of normal antibody- producing and secreting lymphocytes could be grown in culture, it would be possible to have ready sources of various antibodies at one's disposal. Unfortunately, laboratory cultures of normal lymphocytes grow very slowly or die out quickly. There is, however, an abnormal and cancerous form of lymphocyte called a myeloma cell that [...]
Transplantation of Cell Nuclei: In 1892, August Weissman proposed that cellular differentiation and specialization might be the consequence of the progressive loss of certain genes from a cell's genome during successive mitotic divisions. This hypothesis retained widespread acceptance for more than 50 years until a series of experiments carried out with amphibian egg cells indicated otherwise. The egg cells of [...]