Immunity refers to the body’s ability to protect itself against disease-causing organisms or pathogens. Every day, our bodies come into contact with a variety of pathogens, yet only a small number of these infections cause disease. The reason for this is because our bodies have the ability to release antibodies against certain pathogens, which in turn protects the body from disease and infection. Immunity is the term used to describe this defence mechanism.
Categories of immunity
Innate Immunity, also known as Natural or Non-specific Immunity, is a type of immunity that occurs naturally in the body.
Acquired Immunity, also known as Adaptive Immunity, is a type of immunity that develops through time.
Immunity that is built in. This sort of immunity is present in an organism from the moment of its conception.
This is initiated as soon as the pathogen makes contact with the host. Innate immunity consists of a number of barriers and defence systems that are designed to prohibit foreign particles from entering the body.
The term “innate immunity” refers to the body’s natural defences. In this case, our body generates the antibodies on its own, resulting in a long-term immunity. Pathogens are unable to enter our bodies since our bodies have minimal natural defences in place.
Different Types of Obstacles
The four sorts of roadblocks are as follows:
There is a physical barrier.
Skin, body hair, cilia, eyelashes, the respiratory tract, and the gastrointestinal tract are examples of organs that have cilia. These serve as the first line of defence against an attack.
The skin is responsible for much more than just giving us fair or dark complexions. Our skin serves as a physical barrier to prevent germs from entering our bodies. The mucus layer in our nose and ears serves as a protective barrier, trapping pathogens before they can infiltrate our bodies.
Obstacles to physical activity
We already know that hydrochloric acid is used by our stomach to break down the food molecules. Most bacteria that enter our bodies along with our meals are killed before the rest of the process can begin because of the highly acidic environment in which we live.
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Saliva in our mouths and tears in our eyes both contain antibiotic properties, which means they prevent infections from growing even when they are exposed to them for an extended period of time.
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Cellular barriers are a type of defence mechanism.
Despite the physical and physiological barriers that exist between ourselves and infections, some pathogens manage to penetrate our bodies. Leukocytes (white blood cells), neutrophils, lymphocytes, basophils, eosinophils, and monocytes are the cells that contribute to this barrier. All of these cells can be found in the blood and tissues at the same time.
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Barriers mediated by cytokines
Cells in our bodies are far more intelligent than we give them credit for. For example, when a virus infiltrates a cell in our body, the cell naturally secretes proteins known as interferons, which build a protective coating around the infected cell and protect the cells around it from further infection.
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Cells Involved in the Innate Immune Response
Phagocytes are white blood cells that travel throughout the body looking for foreign substances. They engulf and destroy it, allowing the body to protect itself against the virus.
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Macrophages are immune cells that have the ability to travel over the walls of the circulatory system and into other organs. They emit particular signals in the form of cytokines in order to recruit additional cells to the site of the infection and spread the infection.
MAST CELLS:
Mast cells play a vital role in the healing of wounds and the defence against infections.
In nature, neutrophils have granules that are poisonous to pathogens, and they kill any pathogen that comes into contact with them.
Eosinophils: These white blood cells carry highly poisonous proteins that kill any bacteria or parasite that comes into touch with them.
Basophils are immune cells that target multicellular parasites. Histamine is released by these cells in the same way that mast cells do.
Natural Killer Cells (NKCs): These cells prevent the spread of illnesses by eliminating the cells of the afflicted host.
Cells known as Dendritic Cells (DC) are found in the tissues that serve as entry points for early infections. Antigen presentation is used by these cells to alert the rest of the immune system to the presence of an infection in the body.
Conclusion
Hence it can be concluded that there are several components to this system, the most important of which is a sophisticated lymphatic defence system that acts by identifying and not reacting to the body’s own cells.
vaccines A vaccine is a preparation made of antigens from the pathogen that is responsible for a disease. Take, for example, the smallpox vaccine, which contains antigens from the organism that causes smallpox sickness. When a person is vaccinated against smallpox, the antibody-producing cells in their body are activated, resulting in the production of smallpox antibodies. As a result, the body is safeguarded from contracting the disease in the near future.