Jordan Margaret A, Baxter Alan G
Comparative Genomics Centre, James Cook University, Molecular Sciences Bldg 21, Townsville, Queensland, Australia.
Immunol Cell Biol. 2008 Jan;86(1):72-9. doi: 10.1038/sj.icb.7100140. Epub 2007 Nov 27.
Of the contentious issues surrounding the clonal selection theory, one of the most influential was that of the mechanism for the generation of diversity of antibody specificity. While Burnet's qualitative theory assumed a very large antibody repertoire, Talmage provided a detailed quantitative argument supporting only 5000 individual globulin patterns that provided an antiserum its specificity through combinatorial action. This methodological difference between the two men, and the mechanistic difference between their models, is key to the understanding of the clonal selection theory, its later acceptance and the proportion of credit paid to Burnet.
在围绕克隆选择理论的诸多争议问题中，最具影响力的问题之一是抗体特异性多样性产生的机制。虽然伯内特的定性理论假设存在非常庞大的抗体库，但塔尔梅奇提供了一个详细的定量论证，支持仅有5000种个体球蛋白模式，这些模式通过组合作用赋予抗血清其特异性。这两人在方法上的差异以及他们模型在机制上的差异，对于理解克隆选择理论、其后来被接受的情况以及给予伯内特的赞誉比例至关重要。
