Question

Who won the Nobel Prize in 1908 for explaining the antibody production?

• A. Emil Behring
• B. Paul Ehrlich
• C. Louis Pasteur
• D. Karl Landsteiner

Hint:

Paul Ehrlich's Side-Chain Theory was the first model to describe antibodies as cell surface receptors that are shed into circulation after antigen binding.
He also coined the famous immunological term "magic bullet" (Zauberkugel) to describe targeted therapies.

Answer 1

The Correct Option is B

Step 1: Understanding the Concept:
The field of immunology advanced rapidly in the late 19th and early 20th centuries as scientists sought to understand how the body recognizes and neutralizes foreign pathogens and toxins.

Step 2: Detailed Explanation:
In 1908, the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine was awarded jointly to Ilya Metchnikov (for his discovery of phagocytosis/cellular immunity) and Paul Ehrlich (for his work on humoral immunity and antibody production).
Ehrlich proposed the groundbreaking "Side-Chain Theory" (Seitenkettentheorie) to explain how antibodies are produced and how they interact with antigens:
1. He suggested that cells have various "side chains" (receptors) on their surfaces that can bind to specific foreign toxins (antigens) in a lock-and-key fashion.
2. When a toxin binds to a specific side chain, it blocks its normal physiological function.
3. To compensate, the cell overproduces these specific side chains and sheds them into the bloodstream as free-floating receptors. These shed receptors are what we now call antibodies.
This was the first selection-based theory of antibody production and laid the conceptual foundation for modern immunology and clonal selection theory.
Emil von Behring won the first-ever Nobel Prize in 1901 for serum therapy against diphtheria, and Landsteiner won in 1930 for discovering human blood groups.

Step 3: Final Answer:
Therefore, Paul Ehrlich won the Nobel Prize in 1908 for explaining antibody production, corresponding to option (B).