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Circulatory and Immune System Flashcards

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1
Q

What are the characteristics of a Erythrocyte

A
  • Also known as a mature Red Blood Cell
  • Live about 120 days
  • Lack a nucleus when mature
  • biconcave shape that allows a greater surface area to volume to help with gas exchange
  • packed with hemoglobin, which carries O2 to tissues
  • About 250 million Hb molecules are in a red blood cell
  • Very flexible and can easily change shape as it moves through capillaries
  • No mitochondria or ribosomes. Thus they produce energy through glycolysis
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2
Q

What is Anemia?

A

A decrease in the number of RBCs (erythrocytes)

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3
Q

What are the characteristics of a reticulocyte?

A
  • An immature RBC
  • 1% of RBCs
  • Have no nucleus
  • Mature in about a day to a mature RBC
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4
Q

What happens during RBC maturation?

A

RBCs lose their ribosomes, mitochondria, and many cytoplasmic enzymes.

Mature RBCs produce ATP through glycolysis

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5
Q

How long do RBCs live for?

A

120 days

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6
Q

Where are RBCs broken down? What breaks them down?

A

Macrophages in the spleen, liver (Kupffer cells), and bone marrow dispose of RBCs after about 120 days

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7
Q

Where are RBC’s produced?

A

In the embryo, the RBCs are produced in the liver. After birth, the RBCs are made continuously in the bone marrow.

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8
Q

What color are RBCs when stained with a Giemsa or Wright stain?

A

They are pinkish in color

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9
Q

What is another name for a mature Red Blood Cell

A

Erythrocyte

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10
Q

What is another name for an immature Red Blood Cell

A

Reticulocyte

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11
Q

What is another name for a White Blood Cell?

A

Leucocyte

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12
Q

What are the major types of WBCs (Leucocytes)?

A
  • Neutrophils
  • Eosinophils
  • Basophils
  • Lymphocytes
  • Monocytes
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13
Q

What are the granulocytes? What are their characteristics?

A

Granulocytes are a subset of WBCs. They include:

  • Neutrophils
  • Eosinophils
  • Basophils

Pneumonic BEN

They contain specific granules in their cytoplasm which contain many types of enzymes.

They live only for a few days

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14
Q

What are the Agranulocytes?

A

Agranulocytes

  • Lymphocytes
  • Monocytes

Lack specific granules in their cytoplasm

A lymphocyte can live for months to several years

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15
Q

What are the most numerous and least numerous WBCs?

A

Neutrophils are the most numerous WBCs. ~65%

Basophils are the least numerous Under 1%

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16
Q

What is diapedesis?

A
  • Injured tissue releases chemical signals that cause vasodilation of capillary walls and postcapillary venules and allow for migration of Leucocytes from the blood to connective tissues.
  • This greatly increases during times of inflammation, which is a vascular and cellular defense-type reaction in response to invaders such as bacteria.
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17
Q

What are the characteristics of inflammation?

A
  • Redness: due to increased blood flow
  • Swelling: due to increased capillary permeability
  • Heat: due to more blood
  • Pain: nociceptors are stimulated due to increased fluid pressure
  • Disturbed function
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18
Q

What is a Neutrophil?

A
  • A Neutrophil is a granulocyte, a type of white blood cell
  • Neutrophils are the most abundant leucocyte ~65%
  • They are the body’s “first responders” to appear in acute bacterial infection and are very active in phagocytosis. This is the body’s most numerous phagocytic cell.
  • This cell self destructs after it undergoes phagocytosis. This is what pus is.
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19
Q

What causes a fever?

A

A fever is caused by numerous bacterial products such as endotoxins

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20
Q

What is a Eosinophil?

A
  • An Eosinophil is a granulocyte, a type of White Blood Cell.
  • They are involved in destroying parasitic worms and participate in allergic reactions
  • They have very low phagocytic activity
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21
Q

What is a Basophil?

A
  • A Basophil is a granulocyte, a type of White Blood Cell
  • Our least numerous WBC. < 1%
  • Their main job is to initiate the process of inflammation
  • This cell can do phagocytosis
  • A key player in asthma, anaphalaxis, and hay fever.
  • This cell can produce histamine (a vasodilator) that induces inflammation.
  • The cell also produces heparin, which prevents blood clotting
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22
Q

What is a lymphocyte?

