One of the most important systems in the body of any species is the immune system. The immune system is a biological response that protects the body from dangerous pathogens that can cause harm or even death to the body. Without a well developed immune system that best fits the species’ body, an animal would have no chance of survival. A successful immune system has a myriad of mechanisms to protect the body from pathogens such as viruses and bacteria. The immune system has many mechanisms that enable it to protect the body from pathogens, such as mucus, phagocytes and effectors, or fevers.
The skin of an animal is the one of the first external defenses against an infection, since it forms an impenetrable barrier of epithelium, which are layers of keratinized cells. Epithelium is a term for the layers of cells that line the outer surface and the inner cavities of the body. Though only some species have skin cells that consist of keratin, keratin can be found in the feathers of a bird, the scales of a reptile or in the skin of a human and primates. Due to the many places keratin can be found, it shows us that the external layer of keratin cells, or what humans have as skin, are not just a first line defense for humans. Skin is not just a layer on the outside, but epithelia, layers of keratinized cells, line the respiratory, gastrointestinal, and urogential tracts where infections are common. In the internal surfaces, these internal surfaces are vulnerable to microbial invasions, known as mucosal surfaces or mucosae. Mucosal surfaces are constantly bathed in the mucus that their glands secrete; these secretions fight microorganisms that get stuck and cultivate themselves in the mucus. Mucus is a thick fluid layer that contains anti...
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...f mechanisms that an immune system uses to heal and protect the body. One way is the mucus produced by the glands in the body which capture pathogens entering the openings or the most vulnerable places of a body and flushes them out. Another mechanism is the proficient effector molecules that mark the pathogens for the phagocytes that ingest and then eliminate them. Finally there is the chemical response of temporarily sustaining a high temperature to kill off pathogen that have entered and damaged the body, this is called a fever. The immune systems has more than three mechanisms to fight infections and pathogens that enter the body from stopping them before any damage is done, healing the damage that the body has sustained, to eliminating the pathogens that are causing bodily harm.
Works Cited
1) Parham P. 2009. Immune System [Internet]. 3. Cited 2014 May 1
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
The human immune system is an amazing system that is constantly on the alert protecting us from
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).
The function of the immune system is it helps play a vital part of our everyday lives. It helps protect our bodies where ever we go. Our immune systems help defend our bodies against germs and microorganisms. The immune system is made up of various special cells, tissues, organs and proteins. This special system does an amazing job of keeping our bodies healthy and in good shape from different diseases and infections.
Seattle Education Project. (2013, November). STEP: The Immune System - An Overview, [Online]. Available: http://www.thebody.com/step/immune.html [11/12/14].
The innate immune system is given to you at birth and always has microbes ready to fight (Joanne M. Willey, 2014). This system is very fast to detect and attempt to eliminate any invading cells. It reacts by triggering Toll-like receptors (TLRs) who then fasten to pathogen-associated molecular patterns (PAMPs) (Joanne M. Willey, 2014). The first line of defense in the innate immune system contains the skin and mucous membranes, along with normal microbiota (Joanne M. Willey, 2014). The second line of defense of the “early-warning” system consists of natural killer cells, phagocytes, eosinophils, dendritic cells, macrophages, inflammation, fever, and antimicrobial substances (Joanne M. Willey, 2014). Although a powerful system, it cannot take
Within the in the bodies immune system there are two lines of defense. The first line of defenser being is the non-specific innate immunity. Non-specific immunity repels all microorganisms equally (John H. Humphrey, 2014). The second line of defense is the immune response. The immune response goes after specific invaders. Each line of defense works differently but together they work to keep the body health, and clear of pathogens that are harmfull. The body takes chronological steps to maintain its defenses. The first step being the first line defense. These can include the mucus membranes and the skin. Next is the second line of defense, these come from the non-specific defense sytem. Once pathogens pass through the first line of defense the second line of defense responds in turn through processes of inflammatory response and fever. If both the first and second defenses are incapable of containing the pathogen then a third line of defense is activated. The third line of defense being a specific immune response. Specific pathogens are attacked through the specific immune response by the process of B-cell production of antibodies, which attack the virus or bacteria in extra-cellular fluid (Martini & Nath, 2009). Lastly T-cells proceed to kill the infected cells. The T-cell as well as the B-cell can both be located in the lymph nodes of the
