This is a rather unwise thing to say when you're about to reveal your
own ignorance of immunology.

It is actually difficult to figure out what you're even trying to say
here. Antigen presenting cells break down foreign proteins into
fragments called epitopes, which are then processed and presented via
the MHC pathway. In the case of antibodies:

"For example, by recognizing an epitope on a viral protein coat, a B
cell can internalize a complete virus particle. After internalization,
the virus particle is degraded and peptides from internal viral
proteins as well as coat proteins can be displayed by MHC class II
molecules on the B-cell surface. Helper T cells that have been primed
earlier in an infection by macrophages or dendritic cells presenting
these internal peptides can then activate the B cell to make antibodies
that recognize the coat protein."

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/bv.fcgi?rid=imm.section.1183

CD4 (helper) T cells respond to epitopes around 11-20 mers in length
via the CD4 T cell receptor, which interacts with the MHC class II
molecule/epitope complex on the antigen presenting cell. In the case of
CD8 T cells, viral epitopes are presented via the MHC class I pathway,
these epitopes are typically shorter (~9 mers in length). So I have no
idea what you mean by "If there is no complex surface, the immune
system does nothing." Perhaps you can explain?

In the case of HIV infection, CD4 and CD8 T cell responses to multiple
epitopes from all nine viral proteins can be detected; they arise
during acute infection and persist (typically accumulate, in fact) over
the course of the disease. One of the ways you can tell HIV is
replicating throughout the course of infection is that new CD4 T cell,
CD8 T cell and antibody responses arise to the mutant epitopes that the
virus generates.

Richard Jefferys

Of course the rest of the world doesn't understand molecular biology,
immunology, quantum physics and relativity.

Have you managed to publish any papers on why Relativity is wrong yet?

Chris Noble