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Hypermutation

This animation illustrates one of the four mechanisms by which Hypermutation is induced in B Lymphocytes during the maturation of antibodies.
 

 

 

The other three mutation pathways open up when the Uracil is removed by Uracil Clycosylase before replication and they utilise additional randomising mechanisms. When a mutation results in an improved binding ability, it is reproduced preferentially and the less specific variants die off. This results in antibody maturation by the Natural Selection of random mutations.

Hypermutation rates are many orders of magnitude higher than normal rates and the effect is constrained to the variable portion of the antibody gene.