Immune System

 Immunity – a state of responsiveness to foreign substances

 Immunopathology – refers to the study of diseases from dysfunctions within the immune system
 Immuncompetence – body’s immune system can identify and inactive or destroy foreign substances

What are the functions of the immune system?

A. Defense
 3rd line of defense
 Specific defense mechanism
 Resists invasion by microorganisms
 Prevents infection

a. Hypofunction defense
 Immunosuppression
 Other disorders: neotropenia, AIDS, immunosuppression secondary to drugs

b. Hyperfunction
 Inappropriate and abnormal respons to external antigens allerg

B. Homeonstasis
 Damaged cellular substances are digested and removed
 The specific cell types remain uniform and unchanged

Hyperfunction
Abnormal response where antibodies react against normal tissues and cells
An autoimmune disease

A. Surveillance
Mutations – continually arise in the body but abnormally recognized as foreign cell and are destroyed

Hypofunction
Inability of the immune system to perceive and respond to mutated cells

I.
A.

Antigen
When foreign antigen comes  series of cellular changes occurs  formation of specific

B. Recognition
 Memory
 Immune system has unique ability to remember the antigen
 Distinguish difference between the body’s own proteins and foreign proteins
 Failure – leads to tissue destruction

C. Self-Limitation
 Self-regulation allows the immune system to monitor itself by:
 “turning on” when antigen invades
 “turning off” when invader has been eradicated

4 R’s of the Immune Response

1. Responds
2. Remembers
3. Recognizes
4. Regulates

Organs of the Immune System

A. Centrally Lymphoid Organs

  Bone Marrow
 Thymus

Bone Marrow
 A significant storage suite for erythrocytes and lymphocytes involved in immunity

Thymus
An endocrine organ
Is important in the differentiation and maturation of T lymphocytes essential for a cell mediated
immunity

B. Peripheral Lymphoid Organs

 Spleen
 Lymph nodes
 Other lymphoid tissues

Spleen
 Largest lymphoid organ in the body
 Primary site for filtering foreign substances from the blood
 Major site of immune response too blood-borne antigens

Lymph nodes
 Found in large numbers in the thoracic and abdominal cavities
 Connected by lymph channels and capillaries which remove foreign material from he lymph
system before it enters the blood stream
 With resident macrophages; cervical nodes, axillary nodes; inguinal nodes

Other lymphoid tissues (separated from the lymph drainage)

 Tonsils, appendix
 Peyer’s patches in the intestines
 Mucosa-associated lymphoid tissues in respi, GI and reproductive systems

Antigens may either circulate in the body attached to foreign material, or may be “presented” to lymphocytes,
via Major Histocompatability Complex proteins

Epitodes
 Reactive sites of antigen
 Determinant sites
 Protrude from the surface of an antigen and combine with the appropriate receptor of an antibody

C. Antibody
 Immunoglobulins (Igs)
 Special proteins that can bind to the antigen on the surface of a pathogen and help destroy it.
 Made in response to exposure to the antigen

Types of Immune Response

Immune Response

Humoral Immunity
(Antibody)

Cell-mediated immunity
(Cytotoxicity)

How do lymphocytes differentiate?

(Insert Bone marrow stem cells:

Humoral, cell-mediated diagram here)
 A. Humoral
 B-lymphoctes
 Antibody mediated immunity
 Antibodies – produced by a subset of lymphocytes called B cells (plasma cells)
 Antibodies are found in ECF and the surface of B cells
 Defense against microbes & toxins circulate freely in body fluids, before they enter cells
 Directed against extra cellular pathogens
 Also cause certain reactions against transplanted tissue

Classes of Antibody

IgG Only immunoglobulin that crosses

placenta, activates compliment, binds to
macrophages
IgA Predominant on body secretions (saliva,
breast milk, nasal, and respiratory)
IgM Forms natural antibodies against ABO
blood anatigens, prominent in early
immune response, activates
complement
IgD May affect B cell maturation
IgE Binds to mast cells, involved in allergic
and hypersensitivity reactions

Antigen-Antibody Interaction
 Precipitation
 Agglutination
 Opsonization
 Lysis
 Neutralization

Precipitation
Soluble antigens combined with antibodies to form a lattice formation of insoluble complexes that precipitate
are eventually eliminated

Opsonization
Coating with molecules...

Lysis
Cause rupture and leakage of cell...

Neautralization
Neautralized some toxins released...