Defence Mechanisms Flashcards
1
Q
What are the main defence mechanisms of the body?
A
NON-SPECIFIC
-Physical barrier
-Phagocytosis
SPECIFIC
-Cell mediated response
-Humoral response
2
Q
How does the body distinguish between its own cells and foreign cells?
A
-Lymphocytes utilise the tertiary structure of proteins to distinguish them from each other
-In the infection-free fetus lymphocytes that fit exactly with body cells are destroyed or suppressed, this also occurs in adult bone marrow.
-Therefore when lymphocytes collide with non-self cells, they will automatically respond to these only.
