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Definition of Antigenic variation
1. Noun. (context: immunology) The mechanism by which an infectious organism changes its surface proteins in favor of circumventing a host immune response. ¹
¹ Source: wiktionary.com
Medical Definition of Antigenic variation
1. The phenomenon of changes in surface antigens in parasitic populations of Trypanosoma and Plasmodium (and some other parasitic protozoa) in order to escape immunological defense mechanisms. at least 100 different surface proteins have been found to appear and disappear during antigenic variation in a clone of trypanosomes. Each antigen is encoded in a separate gene. Antigenic variation is also known to occur in free living Protozoa and certain bacteria. This entry appears with permission from the Dictionary of Cell and Molecular Biology (22 Feb 2008)
Lexicographical Neighbors of Antigenic Variation
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