Out to get `em
All organisms have an inbuilt protective mechanism -shielding them from attack of viruses - called the immune system. The immune system in the case of vertebrates is highly evolved because it can recognise and eliminate 100 million different substances. According to Martin Gellert, a biochemist at the National Institutes of Health near Washington DC, US, this versatility is derived from genes stolen from an ancient retrovirus, which allows the immune system to reshuffle antibody genes. This reshuffling involves fragmentation and rearrangement of DNA strands till the right combination for elimination of the foreign body is achieved (New Scientist, VoI 149, No 2022).
Related Content
- First food: business of taste
- Joint committee report on pollution of Chandlai lake, Jaipur, Rajasthan, 21/11/2024
- Status report on behalf of Amicus Curiae on pollution by pulp and paper industry in Muzaffar Nagar, Uttar Pradesh, 20/11/2024
- Order of the National Green Tribunal regarding discharge of untreated water into Jadhav Sagar, Sakhya Sagar and Madhav Sagar lake, Shivpuri, Madhya Pradesh, 19/11/2024
- Report by the Kerala State Pollution Control Board regarding Periyar river pollution, 19/11/2024
- Report by the Central Groundwater Authority on the presence of arsenic and fluoride in India, 18/11/2024