Communicable diseases Flashcards
What’s the definition of a communicable disease?
A disease that is spread between organisms
What’s a blood clot?
A mesh of protein fibres
What’s an immune response?
The body’s reaction to a foreign antigen
What do neutrophils do?
White blood cells that respond to a pathogen
Involved in phagocytosis
What do T regulatory cells do?
Suppress the immune response to prevent autoimmune disease
What do T killer cells do?
Attach to and kill cells infected with a virus
What are interleukins?
Type of cytokine (cell-signalling molecule) that binds to B lymphocytes to activate it
What bonds hold the chains together in an antibody?
Disulphide
How many antigens can an antibody bind to at one time?
2
What are anti-toxins?
Antibodies that bind to toxins produced by pathogens and neutralise them
Why’s the primary response slow?
There aren’t many B lymphocytes that can make the antibody needed to bind to the pathogen
What do memory T cells remember?
The specific antigen (so can bind to it next time)
What do memory B cells remember?
The specific antibody (needed to bind to the antigen)
How can immunity be maintained?
Continually exposing the person to a pathogen so more memory T and B cells are made e.g., vaccine booster
What’s active immunity?
When your immune system makes its own antibodies after being stimulated by an antigen
