Word: antigenically
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...Kahn wanted to do better. On Thanksgiving eve of 1921, he recalls, "I walked home at a faster pace than usual. I wanted to tell my wife the exciting news: I had succeeded in bringing about spontaneous precipitation on mixing some strongly positive serums with a specially prepared antigen suspension...
...Caltech biochemists believe that their discovery is further proof that immunization, whose physiological mechanics has long been a major mystery, is a molecular phenomenon. In the blood stream of animals are large protein molecules called serum globulin. If a bacterium, virus, poison molecule or other "antigen" is near the point where these molecules are formed, the adaptable globulin molecules change their shape and assume structures complementary to those of the invading antigens, so that they can combine with them and neutralize them. After the infection or poisoning has been overcome, these changed globulin molecules remain in the blood as antibodies...
...Caltech biochemists think their discovery proves that immunization is a molecular phenomenon. In the blood stream of animals are large protein molecules called serum blobulin. If a bacterium, virus, venom molecule or other "antigen" is near the point where these molecules are formed, the adaptable molecules change their shape and assume structures complementary to those of the antigen, so that they can combine with them and neutralize them. After the infection has been overcome, these changed protein molecules remain in the blood as antibodies, ready to attack any reappearing enemies. Hence immunity...
...their experiments, the researchers induced serum blobulin molecules 1) to "unfold" their structures by treatment with heat or alkalis in the presence of antigens, 2) then to fold up again. The researchers believe that the antigen influences the molecule to assume a modified structure in the flask, just as it would in the blood stream...
Solutions thus treated acquire the various characteristics of a natural blood serum which would be obtained from an animal immunized with the same antigen. The Caltech researchers have already prepared antibodies against a few simple chemical antigens (e.g., methyl blue), and are working toward more complex antigens such as snake venoms and viruses...