ELI5: Explain Like I'm 5

Hapten

Okay kiddo, think of your body like a house with a special doorman. The doorman's job is to check what comes in and out of the house. Sometimes, the doorman gets confused and doesn't recognize something that comes into the house. This can happen when a tiny molecule called a hapten comes in.

A hapten is like a secret agent, it's a really small molecule that is too tiny to be recognized by the doorman. But, when it comes into your body, it can make friends with bigger molecules and make them look suspicious. Then the doorman might think that the bigger molecules are invaders, like germs or viruses, and attack them.

This can cause some problems because the bigger molecules might actually be helpful parts of your own body. This is how hapten can cause allergic reactions or poison ivy rashes - the doorman thinks the harmless molecules are invaders and attacks them.

So, in summary, a hapten is a small, sneaky molecule that can cause confusion in the doorman of your body and make it attack things that it shouldn't.
Related topics others have asked about: