Florence, January 13 - Antibodies react to attacks from foreign invaders like a goalkeeper carrying out a save in a soccer game, a group of Florentine scientists demonstrated in an article published in the Scientific Reports journal. Researchers from the University of Florence used a mathematical model to explain how antibodies manage to attach themselves efficiently to foreign substances, or antigens, making it possible to eliminate them. "Thanks to its extreme flexibility, the antibody moves its 'arms' like a goalkeeper would when trying to intercept a ball," researcher Duccio Fanelli said. He said antibodies have a structure that allows them to recognise and attach themselves to a large variety of different antigens, regardless of their size. Fanelli's team created a simplified model of this structure, enabling them to assess its dynamics through simulations.