Immunological network theory

Immunological network theory, proposed by Niels Jerne in 1974, reconceptualizes the immune system not as a defense force directed against external invaders but as a self-regulating network of interacting antibodies and lymphocytes. In this framework, each antibody possesses a unique idiotype that can itself be recognized by other antibodies, creating a web of stimulatory and inhibitory connections that maintains equilibrium without central control.

The theory was controversial because it seemed to make the immune system its own target, but it anticipated later developments in network science and complex adaptive systems. Jerne's network is functionally analogous to neural networks: both use distributed, competitive dynamics to process information and maintain stability. The theory's decline in mainstream immunology reflects not its falsity but the difficulty of testing it experimentally — a reminder that some true theories are temporarily eclipsed by methodological constraints, not by better alternatives.