Studies on thyroid proteins. IV. Haemagglutinating activity of molecular fragments of human thyroid proteins

Abstract

Tanned cell haemagglutination experiments have shown that some fragments formed from human thyroglobulin after completed trypsin hydrolysis are able to react with a human thyroiditis auto-antiserum. These same fragments had been unable to affect the precipitation reactions of the same antiserum. These results have indicated that in this immune system at least, the antigenic sites prominent in the precipitation reaction are not those most prominent in haemagglutination. It indicates also that evaluation of the immunological activity of the autoimmune serum on the single basis of its precipitation reaction may be misleading.