Page 37 - The Miracle of the Immune System

35
Intelligent Weapons: The Antibodies

kind — and how they implement them are unraveled, the perfection and
artistry in the creation of these cells will be better understood.

The Structure of Antibodies

We have previously stated that antibodies are a type of protein. So,
let us first examine the structure of proteins.
Proteins are made up of amino acids. Twenty different types of ami-
no acids are arranged in different sequences to form different proteins.
This is similar to making different necklaces by using beads in twenty dif-
ferent colours. The main differences among proteins are due to the se-
quence of these amino acids.
Yet there is an important point to remember: Any error in the amino

acid sequence makes the protein useless, and even harmful. Therefore,
there is no room for even the smallest error in the sequence.
So, how do the protein factories in the cell know in which sequence
to arrange the amino acids they contain, and which protein to produce?
The instructions for each of the thousands of different types of proteins
are encoded in the genes found in the genetic data bank in the cell nucle-
us.

Therefore, these genes are required for the production of the antibod-
ies which are a type of protein. There will be need for
There is a very important miracle here. There are only one hundred
thousand genes in the human body compared to the 1.920.000 antibodies
that are produced. This means that nine hundred thousand genes are
missing.
Then how is it ever possible that such a small number of genes can
produce antibodies about ten times their value? The miracle is revealed at
this point. The cell combines the hundred thousand genes it contains in

different combinations to form new antibodies. It receives the information
from some genes and combines it with the information in other genes and
makes the required production according to this combined information.