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What is the study and function of the immune system
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The immune system is made up of a network of cells, tissues, and organs that work together to protect the body, and it defends the body from “foreign invaders.” Immunity can be divided in two three different defenses, and these are defined as first, second and third lines of defense. The first line of defense for the immune system is the primary defense against pathogens entering the body from the surface in order to prevent the start of disease and infection. Some examples of the first line of defense is the skin, protecting the external boundaries of the body, and the mucous membranes, protecting the internal boundaries of the body. Although the skin and mucous membranes work on the internal and external boundaries, they both release chemicals …show more content…
Lupus is inflammatory disease caused when the immune system attacks its own tissues and organs, and this inflammation affects many different body parts such as the joints, skin, kidneys, blood cells, brain, heart and lungs. Second is the Celiac disease and it is an autoimmune reaction from eating gluten, and it may lead to damage in the small intestine because this disease attacks the villi, the projections that line the small intestine for protection. The last example is Rheumatoid Arthritis, an inflammatory disorder in which affects many joints, mainly in hands and feet, and then causing your joints to painfully swell and possibly cause bone erosion. The B cells, T cells, Macrophage, and Antibodies are all a very large part of the immune system. There are two types of T cells, killer and helper T cells. Killer T cells find and destroy cells infected with bacteria, and helper T cells control the activity of other cells in the immune system. Then, B cells are considered the “clean up crew,” attacking any bacteria or viruses the T cell left behind. They also make antibodies, which are essential for trapping invading viruses and
Health care is a major global issue that affects millions of people every day. In this paper I am going to review an important health care topic that includes childhood immunizations and religious exemption policies. Immunizations are one of the most cost-effective public health achievements that protect both individuals and the community as a whole. Vaccinated individuals help the community by creating what is called herd immunity for those who cannot be vaccinated due to age or current health conditions get some protection because the spread of contagious disease is contained. High vaccination rates and low incidences of diseases indicators of successful immunization programs.
Researchers think that this immune system response may be triggered by bacteria or viruses, material in the intestinal contents, or a defective signal from the body’s own cells, called an autoimmune response. Inflammation results in pain, heat, redness, and swelling of the tissue. Chronic inflammation can harm the function of tissues and organs (U.S. News, 2009). Crohn’s disease also appears to affect certain ethnic groups more than others. American Jews of European descent are four to five times more likely to de... ...
Rheumatoid arthritis is a chronic inflammatory and an autoimmune disease that occurs when the immune system mistakenly attacks the body’s tissue (Rheumatoid arthritis, 2017). This disease affects the entire body, which is called a systemic (means entire body) disease. Arthritis is derived from the word part arthr-, which means “joint,” and -itis, which means “inflammation,” so altogether it means “inflammation of the joints.” It creates inflammation that causes the tissue that lines the inside of joints (synovium) to thicken. About 1.5 million people in the U.S. are affected. It affects all races, but it affects three times as many women than men (What is Rheumatoid Arthritis, n.d.). Overtime, rheumatoid arthritis causes painful swelling that can potentially result in bone erosion or joint deformity, which leads up to physical disabilities. RA can affect more than just your joints, but can spread to body systems, skin, eyes, lungs, heart, blood vessels, e.t.c (Rheumatoid arthritis, 2017).
Because there are over three hundred symptoms associated with Celiac, it is often called “The Great Imitator” (Sheehan, 19). Each case is different with symptoms ranging from enamel defects to constipation, while there are some patients that do not have any symptoms at all. There is an increased manifestation of women versus men; women past menarche may have had a delayed onset of puberty. Women may have to deal with missed menstrual cycles, infertility, reoccurring miscarriages, or any combination. In adults, depression and anxiety are often common, as are seizures and migraines; liver and biliary tract disorders may present. Systemic side effects including unexplained iron-deficiency anemia, fatigue, join pain, and mouth canker sores are usually presented with adults whereas children usually present with more of the abdominal reactions including bloating, diarrhea, and failure to thrive. Both children and adults may experience foul-smelling stool, arthritis, vomiting, or a rash called dermatitis herpetiformis. Children especially will present with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), delayed growth or short stature accompanied by numbness and tingling in the hands and feet, and osteoporosis or osteopenia. Profuse diarrhea, dehydration, electrolyte imbalance, hyperproteinemia, and vascular compromise are signs of “celiac crisis” which is life threatening without intervention. And yet the classic presentation of severe malabsorption and weight loss rarely occurs. The classic presentation is a patient 6 to 24 months old, although patients may go years with exposure before symptoms present. Often, young adults will begin to notice symptoms after a stressful trigger, including leaving for college, suffering another injury or illness or pregnancy (WebMd, 2016). The degree of symptoms are related to how long the patient was breastfed, the age when they were introduced to gluten,
The job of the immune system is to keep “foreign” invaders out of the body, or if one gets in, to seek it out and kill it. These foreign invaders are called pathogens, which are tiny organisms that can cause an infection in the body. Pathogens can be bacteria, parasites, and fungi (http://www.niaid.nih.gov/topics/immuneSystem/pages/whatisimmunesystem.aspx).
