What is behind our logo or how is an antibody structured?

Perhaps you have already asked yourself why we chose the Y of all things as our logo? We would like to answer that here.

Antibodies are complex proteins that play an important role in the immune system. The basic structure of a classic antibody is made up of two identical so-called heavy chains and two identical light chains, which together form a characteristic Y-shape. The chains are linked together by disulphide bridges, which are solid chemical bonds.

The Y-shape of the antibody enables efficient interaction with various surface structures of, for example, pathogens, the so-called antigens. The variable regions, which are the key to the specific recognition of antigens, are located at the two tips of the Y-arms. Each antibody is unique in these variable regions and the resulting structure determines whether the antibody recognizes, for example, certain proteins in the coronavirus envelope or the pregnancy hormone hCG. It’s hard to imagine, but there are more than a trillion different antibodies in our body, which can therefore recognize a large number of different antigens. Apart from the variable regions, every antibody is the same. These so-called constant regions are responsible, among other things, for the interaction with other components of the immune system. For example, antibodies can bind to salmonella, thereby marking it for the immune system and strengthening the body’s immune response.

As you can see, our logo is actually more than just a fancy design element, it is a tribute to the antibodies we produce in our diatoms.