UNIT 3 IMMUNITY Structure
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Microbiology-II UNIT 3 IMMUNITY Structure 3.0 Objectives 3.1 Introduction 3.2 Definitions 3.3 What is Immunity? 3.4 The Three Lines of Defense in the Body 3.5 Inflammation 3.6 Types of Immunity 3.6.1 Innate Immunity 3.6.2 Factors Influencing Innate Immunity in an Individual 3.6.3 Acquired Immunity 3.6.4 Active Acquired Immunity 3.6.5 Passive Acquired Immunity 3.6.6 Differences between Active and Passive Immunity 3.7 The Immune System 3.8 Antigens and Antibodies 3.9 Allergy/Hypersensitivity/Anaphylaxis 3.10 Practical Application of Immunology 3.10.1 Immunizing Agents 3.10.2 Vaccines and Vaccinations 3.10.3 Immunoglobulins 3.10.4 The Immune Responses 3.11 Let Us Sum Up 3.12 Key Words 3.13 Answers to Check Your Progress 3.0 OBJECTIVES After going through this unit, you should be able to: l define Immunity; l differentiate between the older and modern concept of immunity; l determine the three lines of defense in the body; l enumerate the different types of immunity; l differentiate between active and passive immunity; l explain the innate and adaptive immune system; l distinguish between antigens and antibodies; l state the phenomenon of allergy; l describe the various antigen-antibody reactions; l discuss the various immunizing agents; and l define primary and secondary response. 3.1 INTRODUCTION The word ‘Immunity’ comes from a Latin term ‘immunis’ meaning free or exempt. It has been recognised from very early times that those who suffer from infectious diseases such 38 as diphtheria, whooping cough, mumps, measles, small pox etc. do not get the disease a second time. Also it had long been known that when a disease occurs in epidemic form, Immunity some persons do not get the infection and in some the infection is very mild. The answer to all these questions is that they have developed some kind of immunity in the body to resist infection. Immunity is a very broad scientific discipline and in recent years many new technologies have developed and with one recent technique ‘hybridoma’ it is now possible to obtain unlimited amounts of specific antibodies which could be used for treating the patients. In this unit, you are going to learn the older and modern concepts of immunity, the three lines of defense in the body, types of immunity and differences between innate and acquired immunity. You will also study the practical applications of immunology including different types of antigens and antibodies. You will also become familiar with different types of antigen-antibody reactions. An account of concept of allergy is also included in this unit and various immunizing agents are discussed in the end. 3.2 DEFINITIONS Older Concept of Immunity: The resistance of the individual to an infected organism is called immunity. Modern Concept of Immunity: It is defined as the ability of the body to recognise, destroy and eliminate antigenic material foreign to its own. Antigens: Antigens are specific substances which when introduced into the body give rise to the production of antibodies. Antibodies: Antibodies are specific substances in response to antigenic material. They are produced in the body to help fight disease germs. Immunizing Agents (Biologicals): Substances used in practical immunology are called immunizing agents (Biologicals). They may be antigenic immunizing agents or anitbody immunizing agents. Immunology: The branch of science which deals with immunity is called immunology. 3.3 WHAT IS IMMUNITY? We often experience that one person may have one cold after another while the other person never catches cold although both have the same chances for exposure. This is because of his resistance towards some infected organisms. In earlier days, immunity was defined as the resistance of the individual to an infected organism. Expanding knowledge about blood groups, tissue grafts and drug reactions has shown that this older concept of immunity is inadequate. In the modern sense, immunity is the ability of the body to recognise, destroy and eliminate antigenic material foreign to its own. Immunity may also be regarded as the result of the fight of two opposite forces—the infected organism on one hand and the host on the other hand. The result may be complete immunity, partial immunity or total absence of immunity. In fact no one ever enjoyed complete immunity or ever had total absence of immunity. Most of us fall in the category of partial immunity. If an individual possess complete immunity it means he is proof against any infection and would not contract any disease. On the other hand if a person possess no immunity he would die of any infection. We do not encounter such situations in life. So most of us are partially immune and the science of immunity is concerned with making the partially immune individual completely immune as far as possible. 