A
  • A lymphocyte is a agranulocyte, a type of white blood cell
  • These cells can be small, medium, and large and actually constitute an entire family that can live for years
  • Has two main categories:
  • B-lymphocytes
  • T-lymphocytes
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23
Q

What is a B-Lymphocyte

A
  • A B-lymphocyte is an agranulocyte, a type of white blood cell
  • Also known as a B-Cell
  • Responsible for humoral immunity (immunity mediated by macromolecules in extracellular fluid).
  • B-Cells differentiate into plasma cells that create antibodies
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24
Q

What is a T-Lymphocyte

A
  • A T-lymphocyte is an agranulocyte, a type of white blood cell
  • Also known as a T-Cell
  • Responsible for cell-mediated immunity
  • Some T-Cells can differentiate into
  • T-Killer Cells (NK Cell)
  • T-Helper Cells
  • T-Suppressor Cells
  • Monocytes
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25
Q

What is a T-Killer Cell?

A
  • A T-Killer cell is differentiated from a T-lymphocyte which is an agranulocyte, a type of white blood cell
  • Also known as a NK Cell
  • These cells can kill cancer cells. In just hours, these NK cells can kill tumor cells, infected by a virus.
  • They secrete cytokines which are essentially the hormones of the immune system. The cytokines act on cells that have receptors for them
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26
Q

What is a cytokine?

A

Cytokines are peptides or glycoproteins of low molecular weight.

They function as the hormones of the immune system, acting on cells that have receptors for them.

They help activate the inflammatory response

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27
Q

What is a T-Helper Cell?

A
  • A T-Helper cell is differentiated from a T-lymphocyte which is an agranulocyte, a type of white blood cell.
  • They can secrete cytokines
  • They can help activate B cells to secrete antibodies and macrophage activation
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28
Q

What is a T-Suppressor Cell?

A
  • A T-Suppressor cell is differentiated from a T-lymphocyte which is an agranulocyte, a type of white blood cell
  • Involved in the regulation of both humoral and cell mediated immune response
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29
Q

What is a Monocyte?

A
  • A Monocyte is differentiated from a T-lymphocyte which is an agranulocyte, a type of white blood cell
  • This is the largest of the circulating blood cells
  • They differentiate into Macrophages
30
Q

What is a Macrophage?

A
  • A Macrophage is a mature monocyte. They come from a T-lymphocyte which differentiates into a monocyte, which further differentiates into a Macrophage
  • They are loaded with lysosomes and golgi complexes since they are avid phagocytosing cells.
  • They produce cytokines that activate inflammatory processes.
  • They are made in the bone marrow.
  • Unlike Neutrophils, they can undergo phagocytosis multiple times.
  • They can be free floating or attached to membranes.
31
Q

What are the names of macrophages in specific organs?

A
  • Liver: Kupffer Cells
  • Skin: Langerhans Cells
  • Bone: Osteoclasts
  • CNS: Microglial Cells
32
Q

What is a foreign body giant cell?

A

It is a fusion of multiple macrophages that give it the capacity to engulf and digest large foreign molecules

33
Q

What is a Mast Cell?

A
  • A mast cell produces heparin, histamine, and leukotrienes
  • They live only a few months
  • Their main function is to store the mediators of the inflammation process
34
Q

What is histamine

A
  • A molecule produced by Mast Cells and Basophil
  • It is a vasodilator that opens up the capillaries and make them permeable. This allows more clotting proteins and phagocytes to be delivered to the injured area.
  • If this is released, edema occurs and your mucosa swells and you feel stuffy and breathy is hard
35
Q

What is leukotriene?

A
  • This is a molecule produced by Mast Cells
  • It stimulates the contraction of smooth muscle and enhances vascular permeability
  • This causes people who have an asthma attack to have a hard time breathing. It’s caused a bronchiospasm.
36
Q

What is a hematopoietic stem cell?

A

These are the stem cells that Erythrocytes, Leukocytes, and Thrombocytes are derived from. (RBCs, WBCs, and platelets)

They are found in peripheral blood and bone marrow

37
Q

What are the characteristics of Thrombocytes?

A
  • More commonly known as platelets
  • no nucleus
  • Live about two weeks
  • If a blood vessel is injured, platelets combine with collagen and become activated. This activation leads to a clot
38
Q

What do we find in a blood clot?

A

We see fibrin aggregating into thin threads, along with RBCs, WBCs, and platelets. We call this gelatinous structure a thrombus

39
Q

What is a thrombus?

A

It is the fancy name for a blood clot

40
Q

What is the order of abundance among erythrocytes, leukocytes, and thrombocytes?

A

erythrocytes > thrombocytes > leukocytes
or
RBCs > platelets > WBCs

41
Q

What are the two types of bone marrow?

A

Red Bone Marrow

Yellow Bone Marrow

42
Q

What is Red Bone Marrow?

A
  • It is the bone marrow that makes WBCs, RBCs, and platelets
  • It’s red due to hemoglobin
  • It’s found in all bones at the time of birth, but by the time we reach 15 or so, it is confined to the axial skeleton (skull, ribs, vertebral column)
43
Q

What is Yellow Bone Marrow?

A
  • Appears microscopically as fat tissue and is seen in the bones of limbs
  • In times of severe blood loss, yellow bone marrow can transform into red bone marrow to undergo hematopoiesis. (forming of blood cellular components)
44
Q

What is immunoglobin?

A
  • Protein molecules that as antibodies in our immune system
  • There are 5 major classes
  • IgG, IgA, IgM, IgE, and IgD (GAMED)
  • They are made and secreted by plasma cells
45
Q

What is IgG?

A
  • An immunoglobin
  • The most abundant: about 75%
  • Has the longed half-life
  • Only immunoglobin that can cross the placenta, giving the fetus passive immunity
  • Efficient at turning on the “complement” protein system, which aids in the immune system.
  • Main blood antibody of secondary responses
  • Neutralizes toxins
46
Q

What is the complement protein system?

A

Over 30 blood proteins that take part in inflammation, and even phagocytosis.

47
Q

What is IgM?

A
  • An immunoglobin protein
  • Best at turning on the protein complement system
  • Together with IgD, it is found on the surface of White Blood Cells. They work together to bind antigens to B-Cells. This is called B-Cell activation
  • First class to be secreted in a primary response
48
Q

What is IgA?

A
  • IgA is an immunoglobin protein
  • Found in breast milk, tears, saliva, vaginal fluid, and mucous.
  • Confers passive immunity to the nursing infant
49
Q

What is IgD?

A
  • IgD is an immunoglobin protein
  • Found on the surface of B-Cells along with IgM. They work together to bind antigens to B-Cells. This is called B-Cell activation.
  • Involved in cell differentiation of B-Cells
50
Q

What is IgE?

A
  • IgE is an immunoglobin protein
  • It triggers Mast cells and basophils to release histamine and heparin in allergic reactions. It also triggers the release of leukotrienes in Mast cells.
  • The are the least abundant isotype, but causes allergic reactions to occur.
51
Q

What is an isotype?

A

These are the different Immunoglobins in our immune system.

52
Q

What is the primary immune response?

A
  • It is the response of the body the first time it encounters an antigen.
  • Naive B-cells become activated and differentiate into cells that create antibodies specific to the the antigen that triggered their activation.
  • At about 6-7 days, IgM is the first antibody found produced and then it’s production wanes as IgG production is ramped up.
53
Q

What is the secondary immune response?

A
  • It is the immune response of the body the second or subsequent times the body encounters an antigen
  • In a secondary response, at about day 1 IgG production ramps up as memory B cells are stimulated, producing the antibodies quickly. The final concentration of IgG is much higher in the secondary response than in the primary.
  • IgM is produced as before in the primary response at about day 6-7 and at about the same levels
54
Q

What is the structure of immunoglobin?

A
  • It consists of two heavy chains and two light chains
  • Disulfide bonds link heavy chains together and also link heavy chains to light chains
  • The C region (constant region) in heavy and light chains is the region that varies very little in AA sequence between antibodies
  • The V region (variable region) is the region in heavy and light chains where the AA sequence varies.
  • The V region is where the antibody has specific affinity to an antigen.
  • Antigens can be proteins or polysaccharides
55
Q

Where are antibodies able to tag pathogens for destruction?

A

Antibodies attack pathogens in the extracellular fluid and matrix. Once the pathogens have entered into a cell, the antibodies can’t tag them.

Once a pathogen is tagged, it makes it very easy for a neutrophil, macrophage, or the protein complement system to attack the tagged pathogen and consume it through phagocytosis. Then they lysosome the hell out of it.

56
Q

What is opsonization?

A

Coating the antigens with antibodies or even proteins to tag the pathogen for destruction by phagocytes

57
Q

epitope

A

Also called an antigenic determinant

a small area on the antigen where the antibody binds or the antigen receptor binds (The site on Immunoglobin when it’s part of the membrane of a T or B cell.)

58
Q

antigenic determinant

A

Also called and epitope

a small area on the antigen where the antibody binds or the antigen receptor binds (The site on Immunoglobin when it’s part of the membrane of a T or B cell.)

59
Q

What is the MHC

A
  • Major Histocampatibility Complex
  • Proteins that reside on the surface of most cells (excluding red blood cells)
  • They are important for reactions that involve immune cells, particularly in antigen presentation to T-Cells.
  • The Proteins are divided into two subdivisions.
  • Class 1 Proteins: All cells except for erythrocytes (8-12 aa in length). Presents to cytotoxic T-cells.
  • Class 2 Proteins: Macrophages, B-lymphocytes, and dendritic cells (cells that are an antigen-presenting cell to the helper T-cell line; all cells have an MHC, but there’s is specialized and supercharged) (13-25 aa in length). Presents to cytotoxic T-cells and helper T-cells

Bottom line: This helps lymphocytes to recognize an antigen.

60
Q

What are dendritic cells

A

Dendritic cells are specialized cells for MHC antigen presenting. They present to both cytotoxic T-cells and help T-cells

61
Q

What is active immunity

A
  • natural: It is the natural creation of antibodies through the normal course of infection.
  • deliberate: It is also the creation of antibodies though vaccination. (artificially acquired active immunity)
62
Q

What is passive immunity?

A

Two scenarios:

  • Antibody transfer from one person to another. A mother for example, transfers her antibodies to her infant through breastfeeding or to the fetus from the placenta
  • Administration of serum or immunoglobins to people with weak immuno systems

Passive immunity is different than active in that it doesn’t rely on the hosts immune system to take charge, but it does result in the immediate availability of antibodies to help defend against a pathogen.

Anti-venom is a good example of this.

63
Q

What is innate immunity?

A

Things you are born with:

  • fever
  • interferon (a protein made by body cells with numerous functions, including helping nearby cells resist viral infection after it’s been infected.
  • Neutrophils
  • Macrophages
  • Microglia
64
Q

What is acquired immunity?

A

These are components of the immune system that you are not born with. They work with the innate immune system

  • antibodies
  • memory B-Cells
65
Q

What is an autoimmune disease? What are examples?

A

An auto-immune disease is when the immune system fights the host organism.

Examples:

  • Lupus
  • Hashimoto
  • Sjogren’s syndrome
  • Multiple Sclerosis
  • Rheumatoid Arthritis
  • Type I Diabetes
66
Q

What is Multiple Sclerosis?

A

It’s an auto-immune disease where T-cells destroy the myelin sheath of many neurons in the CNS

More often in women than in men

Genetics have been linked, as well as external factors

67
Q

What is rheumatoid arthritis?

A

IgG molecules are “locked up” by an antibody and deposited on joint membranes. The deposit complex causes a cascade that leads to inflammation and pain

68
Q

What types of cells are naturally cytotoxic to cancer cells?

A
  • NK cells
  • Cytotoxic T-cells

These cells can destroy a cancer cell when they detect them. These lymphocytes can kill without prior MHC markers or prior sensitizations.

69
Q

What types of cells are not naturally cytotoxic to cancer cells? How do they become cytotoxic?

A

Neutrophils and macrophages are not naturally cytotoxic to cancer cells.

When activated by cytokines like interferon-γ, they turn into tumor destroyers.

Macrophages may release lysosomal enzymes as well as TNF (tumor necrosis factor) a certain type of cytokine that binds to the receptor of a cell and causes it to fragment.

70
Q

How does cancer proliferate despite our immune system?

A

There are a lot of processes in play.

One thing that some cancer cells do, is to shed their tumor antigens, causing the immune system to not see them. This gives the cancer cells time to mitotically divide.

At a certain point, the immune system is overwhelmed and can’t fight the cancer cells.

71
Q

Describe the immune system

A

Your innate immune system is the first line of defense.

The barriers of your skin, muscus membranes, harsh chemicals like stomach acid, etc protect against most pathogens.

