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08 - Immune System Basics

The document discusses the basics of immunology, including the two main types of immunity: innate and adaptive. It describes several non-immune defense mechanisms of the innate system, such as the skin, respiratory tract, gastrointestinal tract, and genitourinary tract. The adaptive immune system differs in that it is antigen-specific and involves lymphocytes and antigen presenting cells. T cells and B cells play major roles, with B cells maturing in the bone marrow and differentiating into effector B cells, memory B cells, and plasma cells upon antigen exposure. The document also provides details on the classes of antibodies and their functions, the major histocompatibility complex and its role in antigen presentation, and the involvement of MHC class I and

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64 views30 pages

08 - Immune System Basics

The document discusses the basics of immunology, including the two main types of immunity: innate and adaptive. It describes several non-immune defense mechanisms of the innate system, such as the skin, respiratory tract, gastrointestinal tract, and genitourinary tract. The adaptive immune system differs in that it is antigen-specific and involves lymphocytes and antigen presenting cells. T cells and B cells play major roles, with B cells maturing in the bone marrow and differentiating into effector B cells, memory B cells, and plasma cells upon antigen exposure. The document also provides details on the classes of antibodies and their functions, the major histocompatibility complex and its role in antigen presentation, and the involvement of MHC class I and

Uploaded by

q8la
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Immunology

The Basics Part I


The Players: 2 Types of
Immunity

Innate

Adaptive

Immunity
Non-immune defense
mechanisms
Non-immune (Innate) defense
mechanisms

• Skin: Full of bacteria BUT:


• Dry.
• Indigestible keratin.
• Acidic pH.
• Sclera:
• Tears.
Non-immune defense
mechanisms

• Respiratory tract:
• Inhaled microorganisms trapped by
mucosa.
• Upward sweep by the bronchi.
• Alveolar macrophages.
• Alcohol and smoking: More prone to
Pneumonia.
Non-immune defense
mechanisms

• GI tract:
• Mucosa.
• Gastric acid and bile detergents.
• Pancreatic enzymes.
• Epithelial cells are shed daily.
• Normal flora.
Non-immune defense
mechanisms

• GU tract:
• Urine is sterile.
• Continuous flow.
• Phagocytosis:
• Macrophages.
• NK cells.
• Lysozymes.
• Complement system.
Adaptive immunity (The Immune
System)

The immune system differs from


innate defenses in a key way:
the immune system is
programmable to defend against
and attack a specific target;
innate defenses are not.
Adaptive Immunity

• Antigenic specificity allows the immune


system to distinguish the subtle differences in
antigens.
• It is not independent of the innate immunity.
• Phagocytosis is crucial.
• Cooperation: Lymphocytes and APCs.
What is an Antigen?

Any substance that can be recognized by:


• The immunoglobulin receptor of B-cells
or
• The T-cell receptor when complexed with
MHC.
B-Lymphocytes

• Created and mature in the bone marrow.


• When they leave the BM, they express a
unique antigen-binding receptor on the
membrane.
• This receptor is a membrane bound antibody.
Antigen and S-Ig meet.

Naïve B cell meets antigen

Rapid cell division

Progeny differentiate into:

Effector B cells Memory B Cells Plasma Cells


The Progeny

• Memory B-Calles have a longer life span than


naïve cells.
• They express the same membrane bound
antibody as their parent B cell.
• Plasma cells have no membrane bound
antibodies.
• They secrete the antibodies (>2000/s).
• Life span of only few days.
What are Antibodies?
Antibodies

• Classification based on
the heavy chain:
• M,G,E,A,D
• Can be passed:
• Placenta.
• IVIg.
IgG

• Most abundant class in Serum


which constitutes 80% of the
total serum immunoglobulin.
• There are four different classes
numbered according to their
abundance in the serum.
• IgG 1 , IgG 3, IgG 4 readily
crossed the placenta and
protect the developing fetus.
• IgG 3 is the most effective
complement activator while IgG
4 is not able to activate
complement at all.
IgM

• IgM accounts for 5% to 10% of the


total serum immunoglobulin .
• Monomeric IgM is expressed as
membrane-bound antibody on B
cells.
• IgM is secreted by plasma cells as a
pentamer in which five monomer
units are held together by disulfide
bonds that link carboxyl terminal
heavy chain domains.
IgM

• IgM is the first immunoglobulin class


produced in a primary response to
an antigen and it is also the first
immunoglobulin to be synthesized
by the neonate.
• Although it has 10 binding sites
sometimes it can only bind 5 or
fewer molecules of larger antigens.
IgA

• IgA constitutes only 10 to 15% of the


total immunoglobulin in serum .
• It is the predominant
immunoglobulin class in external
secretions such as breast milk,
saliva, tears, and mucus of the
bronchial and digestive tract .
• It exists as a monomer but
polymeric forms are sometimes seen
all containing a J-chain.
IgA

• Secretory IgA consists of a dimer or


tetramer a J chain polypeptide and
a polypeptide chain called secretary
component.
• The J-chain polypeptide in IgA is
identical to that found in
pentameric IgM and serves a similar
function in facilitating the
polymerization of both serum IgA
and secretory IGA.
IgE

• The concentration of IgE in serum is


extremely low and it was only
identified because of its biological
activity.
• IgE antibodies are responsible for the
immediate hypersensitivity
reactions.
• IgE binds to Fc receptors on the
membranes of basophils and tissue
mast cells.
IgD

• IgD together with my IgM is the major


membrane bound immunoglobulin
expressed by mature B cells, and its
role in the Physiology of B cells is
under investigation.
• In B cells, the function of IgD is to
signal the B cells to be activated.
Antibody Production
We will shift to MHC and T -Cells
Then we go back to B cells and antibodies… You’ll see why.
Major Histocompatibility
Complex: MHC

• It is a large genetic complex with multiple


loci.
• The MHC loci include two major classes of
membrane bound glycoproteins class I and
class II MHC molecules.
• MHC molecules function as antigen
recognition molecules, but they do not possess
define specificity for antigen characteristics of
antibodies.
Major Histocompatibility
Complex: MHC

• In both class I and class II MHC molecules the


distal regions of different alleles display wide
variation in their amino acid sequences.
• These variable regions formic left within which
the antigenic peptide sits and is presented to
T lymphocytes.
MHC I and II
The Function Of MHC Complex

• In order for a foreign protein antigen to be


recognized by T cell, it must be degraded into
small antigenic peptides that form complexes
with class I or class II MHC molecules.
• The route that the antigen takes to enter the
cell will determine which class of MHC
molecule it appears on.
I or II?

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