variable region
The definitions used in this glossary of terminology either have been provided by the authors of the articles, or have been extracted wholly or in part, or paraphrased from the following sources: The American Medical Association Encyclopedia of Medicine, Charles B. Clayman, MD, Medical Editor, Random House, New York, 1989; Biotechnology from A to Z, 2d Edition, William Bains, Oxford University Press, New York, New York, 2002; A Dictionary of Genetics, 6th Edition, Robert C. King and William D. Stansfield, Oxford University Press, New York, New York, 2002; Dorland's Illustrated Medical Dictionary, 29th and 30th Editions, W. B. Saunders Company, Philadelphia, 2000, 2003; Genes VII, Benjamin Lewin, Oxford University Press, New York, New York, 2000; The Gale Encyclopedia of Genetic Disorders, Volumes I and II, Stacey L. Blachford, Ed., Thomson Learning, New York, New York, 2002; The Merriam-Webster Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, Inc., Springfield, Massachusetts, 1997; Molecular Biology of the Cell, 3rd Edition, Bruce Alberts, et al., Garland Publishing, 1994; The Random House Dictionary of the English Language, Unabridged Edition, 1966; Webster's Ninth New Collegiate Dictionary, 1991.
DEFINITION:
- variable region
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The N-terminal portion, composing one homology region, of an immunoglobulin heavy (VH) or light (VL) chain that varies in amino acid sequence among chains of a single type. The antigen binding sites of immunoglobulin molecules are formed by parts of the VH and VL regions; thus the VH and VL amino acid sequences determine the antigenic specificity of the antibody molecule. Although variable regions vary among antibodies of different specificity (idiotype variation), all of the immunoglobulins produced by a single clone of plasma cells (a clonotype) have the same variable regions but may have different constant regions.
Used in 6 Term definitions
Used in 6 Term definitions