Histocompatibility
Histocompatibility
Histocompatibility (pronounced: his-toh-kom-pat-uh-bil-uh-tee) is a term used in immunology to describe the compatibility between the tissues of different individuals, which is determined by the similarity of their antigens, specifically the Major Histocompatibility Complex (MHC).
Etymology
The term "histocompatibility" is derived from the Greek words "histo" meaning tissue, and "compatibility", which refers to the ability of two things to exist or work together without conflict.
Definition
Histocompatibility is a crucial factor in successful organ transplantation. It refers to the degree of similarity between the alleles of the MHC in the donor and recipient. The greater the similarity, the less likely it is that the recipient's immune system will recognize the transplanted tissue as foreign and mount an immune response against it.
Related Terms
- Major Histocompatibility Complex (MHC): A group of genes that code for proteins found on the surfaces of cells that help the immune system recognize foreign substances.
- Antigen: Any substance that causes your immune system to produce antibodies against it.
- Allele: One of two or more versions of a gene that are found at the same place on a chromosome.
- Immune Response: How your immune system recognizes and defends itself against bacteria, viruses, and substances that appear foreign and harmful.
- Organ Transplantation: A surgical operation where a failing or damaged organ in the human body is removed and replaced with a new one. An organ transplant may involve the heart, kidney, liver, lung, pancreas, intestine, or thymus.
See Also
External links
- Medical encyclopedia article on Histocompatibility
- Wikipedia's article - Histocompatibility
This WikiMD dictionary article is a stub. You can help make it a full article.
Languages: - East Asian
中文,
日本,
한국어,
South Asian
हिन्दी,
Urdu,
বাংলা,
తెలుగు,
தமிழ்,
ಕನ್ನಡ,
Southeast Asian
Indonesian,
Vietnamese,
Thai,
မြန်မာဘာသာ,
European
español,
Deutsch,
français,
русский,
português do Brasil,
Italian,
polski