The Immune System

Question 1

what are some general barriers of the immune system?

Answer 1

nutrition, fever, age, genetics

Question 2

what triggers fever?

Answer 2

exogenous pyrogen ie LPS

Question 3

physical and chemical barriers of the immune system

Answer 3

skin, eyes (lysozyme) , respiratory tract (cilia, coughing etc), mucus, acid in stomach

Question 4

where is mucus produced?

Answer 4

goblet cells

Question 5

what is mucus composed of?

Answer 5

mucin and other proteins, electrolytes and lipids

Question 6

what destroys pathogens in the small intestine?

Answer 6

pancreatic enzymes, bile and antibody

Question 7

what is pathogenesis?

Answer 7

entry, colonization, growth and progression of a diseased state

Question 8

what is virulence?

Answer 8

the ability of a pathogen to cause disease

Question 9

what is attenuation?

Answer 9

loss of virulence, can be temporary or permanent (used in vaccines)

Question 10

what are the primary lymphoid organs?

Answer 10

bone marrow and thymus, produce immune cells

Question 11

what are the secondary lymphoid organs?

Answer 11

lymph nodes, spleen and MALT

Question 12

what is the lymphatic system?

Answer 12

a network of vessels and organs that remove toxins, waste and unwanted products from the body

Question 13

role of the lymphatic system?

Answer 13

1. removal of interstitial fluid from tissues

2. monitor for infection and tissue damage

Question 14

what is lymph?

Answer 14

clear fluid containing leukocytes

Question 15

where does lymph drain back into the bloodstream?

Answer 15

left subclavian vein via thoracic duct

Question 16

What is innate immunity?

Answer 16

non specific

• interferons
• neutrophils, dendritic cells, macrophages detect pathogens
• cytokines

Question 17

what is the adaptive immune response?

Answer 17

tailored to specific pathogen, long lasting, only in vertebrates

Question 18

what is chemotaxis?

Answer 18

immune cell move around the body against concentration gradient of chemotactic molecules

Question 19

what receptors do phagocytes have that detect the presence of bacteria and viruses?

Answer 19

pattern recognition receptors

Question 20

what do pattern recognition receptors do?

Answer 20

recognize danger signals on bacteria and viruses called pathogen associated molecular patterns PAMP

Question 21

subclass of cytokine

Answer 21

interleukins

Question 22

interleukin functions

Answer 22

mediate interactions between leukocytes, bridge innate and adaptive immune systems, are released from cells after PAMP recognitions by PRRs

Question 23

what do cytokines bind to?

Answer 23

high affinity receptors or target cells which trigger activation and proliferation

Question 24

what are interferons?

Answer 24

small secreted cytokines that trigger anti viral responses in cells, control virus infections

Question 25

what is used to treat hep c virus ?

Answer 25

recombinant IFNa

Question 26

what is an antigen?

Answer 26

a molecule or molecular structure present at the outside of a pathogen that is recognized by B and T cells

Question 27

what is an antigen composed of?

Answer 27

peptide, polysaccharides and glycolipids

Question 28

what produces antibodies?

Answer 28

B lymphocytes