One of the main defense mechanism of the body against disease is the Immune System. The immune system creates immunity or makes us immune, meaning it makes us able to resist microorganisms that invade our body. The main workers of the immune system are leukocytes, also known as white blood cells. White blood cells can be divided into subgroups like basophils, neutrophils, and eosinophils for example. Each of these specific white blood cell is created and response more rapidly to different threats on the body like parasites or simple bacterial infections.
There are two main categories of immunity with the human body, there is Innate Immunity or “natural” immunity and Adaptive Immunity. Innate immunity is the bodies natural response to all foreign bodies, it consists of no memory, release of nonspecific white blood cells that are able to attack all forms of foreign bodies, the bodies inflammatory response, and the release of complement proteins and interferons. With innate immunity the body responses the same way to foreign bodies despite the type of threat. Adaptive Immunity is also known as specific immunity because the body creates memory of specific invaders like a polio virus and is able to then create specific white blood cells from memory to kill the invading polio virus. Adaptive immunity consists of natural immunity which occurs when exposure to a foreign body happens naturally, artificial immunity which includes when a child develops a disease such as polio and the body forms memory of the virus from the infection, and when when an injection of causative agents like immunizations are given just for a few examples. The video we watched discussed vaccination, based on studies and your opinion do you believe vaccines are equally as important as natural immunity? Can there be arguments made that natural immunity is the best way for the body to defend against disease?
Our immune system is not just made up of organs (Better Health Channel, n.d.). Our immune system is also made up of cells and chemicals that help our bodies fight off invading microorganisms. The immune system is primarily made up of the spleen, thymus, bone marrow, white blood cells, antibodies, complement system, and lymphatic system. When blood is being filtered through the spleen the spleen will detect any pathogens and this triggers immune cells to attack it (Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, n.d.). The bone marrow is where immune cells are made. If these cells mature in the marrow it is called a B cell and if they travel to the thymus and mature there they are called a T cell. White blood cells include many types of immune cells and they flow through the body monitoring for any invading microorganisms (Better Health Channel, n.d.). Antibodies work alongside the complement system which is made up of proteins. The antibodies mark foreign microorganisms in the body and the proteins help the attack. The lymphatic system is a network of lymph nodes, extracellular fluid, and lymph (National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Disease, 2013). This is where immune cells travel and come together at. This system is how tissue and the bloodstream communicate with each other. Besides these parts, there are also helpers in our immune system (Better Health Channel, n.d.). Our skin is our first line of defense that can help kill bacteria with the oil it produces. Our GI tract has antibodies found without it and also the acid from our stomach can kill foreign cells. Lastly, our lungs can cough out any foreign microorganism that gets stuck in the mucous or cilia. What are two disorders that would greatly affect a person’s immune system and the science behind them?
