Why is ovalbumin a model antigen?
Chicken OVA is a T Cell-dependent antigen commonly used as a model protein for studying antigen-specific immune responses in mice. It is non-toxic and inert and therefore will not cause harm to the animals even if no immune response is induced.
Is ovalbumin an antigen?
Ovalbumin (OVA) is a key reference protein for vaccination experiments. Ovalbumin, the major protein constituent of chicken egg whites, is a glycoprotein that is sufficiently large and complex to be mildly immunogenic. Consequently, it is widely used as an antigen for immunization research.
Why is ovalbumin used?
Ovalbumin is an antigen that can be used to induce cystitis by initially sensitizing animals to the antigen and subsequently injecting it into the bladder.
What is ovalbumin made of?
Ovalbumin has a molecular mass of 45 kDa and is composed of 385 amino acids. This protein belongs to the serpins family and possesses two genetic variants which differ at residue 289 and 311 by a substitution of Glu and Asn, respectively, by Gln and Asp (Ishihara et al., 1981; Wiseman et al., 1972).
How many subunits does ovalbumin have?
four subunits
Ovalbumin exists physiologically as a tetramer (3) with four subunits of identical primary structure (5). Each subunit is composed of 386 amino acid residues.
How many cysteines are in ovalbumin?
four cysteine residues
Ovalbumin is a glycoprotein which contains four cysteine residues and one disulfide bond (Fothergill and Fothergill 1970): Its messenger RNA sequence and hence its amino acid sequence was recently determined by McReynolds et al.
How many thiol groups are in ovalbumin?
4 thiol groups
All results showed that ovalbumin had 6 half-cystine residues. Experiments with and without reducing agents demonstrated that there were 4 thiol groups and 1 disulphide bond.
Where is ovalbumin found?
Ovalbumin is the major egg white protein synthesized in the hen’s oviduct, within the magnum tissue, and is responsible for egg white formation. It accounts for about 54% of the total proteins of egg albumen.