What Are The Common Functions Of The Immune System?
The main aim of the immune system is to the realm of the body from the ecological effects like micro-organisms, viruses, bacteria, chemicals, so the reliability of the body is maintained. The realization of self and Non-self-response can achieve this purpose. For the sake of understanding, the immune response divides into innate immunity and specific immunity. Innate immunity is the immediate response of the immune system towards the foreign enemy. It is nonspecific; it triggers the chemical properties of antigen.
Specific immunity is also called adaptive immunity. It is the immune system’s customized response according to a particular antigen. They remember the millions of enemies and reinforce their response by multiplying in number against the antigen.
The immune system gets to know the surrounding via its receptors and then adapt to respond gene encoded by DNA. Studies of the immune system reveal that the responses of the immune system strictly depend on the specific manifestation of definite order of genes. At times the gene orders can change the secretions of cytokines from the cells; the order of receptors on the level alters now and then, the gene programming determines how reluctant a cell will be towards an infection. Environmental information can keep the immune cells in a particular site, while some signals can lay an impression on the entire body. For instance, regulation of body temperature stimulates by cytokines results in fever. The response of the immune system for infection is calculated or elaborated at the scale of many intervals. An infection may go away in minutes, or after a day or it may stay longer.
However, It is also possible that an infection may interrupt the anatomy of tissues it resides in. This condition is known as autoimmune disease, rheumatoid arthritis. In such a situation, the immune system resembles a vastly linked network of many different types of reactions struggling to keep the body free from the pathogenic attack. Among diseases causing micro-organisms, viruses, bacteria, and parasites are the conjoint agents. Each of these agents uses a different strategy to attack as a reaction to a different part of the immune system takes action. Bacteria live in intracellular spaces, and gamely get attended by antibodies.
Antibodies attach to a bacterium, and a signal dispatches to complement proteins and T cells. A few bacteria are engulfed directly by phagocytes, and alerts are sent to T cells to join the fun. Viruses, some bacteria, and parasites use a different approach; instead of wandering around, they take asylum in the cells. Hostage cell uses the MHC molecule; this allows some parts of invaders on the surface of the cell. They are waving to the cytotoxic T lymphocytes to abolish the diseased cell. Immunity varies on the basis of the type of antigen, the amount of antigen, and the route by which it invades the body. On these parameters, immunity can be strong or weak, having a short or long life span. Factors affecting immunity also includes genes. Every person retorts inversely when exposed to the same antigen; this is natural immunity. For better understanding, it mentions that in history, the physicians came to know that some survivors of plague did not get affected again as they have gained immunity.
Infants at the time of birth have weak immunity, but they receive antibodies from mothers before delivery and during nursing. Immunity can be achieved artificially by injecting vaccines. Vaccines are small fractions of micro-organisms that are processed, so that the immune system may develop antibodies against the specific antigen rather than exposed to full propelled disease, like the vaccines for influenza, Hepatitis, measles. Depending on genes and health conditions, some people recover from the infection some may decease. Immunity can be conveyed from one to another person by inoculating with a serum rich in antibodies against a particular microbe; this is known as artificially acquired immunity.
Nasal and the digestive tracts are a significant route for the entrance of a variety of micro-organisms. If the microbes make their way to the nasal cavity, more mucus produces or when you sneeze, or a cough is the first response of the body in defense. In the case of pathogens leading to the digestive system along with food, the strong acids in the stomach kill these pathogens. If the microbes still survive this reaction and attempt to penetrate the linings of nasal, digestive, or urogenital systems, these linings cover themselves with epithelial cells. Epithelial cells dip in mucus, and this mucus makes the transportation of micro-organism almost impossible. The surface of mucus also excretes a distinctive antibody called Ig. This is the first antibody to respond to the invasion. The full army of cells aligns beneath the epithelial layers which embrace macrophages, B cells, and T cells. An enemy may even endure the second attack next waiting for them is an innate immune system having patrolling phagocytes, NK cells, complement system which attacks by degrading the DNA structure of pathogen, the T killer cells.