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Autoimmunity, microbial immunity and the immunological homunculus

1991; Elsevier BV; Volume: 12; Issue: 4 Linguagem: Inglês

10.1016/0167-5699(91)90093-9

1355-8242

Irun R. Cohen, Douglas B. Young,

Tryptophan and brain disorders

Clonal deletion and anergy are believed by many immunologists to be the fundamental mechanisms responsible for self tolerance. Nevertheless, as Irun Cohen and Douglas Young point out, such notions of nonreactivity cannot explain certain key features of immune behaviour: the immunological dominance of microbial antigens that mimic self, the uniformity of autoimmune diseases and the prevalence o f natural autoimmunity among the healthy. The theory of the immunological homunculus is presented here as a unifying principle.