Title: epitope
Long Title: IUPAC Gold Book - epitope
DOI: 10.1351/goldbook.E02171
Status: current

Definition
Any part of a molecule that acts as an antigenic determinant. A macromolecule can contain many different epitopes each capable of stimulating production of a different specific antibody.

Related Term
- antibody: https://goldbook.iupac.org//terms/view/A00384

Source
- PAC, 1992, 64, 143. 'Glossary for chemists of terms used in biotechnology (IUPAC Recommendations 1992)' on page 153 (https://doi.org/10.1351/pac199264010143)

Other Outputs
- html: https://goldbook.iupac.org/terms/view/E02171/html
- json: https://goldbook.iupac.org/terms/view/E02171/json
- xml: https://goldbook.iupac.org/terms/view/E02171/xml

Citation: Citation: 'epitope' in IUPAC Compendium of Chemical Terminology, 5th ed. International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry; 2025. Online version 5.0.0, 2025. 10.1351/goldbook.E02171
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Disclaimer: The International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry (IUPAC) is continuously reviewing and, where needed, updating terms in the Compendium of Chemical Terminology (the IUPAC Gold Book). Users of these terms are encouraged to include the version of a term with its use and to check regularly for updates to term definitions that you are using.
Accessed: 2026-05-01T11:50:58+00:00