3.4 THE THREE LINES OF DEFENSE IN THE BODY There are three lines of defense (barriers) in the body that must be overcome by a pathogen before it can establish an infection or disease. Mechanical Barriers (First Line of Defense) They form a part of innate (natural) immune system. Our body is surrounded by both pathogenic and non-pathogenic organisms which through various portals (water, milk, food, 39 Microbiology-II air, vectors etc.) try to enter the body but are stopped by many efficient mechanical barriers, which would restrict the entry of such microbes. These mechanical barriers are: a) Unbroken skin: Although unbroken skin is a good mechanical barrier and does not permit the organisms to enter the tissues, sometimes the organisms gain their entry through the hair follicle or opening of sweat gland or through the skin if it is torn or there is any cut or wound. b) The conjunctivae: The conjunctivae are protected by the motion of the eyelids and the constant washing of the tears, still the organisms may enter through the conjunctivae. c) Mucous membranes and mucous secretions: The mucous secretions of respiratory, digestive and urinogenital organs form a protective covering to mucous membranes. Secretions from the sweat glands, gastric juice and vagina hold many microorganisms and make them lose their infectivity. Peristalsis, that is rhythmic contractions of the intestine, also help in trapping the microbes into mucous and other such secretions. These secretions whether they are acidic (sweat, gastric, juice, vaginal) or alkaline (bile) keep the bacterial flora of the alimentary canal in check. Although the mucous membranes of the genitalia are protected from most bacteria, yet several organisms can invade the body through sexual intercourse (organisms of gonorrhoea, syphilis, AIDS, etc.). d) Mechanical arrangement of the structures: Turbinate bone in the nose also forms a line of defense. The bacteria when they enter through nose, they either stick to the mucous surface of the nose or they take a lot of time to reach the alveoli because of its structure. By the time they reach the alveoli, most of the organisms die and very few succeed in entering the organ. e) Other barriers: Coughing, sneezing, shedding tears, perspiring, salivating etc. also help mechanically to remove the organisms. It may be mentioned here that Lysozyme, an enzyme present in most secretions of the body, acts as a chemical barrier. Phagocytes (Second Line of Defense) These also form a part of innate immune system. If the microorganisms succeed in passing the first line of defense and enter the deeper tissues, they are attacked by the specific cells of the body called phagocytes or natural killer cells (NK), which include the cells of the reticuloendothelial system (RES). These phagocytes ingest the microbes and destroy them within an hour or two. Antibodies (Third Line of Defense) These form a part of adaptive immune system. If the organisms succeed in passing through the second line of defence also, then the body tissues produce special substances known as antibodies which act against the germs and kill them. The antibodies apart from destroying the infective microbes, also neutralize any poisonous substance, which may have been formed. 3.5 INFLAMMATION If the antibody production in the body is slow and quantity produced is insufficient to destroy the organisms or neutralize their toxins, the organisms overcome the specific resistance of the host, invade the tissues, start multiplying very rapidly, injure the tissue cells, cause irritation, pain, swelling, redness and finally lead to inflammatioin. The swelling and redness are due to dilation of the blood vessel of the affected part. However, if the antibodies are produced in large quantities, the organisms may be killed. Let us now study one by one the different types of immunity as shown in Fig. 3.1. 3.6 TYPES OF IMMUNITY Fig. 3.1 summarises the various types of immunity. 3.6.1 Natural Immunity (Innate Immunity) It is also known as native or inherited immunity. It means an inherited resistance to 40 infection. It is present from birth and is generally passed on from one generation to the Immunity IMMUNITY Natural (Innate) Acquired Immunity acquired during lifetime a) Species b) Racial c) Individual Immunity among Immunity among Immunity among the members of a the races of the the individuals of particular species same species the same species and race Active Passive Patient actively participates Patient does not participate in making antibodies, in making antibodies ready-made antibodies are injected. a) Natural b) Artificial a) Natural b) Artificial Immunity acquired Mother to By injection artificially by vaccines/ offspring of antibodies toxoids a) Immunity acquired as a b) Immunity acquired result of an attack of a unconsciously on account of disease. subclinical infections (Immunity acquired by carriers) Fig. 3.1: Types of immunity other.