Mast cells will produce histamine, heparin, and leukotrienes when there is an injury or if the IgE on their membrane encounters a pathogen. These molecules
crank up the inflammatory response. This causes vasodilation which allows blood proteins to more easily come to the area, form clots, and initiate the healing process. It also helps promote the arrival of more phagocytes and lymphocytes to come fight potential infection. Without inflammation the blood cells would have a hard time moving from the bloodstream through the capillary into the interstitial space.

If a pathogen gets in, innate immune system is still in play. Neutrophils are the first line of defense. They are the most numerous of all the white blood cells. When tissue is damaged it releases fragments that trigger the creation of neutrophils and essentially act as a homing beacon for the neutrophils. The Neutrophils undergo phagocytosis with the pathogen and die in the process. They become what you see as pus.

The next on the scene are the macrophages. They come from the bone as monocytes and then differentiate into macrophages. They can be free floating or fixed to fibers on membranes. They can undergo phagocytosis continuously.

If the macrophages and neutrophils become overrun they send chemicals to the brain to make a fever. The temperature increase does the following:

  • It increases metabolism so your cells can heal faster
  • It tells the liver to hold on to its iron and zinc so bacteria can’t use it to multiply.

You also have NK cells roaming around. Most cells, excluding RBCs, have a complex on their membrane called MHC1. This normally contains fragments of the normal proteins of a healthy cell. If the cell is infected, it contains fragments of the abnormal proteins caused by infection. The presence of these abnormal proteins shows the Natural Killer cells that they are infected. The NK cell then initiates a response that makes the infected cell undergo apoptosis.

If the innate immune defense is overrun, the acquired immune defense steps in.

The Humoral Response:

A B-Lymphocyte is a specialized cell that has membrane bound antibodies. During development of B-lymphocytes, there is intentional shuffling of DNA at the variable region of the antibody proteins. This means that each B-lymphocyte has unique antibodies from another one. Each B-lymphocyte has about 10,000 of the same unique antibodies on it’s outside membrane. This uniqueness is important, because it allows the B-cells to encounter new pathogens and bind to them. During the development of these B-cells, they weed out any self-binding B-cells. If binding does occur at the epitope (binding site) of a pathogen, it brings the pathogen inside the cell via endocytosis and breaks it up into fragments. The fragments are then combined with proteins to form the MHCII complex that is exocytosed to the cell membrane. If an activated T-Helper cell makes a match to the MHCII complex, then the B-Cell becomes activated.

Activated B-cells begin to replicate rapidly to produce lots of these B-cells with their unique anti-body. These cells differentiate into two different types of cells. Memory B cells that stick around and keep replicating to preserve the antibody for future infections, and Plasma Cells (Effector cells) that will produce lots of their unique antibody and release them into the humor at a rate of 2000 a second per plasma cell. The antibodies will then bind to the pathogen, tagging it for phagocytosis (opsonization). Depending on the binding site capabilities, they can sometimes surround pathogens and prevent them from binding to potential host cells. They can also clump together in large masses of pathogens and antibodies making it difficult for the pathogens to move around.

Cell-Mediated Immune System:

T-cells are created in the bone marrow and then mature in the Thymus. Similar to B-cells they have a receptor on their surface that is highly variable and they have the same receptor all over their membrane. Each Helper T-Cell and Cytotoxic T-Cell then is unique.

When a dendritic cell, macrophage, or B-lymphocyte consumes something foreign it creates a MHCII complex on its cell membrane. It presents this complex to a Naive T-Helper Cell. If there is a match then the T-Helper Cell becomes activated. (Dendritic cells are the best at activating T-Helper Cells). Like B-Cells, the T-Helper Cells differentiate into T-Memory Cells and T-Effector Cells. The T-Effector cells release cytokines that act as alarm bells for the rest of the immune system. They help speed up metabolism and replication of immune cells, especially activated B cells and activated T cells.

Every nucleated cell has a MHCI complex made up of fragments of proteins made in the cell. If the MHCI complex has fragments of foreign particles, a cytotoxic T-Cell will bind to the MHCI complex. It also becomes activated when it binds to this complex. The activation causes it to proliferate and differentiate into memory cytotoxic T-Cells and Effector Cytotoxic T-Cells.

Cytotoxic T-Cells bind to the MHC1 receptor and then initiate cell death for the infected cell.

DAT Bio (46 decks)

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