agglutinin

agglutinin, substance that causes particles to congeal in a group or mass, particularly a typical antibody that occurs in the blood serums of immunized and healthy humans and animals. When an agglutinin is added to a uniform suspension of particles (such as bacteria, protozoa, or red blood cells) that contains the specific surface structure (antigen) with which the agglutinin reacts, the suspended objects adhere to each other, form clumps, fall to the bottom, and leave the suspending diluent clear. This phenomenon of agglutination is a typical antigen–antibody reaction—highly specific, reversible, and involving small reacting groups on the surface of each.

A particular antibody is usually in greatest amount (titre) in individuals who have been immunized with the specific antigen by infection or by other active immunizing procedures. For this reason, agglutination is used as an indirect test for past or present infection or immunization with the specific antigen, as indicated by the presence of agglutinins in the serum. Conversely, serums containing agglutinins to known antigens can be used to identify various bacteria, red cells, and other particulate materials containing the specific antigen.

Isohemagglutinins, substances that agglutinate the red blood cells of others of the same species, are also found in humans. Thus, there are four main blood groups, which differ with respect to two antigens, A and B, in the red blood cells and two isohemagglutinins, anti-A and anti-B, in the serum. Thus, in humans, type O has neither antigen but both agglutinins, type A has A antigen and anti-B agglutinin, type B has B antigen and anti-A agglutinin, and type AB has both antigens but neither agglutinin. See also blood typing.