Lymphocytes Flashcards
What is immunological memory?
Antigenic presence is recognized and responded to by the immune system, contributing towards immunological memory through the mitotic division of antigen-specific lymphocyte B and T cells, by clonal selection
Stimulates secondary immune response.
Why is the secondary immune response faster and more effective in comparison to the primary response?
B memory cells are stimulated to divide and rapidly produce a greater quantity of antibodies in a shorter time interval
Antibodies have a greater affinity to antigen
There is no lag period, thus suppresses the pathogenic proliferation and preventing onset of symptoms
Where are T cells produced?
Produced in the bone marrow
Where do T cells mature?
Become biologically active in the thymus gland
What is present on t cells?
T-cell receptors (TCRs)
What are T killer cells?
Produce chemicals to destroy infected body cells
What are T helper cells?
Activate the plasma cells to produce antibodies agaisnt the antigens on particular patogen and also secrete opsonins
What are opsonins?
Chemicals which bind to pathogens and label, them, making them easily recognizable by phagocytes
What are T memory cells?
Long-lived cells formulate part of the immunological memory.
When an identical pathogen is re-encountered, the memory T cells rapidly divide, forming a large clone of T killer cells.
Which complexes display antigenic peptides on the cell surface membrane?
Major histocompatibility complexes.
What is the humoral response?
Results in the production of antibodies which are not attached to cells but are carried in blood and tissue fluid
B cells produce antibodies, by are activated by T cells, the humoral response includes the T helper activation and effector stage
What two main stages form the humoral response?
T helper activation and effector stage
What is the first function of CD8+ T cells?
Secretion of cytokines, primarily TNF-alpha and IFN-y, which have anti-tumor and antiviral microbial effects
Which cytokines are released by CD8+ T cells?
TNF-alpha
IFN-y
What is the second primary function of CD8+ T cells?
Release of cytotoxic granules contains perforin and granzymes
Perforin forms pore in the membrane of the target cell, attributing similar mechanisms to the membrane attack complex of complement
Pore enables granzymes also contained in cytotoxic granules to enter cells
What two cytotoxic enzymes are found within cytotoxic CD8+ granules?
Perforin and granzymes
What are granzymes?
Serine proteases cleave proteins intracellularly, inhibiting viral protein synthesis and resulting in apoptosis of the target cells
How are cytotoxic granules released to prevent unwanted non-specific damage?
Released only in the direction of the target cell, aligned along the immune synapse to avoid non-specific bystander damage to healthy surrounding tissue
What is serial killing?
CD8+ T cells release granules, kill infected cell and move to new target
Which types of cell surface interactions do CD8+ T cells cause to target cells?
Fas/FasL interactions (L = ligand)
Upon FasL interactions with Fas receptors on target cells what happens?
Fas molecules on target cell surface to trimersise, aggregate signaling molecules - activates caspase cascade, results in target cell apoptosis
What is fratricide?
Eliminates immune effector during the contraction phase, terminating immune response
What are the main dendritic antigen-presenting immune cells?
Macrophages
What is the initial stage of T-helper activation?
Macrophages and phagocytes engulf pathogens during internalisation , at the rough endoplasmic reticulum, the antigenic proteins are fragmentized into a specific sequence of antigenic peptides, these are associated with major histocompatibility complex
Complexes move to the surface of the macrophage cell outer membrane = BECOMES antigen-presenting cell
How do CD4+ cells recognise MHC-II?
Specific TCRs bind to the MHC-antigen peptide complex on the APC. This triggers intracellular signals, causing the release of cytokines (interleukin-2 from Th)
Which interleukin is released upon TCR-MHC binding?
IL-2