This immunity is dependent upon our body to be exposed to a particular type of pathogen once before. After the exposure, our body’s immune system learns of a way to counteract the foreign substance. The immune system learns the most effective way to counter each antigen that enters and then retains that strategy until the same pathogen attacks on it again. It completely customizes its attack, adapts to new conditions and remembers the information. This why people are given shots of inactivated viruses. When these viruses enter the blood stream, the body thinks that they are harmful pathogens and then develops a way of counteracting to them. After battling these viruses, they remember their form of attack, so in case these same harmful viruses enter the blood stream again, they can deal with them quickly and efficiently. Lymphocytes (T and B cells are required for this immunity). The antibodies IgA are expressed in our body on the mucous surface of the gut. When foreign substances enter, the intestine, they kill those pathogens before they can even grow in the
Today I will discuss the immune system and what makes it so important and vital for our everyday well-being and defending our body against sickness and disease.. First off, what is the immune system? Vaccines.gov informs readers that, “The immune system is a network of cells, tissues, and organs that work together to defend the body against attacks by “foreign” invaders. These are primarily microbes—tiny organisms such as bacteria, parasites, and fungi that can cause infections.” Why are these important to us as humans? Very simple, without our immune system ,things such as viruses, the common cold and flu, would likely cause severe trauma or death to our body very easily. However, antibodies
The immune system is a highly evolved and complex defence system, armed against millions of potential pathogens that may cause infection at any point. Pattern recognition receptors, known as PRRs, are displayed by the cells of the innate immune system, such as macrophages and dendritic cells, and recognise pathogen associated molecular patterns or PAMPs. PAMPs are evolutionary conserved structural similarities found in many pathogens but not in the host’s own cells allowing the innate immune system to distinguish between self and non self and to react to the pathogens immediately (Mogensen, 2009). Antigen recognition receptors are used by the lymphocytes of the adaptive immune system to provide a highly specific and targeted response to a precise epitope of an antigen. However as a single lymphocyte carries only a single type of antigen recognition receptor that recognises one type of antigen the chance of a pathogen of finding a lymphocyte with a given specificity is low. Therefore the adaptive immune response takes time to mobilise hence the innate immune system is essential to keep the infection
The innate immune system is considered mostly as universal as it is present in most of the organisms on Earth. It is characterised by the ability to react fast (as opposed to the adaptive immunity, which can take up to several days to be active) to any external threats.
Lymphatic system is made up of lymph vessels which filter the fluid waste and fluid excess back into the blood circulation. Digestive system is made up of the liver, pancreas, bladder, and its purpose is to break down food into nutrients and energy for the body. Immune system is the cells, tissues, and organs that all work together to protect your body from getting sick from viruses, bacteria, fungi, and parasites. Immune system also protects your body from limiting things to maintain health. The respiratory system is in charge of providing the body with oxygen while removing the carbon dioxide through airways like the nose and mouth, lungs, and muscles of the respiration. The urinary system includes ureters, kidneys, bladders which remove the waste from blood to produce urine. The Reproductive system is organs (including the testes and penis for males, and vagina and ovaries for the women) which working together to make a new life (a
This system includes the spleen, bone marrow, lymph nodes, lymphocytes, leukocytes, and thymus. This system is also an important one because it tries to keep people healthy. The anatomic response, inflammatory response, and immune response are all types of responses in the immune system. The first response is the anatomic response; it physically prevents substances from getting inside the body. The defenses in the anatomic system are the skin and the mucus membranes. If any other substances get past the anatomic system, the inflammatory response gets alerted. Next, the inflammatory system gets started by eliminating the intruders from the body. Runny noses, fever, and sneezing are all symptoms of the system at work. The last option for the body, is the immune response. The immune response is the central response of the immune system. It contains white blood cells, and white blood cells fight infection by engulfing the antigens. Then, the lymphocytes move to the lymph nodes to produce antibodies (Rettner; Your Body’s
Adaptive immune system happens much quicker to the presence of an “infection creating potent mechanisms for neutralizing or eliminating the microbes. There are two types of adaptive immune responses: humeral immunity, mediated by antibodies produced by B lymphocytes, and cell-mediated immunity, mediated by T lymphocytes.”
The skin has 3 main function. It has to regulate body temperature, remove waste (perspiration), and protect. The skin is made up of 3 layers. The epidermis is the outer thinner layer of the skin that is made up of dead and living cells. The dermis is the thicker middle layer of the skin that contains blood vessels and nerves. Sweat glands are found in the dermis, they secrete perspiration through ducts to pores on the skin’s surface. To avoid problems like warts, boils, moles, acne, and sunburn you can wash your body daily, wear sunscreen that is 15 or higher, and check your body often...