The humoral immune responses of patients bitten by the snake Bothrops jararaca (jararaca).

The isotype and specificity of antibodies produced by patients bitten by B. jararaca and submitted to serum therapy were studied. The IgG anti-B. jararaca antibodies have large individual dispersion, starting to appear 10 days after the first bite and increasing to at least 80 days after the bite. IgM antibodies appeared sooner than IgG antibodies but disappeared about 20 days after the bite. Secondary responses induced by an additional bite were characterized by a fast and higher IgG antibody response with no apparent change in the IgM antibody. The immunoblotting tests showed that the specificity of human anti-B. jararaca antibodies is heterogeneous, each patient recognizing different fractions in the B. jararaca venom.