The MEPS server for identifying protein conformational epitopes
Author(s)
Date Issued
2007
Type
article
Volume
8 Suppl 1
Issue
Suppl 1
Start Page
S6
Journal
Abstract
One of the most interesting problems in molecular immunology is epitope mapping, i.e. the identification of the regions of interaction between an antigen and an antibody. The solution to this problem, even if approximate, would help in designing experiments to precisely map the residues involved in the interaction and could be instrumental both in designing peptides able to mimic the interacting surface of the antigen and in understanding where immunologically important regions are located in its three-dimensional structure. From an experimental point of view, both genetically encoded and chemically synthesised peptide libraries can be used to identify sequences recognized by a given antibody. The problem then arises of which region of a folded protein the selected peptides correspond to.