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Gamma globulin
 
 
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Gamma globulins, or Ig's, are a class of protein
Protein

Proteins are organic compounds made of amino acids arranged in a linear chain and joined together by peptide bonds between the carboxyl and amino groups of adjacent amino acid Residue ....
s in the blood, identified by their position after serum protein electrophoresis
Serum protein electrophoresis

Serum protein electrophoresis is a laboratory test that examines specific proteins in the blood called globulins. Blood must first be collected, usually into an airtight vial or syringe....
. The most significant gamma globulins are immunoglobulins
Antibody

Antibodies are gamma globulin proteins that are found in blood or other bodily fluids of vertebrates, and are used by the immune system to identify and neutralize foreign objects, such as bacterium and viruses....
.

a globulin injections are usually given in an attempt to temporarily boost a patient's immunity against disease.






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Electrophoresis
Gamma globulins, or Ig's, are a class of protein
Protein

Proteins are organic compounds made of amino acids arranged in a linear chain and joined together by peptide bonds between the carboxyl and amino groups of adjacent amino acid Residue ....
s in the blood, identified by their position after serum protein electrophoresis
Serum protein electrophoresis

Serum protein electrophoresis is a laboratory test that examines specific proteins in the blood called globulins. Blood must first be collected, usually into an airtight vial or syringe....
. The most significant gamma globulins are immunoglobulins
Antibody

Antibodies are gamma globulin proteins that are found in blood or other bodily fluids of vertebrates, and are used by the immune system to identify and neutralize foreign objects, such as bacterium and viruses....
.

Injections

Gamma globulin injections are usually given in an attempt to temporarily boost a patient's immunity against disease. Injections are most commonly used on patients who have been exposed to hepatitis A
Hepatitis A

Hepatitis A, , is an Acute infectious disease of the liver caused by Hepatitis A virus, which is most commonly transmitted by the fecal-oral route via contaminated food or drinking water....
 or measles
Measles

Measles is a infection of the respiratory system caused by a virus, specifically a paramyxovirus of the genus Morbillivirus. Morbilliviruses, like other paramyxoviruses, are enveloped, single-stranded, negative-sense RNA viruses....
, or to make a kidney donor and recipient compatible regardless of blood type of tissue match. Injections are also used to boost immunity in patients who cannot produce gamma globulins naturally because of an immune deficiency, such as X-linked agammaglobulinemia
X-linked agammaglobulinemia

X-linked agammaglobulinemia is a rare X-linked genetic disorder that affects the body's ability to fight infection . XLA patients do not generate mature B cells....
 and hyper IgM syndrome
Hyper IgM syndrome

Hyper IgM syndrome is a family of genetic disorders in which the level of Immunoglobulin M Antibody is relatively high. The disorder causes immunodeficiency, including a higher than normal susceptibility to various types of infections....
. Such injections are less common in modern medical practice than they were previously, and injections of gamma globulin previously recommended for travelers have largely been replaced by the use of hepatitis A
Hepatitis A

Hepatitis A, , is an Acute infectious disease of the liver caused by Hepatitis A virus, which is most commonly transmitted by the fecal-oral route via contaminated food or drinking water....
 vaccine
Vaccine

A vaccine is a biological preparation that establishes or improves immunity to a particular disease.Vaccines can be prophylaxis , or Medication ....
.

Gamma globulin infusions are also used to treat immunological diseases, such as idiopathic thrombocytopenia purpura (ITP), a disease in which the platelets are being attacked by antibodies, leading to seriously low platelet counts. Gamma globulin apparently causes the spleen to ignore the antibody-tagged platelets, thus allowing them to survive and function.

Gamma globulin injections also provide substantial benefit to many suffering from Chronic Fatigue Syndrome
Chronic fatigue syndrome

Chronic fatigue syndrome is the most common name given to a poorly understood, variably debilitating disorder or disorders of uncertain etiology....
, also known as Chronic Fatigue and Immune Dysfunction Syndrome; Myalgic Encephalitis; Chronic Epsteinn-Barr; Chronic Mono.

Another theory on how gamma globulin administration works in autoimmune disease is by overloading the mechanisms which degrade gamma globulins. Overloading the degradation mechanism causes the harmful gamma globulins to have a much shorter halflife in sera.

Pathology

An excess is known as hypergammaglobulinemia
Hypergammaglobulinemia

Hypergammaglobulinemia is a medical condition with elevated levels of gamma globulin.It is a type of immunoproliferative disorder....
.

A disease of gamma globulins is called a "gammopathy" (for example, in monoclonal gammopathy of undetermined significance
Monoclonal gammopathy of undetermined significance

Monoclonal gammopathy of undetermined significance or benign monoclonal gammopathy is a condition in which a low or non-quantifiable level of a monoclonal paraprotein is detected in the blood by means of protein electrophoresis....
.)

Disease treatments

  • Kawasaki disease
    Kawasaki disease

    Kawasaki disease is an inflammation of the middle-sized arteries. It affects many organs, including the skin, mucous membranes, lymph nodes, and blood vessel walls, but the most serious effect is on the heart....
Kidney Transplant: Intravenous Gamma globulin was FDA approved in 2004 to reduce antibodies in a patient with kidney failure to allow that person to accept a kidney from a donor who has a different blood type, (ABO incompatible) or is an unacceptable tissue match. Dr. Stanley Jordan at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles pioneered this treatment.

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