Inmunity System Glossary Flashcards
Antibodies
Y-shaped antigen receptor made only by B cells.
Antigen
A molecule or particle that the immune system recognizes as nonself. Triggers an immune response.
B Cells
B lymphocyte. Lymphocyte that can make antibodies.
Complement
A set of proteins that circulate in inactive form in blood, and when activated play a role in immune responses.
Dendritic cells
Phagocytic white blood cell that alerts the immune system to the presence of antigen in solid tissues.
Immunity
The body’s ability to resist and fight infections.
Immunization
Any procedure designed to promote immunity to a specific disease.
Inflammation
A local response to tissue damage or infection; characterized by redness, warmth, swelling, and pain.
Innate immunity
In all multicelled organisms, set of immediate, general defenses against infection.
Lymph
Fluid that has left capillaries and entered lymph vessels.
Macrophages
Phagocytic white blood cell that patrols tissues and tissue fluids.
Memory cells
Long-lived, antigen-sensitized B or T cell that can act in a secondary immune response.
T cell receptors, or TCRs
Antigen receptor on the surface of a T cell.
T cells
T lymphocyte. Lymphocyte central to adaptive immunity; some kinds target infected or cancerous body cells.
Vaccine
A preparation introduced into the body in order to elicit immunity to a specific antigen.
White blood cells
Blood cell that helps defend the body against pathogens and cleans up cellular debris.
Immune System
A complex network of interacting cells, cell products and tissues that protect the body from pathogens and other foreign substances.
Components of the immune system
Thymus, spleen, lymph nodes, lymph tissue, specific cells and proteins.
Complement
A set of proteins that circulate in inactive form throughout the body in blood and tissue fluids.
Phagocytic cells
Those that engulf material by phagocytosis
PAMPS
(pathogen-associated molecular patterns) Molecules associated with groups of pathogens, recognized by cells.
Response time of innate immunity
Inmediate
Response time of adaptive immunity
About a week
First line of defense
Physical, chemical, and mechanical barriers that usually keep pathogens on the outside of the body
Second line of defense
Innate immunity, begins after a tissue is damaged, or after antigen is detected inside the body.
Third line of defense
White blood cells divide to form huge populations that target a specific antigen and destroy anything bearing it. Some white blood cells persist after infection ends. If the same antigen returns, these memory cells mount a secondary response.
Neutrophils
Most numerous white cells, participate in inflammatory response
Macrophage
Cause inflammation by ordering the blood vessels to release water.