Usually your body produces antibodies to fight off invaders such as Viruses or diseases but since Lupus is an autoimmune disease; the immune system can’t tell the difference between foreign invaders and healthy tissues. There 3 types of Lupus Systemic Lupus (most common) which can affect any part of the body, Discoid Lupus which only affects the skin, and Drug induced Lup...
Our skin functions as a daily defense for our bodies against disease because of skin and mucous membranes. The skin is a massive organ and it protects everything inside our bodies such as our muscles, bones and organs. Our skin protects us from bacteria, parasites, viruses and pathogens ...
Celiac disease is a multisystem disorder. It causes the body’s immune system to respond negatively to the protein in specific grains. "The immune system responds to these proteins because it thinks it is being attacked. It then builds antibodies to protect itself from these proteins and inturn those antibodies cause damage to the small intestines" (Bower).
Rheumatoid Arthritis is when the joints are chronically inflamed, which happens because it is an autoimmune disease which means that the immune system attacks the body tissues. Although Rheumatoid Arthritis mainly affects the joints, it can also affect other organs.
Seattle Education Project. (2013, November). STEP: The Immune System - An Overview, [Online]. Available: http://www.thebody.com/step/immune.html [11/12/14].
As immunisers we need to have a thorough understanding of the immune system and the vaccine action. Immunity is the protection and ultimately the response that occurs when a person has been vaccination or has been affected with an infection and ultimately recovered. (Australian Academy of Science 2012; Brown & Edwards 2010). The immune system consists of millions of white blood cells, these contain the materials that initiate immune responses these being identified as antigens (Brown & Edwards 2010). Antigens exist on the surface of all of the body’s cells, and are unique to each individual that ensures the body is capable to recognize anything that is foreign (Black 2008; Brown & Edwards 2010). By being able to recognize and respond to antigens that are regarded foreign to the body and consequently they stimulate an immune response, the immune system is able to protect itself from harm (Australian Academy of Science 2012).
Rheumatoid arthritis is an autoimmune disease that attacks the joints and connective tissue. Autoimmune diseases are illnesses that occur when the bodys tissue is mistakenly attacked by its own immune system. The immunes system is primarly organized to look for infections and destroy them, patients with rheumatoid arthritis have antibodies in their blood which target their own tissue which leads to inflammation. RA is basically a chronic syndrome that is characterized by inflammation of the peripheral joints, but it may also involve the lungs, the heart, the blood vessels and eyes.
Arthritis occurs when the body incorrectly identifies its own tissue as foreign matter and attacks it. Arthritis includes a set of more than eighty autoimmune diseases. Arthritis attacks connective tissues and joints. It causes stiffness, pain, inflammation, and swelling of the joints. Some kinds are crippling, but rarely leads to death. There are many different kinds of arthritis, the main ones being Osteoarthritis and Rheumatoid arthritis; others include gout and ankylosing spodylitis.
The immune system is a fascinating structure it defends the body against foreign invaders like bacteria, viruses and parasites. There are two primary forms that make up the immune system they are, innate and adaptive systems. Both the innate and adaptive system plays a large role in the immune system. The innate is the primary system to defend against foreign materials and the adaptive is the secondary system that responds to specific issues.
To humans, having a healthy immune system is essential. Our immune system is important because it helps the body fight any foreign bacteria, viruses, and diseases by attacking it, which is why we must take care of it as much as possible by strengthening it. But this so called defense system can also cause problems such as attacking donated organs or blood from another individual, unless the organs or blood are carefully matched. It may also overreact to harmless invaders such as pollen grains, which can cause hayfever, and even in certain cases, the immune system may turn against the body's own cells. The immune system uses different types of white blood cells. Some of these cells which are called macrophages, are constantly patrolling the body to destroy any germs as they enter. In the case of an infection taking hold, one’s body will begin to fight back with a much powerful defense of T and B-cells. These cells give people acquired immunity in order to prevent the same germ form making them ill again. Unfortunately with today’s environmental issues people are dealing with several health problems, especially in their immune system. Air pollution, which is one of the major environmental issues, can cause several health risks. Exposure to air pollutants can have a high possibility of resulting in long term effects on people as well as shutting down the immune system. Therefore, the pollution in the air can affect the immune system by weakening it and making it much more vulnerable to foreign invaders, illnesses, harmful bacteria, and viruses.