Jan. 17th (Exam 1) Flashcards
What is innate immunity?
It is the host defense mechanisms that act at the start of an infection.
Describe the timeline of events of what would happen regarding our innate immunity during the interaction of a bacterium and the complement system and subsequent activation of effector cells.
The bacteria’s surface will induce cleavage of the complement system and one of the fragments of the system with covalently bind with the bacterium.
The other fragment of the complement system will attract the effector cell.
Then the two fragments will attach and the effector cell engulfs the bacteria, kills it and breaks it down.
What will effector cells produce as they start to engulf bacteria?
Cytokines
What are cytokines?
Soluble proteins that are produced by cells to affect the behavior of surrounding cells.
i.e they are made when cells detect infection, and they react with other cells to trigger innate immune response.
What else do cytokines do regarding the blood vessels?
Specific cytokines cause vasodilation and make the blood vessel leaky so that fluid, proteins, and inflammatory cells to leave the blood and enter the tissue.
What are the four characteristics of inflammation?
- Heat - (Calor)
- Pain - (Dalor)
- Swelling - (Tumor)
- Redness - (Rubor)
What is the word for swelling we use in healthcare?
Edema
What are inflammatory cells?
These are the WBCs that are present in inflamed tissue that contribute to the inflammation via the cytokines they produce.
Define the Adaptive (acquired) immune response.
The adaptive immune response is the dynamic immune response of ANTIGEN SPECIFIC B and T lymphocytes to antigens involving the development of an immunological memory
List the different lymphocytes and briefly describe them.
- B-cells (small agranular)
- T-cells (small agranular)
- NK cells (large granular)
Define antigen. What are some things that could be considered an antigen?
An antigen is a molecule or molecular fragment that can be recognized by antibodies, B, or T cells.
Antigens could be a protein, part of a protein, a glycoprotein on the surface of a pathogen etc. etc…
B-cell have immunoglobulins that allow them to recognize antigens.
What is the similar apparatus in T-cells?
T-cell receptors.
In what way is the adaptive immune system adaptive to the pathogen?
The cells of the immune system that are best suited to recognize the antigen present on a particular pathogen are selected for and proliferate in masse to fight the infection.
What is the adaptive immune system unique to?
Vertebrates
What are the characteristics of the innate immune system used in our comparison of Innate Vs. Adaptive?
- Fast response
- Will NOT change depending on the pathogen
- Very limited in what it is able to do
- Constant, invariable, response during the entire duration.
What are the characteristics of the adaptive immune system used in our comparison of Innate Vs. Adaptive?
- Slow response
- Variable type of response - depending on the type of pathogen, different cells can be recruited.
- Highly specific in what it is able to do (many options)
- Response can change during the course of the response - as more and more specific cells are selected for, it will only get better.
How do we get different lymphocyte receptors?
They are encoded by genes that are spliced, cut and modified during development.
What is clonal selection?
This is the process of stimulating a small number of specific, pathogen-oriented lymphocytes for proliferation.
What is clonal expansion?
This is the process of proliferation and differentiation of selected lymphocytes.
What are memory cells?
These are the cells that are selected for during an adaptive immune response that may persist after the infection.
Describe the concept of immunological memory.
Infections after the primary response by the same pathogen may cause a stronger and faster adaptive immune response.
Define acquired/protective immunity.
The adaptive immunity is that protection provided by immunological memory.
What is the primary immune response?
This is the first interaction that the immune system has with a pathogen.
What is the secondary immune response?
This is any encounter that we have with a pathogen after the primary response.