Difference Between Antigenic And Phase Variation

2024 Forfatter: Mildred Bawerman | [email protected]. Sidst ændret: 2023-07-30 19:49

The key difference between antigenic and phase variation is that antigenic variation is the mechanism that refers to the expression of antigenically distinct proteins, carbohydrate or lipids on their surfaces while phase variation is the high frequency reversible on and off switching of phenotype expression.

Antigenic and phase variation are two types of molecular mechanisms used by pathogens in order to avoid host immune responses. They are related to each other. These mechanisms allow microbes, especially bacteria, to adapt to more than one environment. As a result of phase and antigenic variation, a heterogenic phenotype of a clonal bacterial population is formed. In this population, individual cells express phase variable proteins or one of the multiple antigenic forms of the protein. These variations are mainly virulence strategies executed by pathogens.