In order to evaluate the role of idiotypic networks in the operation of the immune system a number of mathematical models have been formulated. Here we examine a class of B-cell models in which cell proliferation is governed by a non-negative, unimodal, symmetric response function {\it f(h)},...

The immune system is a complex system of cells and molecules that can provide us with a basic defense against pathogenic organisms. Like the nervous system, the immune system performs pattern recognition tasks, learns and retains a memory of the antigens that it has fought. The immune system...

Though most mutations are deleterious, an interplay between somatic mutation and selection within germinal centers (GC) results in rapid generation of high affinity memory B cells. How high affinity B cells with large numbers of mutations are generated and preserved, within GC containing at...

Using a new mathematical model to analyze a detailed set of viral load data collected from five infected patients after the administration of a potent inhibitor of HIV-1 protease, it was estimated that productively infected cells have, on average, a lifespan of 2.2 days (t[sub 1/2]=1.6 days) and...

We describe a method of implementing efficient computer simulations of immune systems that have a large number of unique B and/or T cell clones. The method uses an implementation technique called lazy evaluation to create the illusion that all clones are being simulated, while only actually...

During primary HIV infection the viral load in plasma increases, reaches a peak, and then declines. Phillips has suggested that the decline is due to a limitation in the number of cells susceptible to HIV infection, while other authors have suggested that the decline in viremia is due to an...

The problem of protecting computer systems can be viewed generally as the problem of learning to distinguish {\it self} from {\it other}. We describe a method for change detection which is based on the gereration of T cells in the immune system. Mathematical analysis reveals computational costs...

The immune system is a complex system that learns, remembers what it has learned, and acts to protect us from a variety of pathogens. Here we address the question of how the immune system is able to recognize and learn about pathogens that can rapidly evolve and hence potentially change so as to...

The administration of a genetically engineered defective interfering virus (DIV) that interferes with HIV-1 replication has been proposed as a therapy for HIV-1 infection and AIDS. The proposed interfering virus, which is designed to superinfect HIV-1 infected cells, carries ribozymes that...

During an immune response the affinity of antibodies that react with the antigen that triggered the response increases with time, a phenomenon known as affinity maturation. The molecular basis of affinity maturation has been partially elucidated. It involves the somatic mutation of immunoglobin...