Hisotry of Immunology Flashcards
Examples of viruses
Coronavirus
Influenza
Example of bacteria
E. coli
Example of parasites
Parasitic worms
Are all bacteria pathogens?
No, many are beneficial for us = commensal bacteria and gut bacteria
What is SCID?
Severe combined immunodeficiency = genetic disorder where primary immune deficiency
What is a treatment for SCID?
Bone marrow transfer
Need a matching donor
What is EBV?
Epstein-Barr Virus = herpes virus that spreads primarily through saliva
Causes body to produce excessive number of WBC
EBV aka?
Human herpesvirus 4
What are traits of the herpes family?
Based on structure of virion
Contain dsDNA located at central core
Who are at high risk of developing severe symptoms upon SARS-CoV-2 infection?
People with weaker immune system
Elderly
People with chronic disease
What is variolation?
The obsolete process of inoculating a susceptible person with material taken from a vesicle of a person who has smallpox
Who performed the first vaccination against smallpox?
Edwawrd Jenner
Who came up with the Germ Theory of Infectious Disease?
Louis Pasteur
What is the Germ Theory of Infectious Disease?
The spoilage of wine was caused by particles in the air rather than the air itself.
Food spoiled because of contamination by invisible bacteria, not because of spontaneous generation.
Pasteur stipulated that bacteria caused infection and disease.
What are Koch’s Postulates used for?
4 criteria designed to establish a causal relationship between a microbe and a disease
What are the 4 Koch’s Postulates?
The bacteria must be present in every case of the disease.
The bacteria must be isolated from the host with the disease and grown in pure culture.
The specific disease must be reproduced when a pure culture of the bacteria is inoculated into a healthy susceptible host.
The bacteria must be taken from the experimentally infected host and be identical to original causative agent
Why did Koch later abandon the requirement of the first postulate?
Because of asymptomatic carriers or cholera and other later diseases
Thus, bacteria being present but not causing the disease
What is anthrax caused by?
Gram-positive, rod-shaped bacteria known as Bacillus anthracis.
How is anthrax spread?
It occurs naturally in soil and commonly affects domestic and wild animals around the world.
People can get sick with anthrax if they come in contact with infected animals or contaminated animal products.
What does anthrax do to humans?
The most serious complications of anthrax include: Your body being unable to respond to infection normally, leading to damage of multiple organ systems (sepsis)
Inflammation of the membranes and fluid covering the brain and spinal cord, leading to massive bleeding (hemorrhagic meningitis) and death
What did Emil Behring discover?
Discovered antibodies and that they could be transferred from one person or animal to another person, who also then became immune
Took antibodies form blood plasma or serum
What is passive immunization?
When a person is given antibodies to a disease rather than producing them through his or her own immune system
What was the incorrect theory of antibody formation and who came up with it?
Side-Chain Theory of Antibody Formation by Paul Ehrlich
What was the mechanism of action behind Paul Ehrlich’s incorrect theory?
A cell under threat grew additional side chains to bind the toxin
These chains would then break off to become antibodies
