ImmunologyLesson 1 of 2 in the course Adaptive Specific Host Defenses

Adaptive Immunity: Antigens, Antibodies, and Effector Functions

5 flashcards · 5 quiz questions · 5 match pairs · 5 fill-in sentences · English

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Summary

Adaptive immunity provides targeted defenses against particular pathogens and improves its response after an initial encounter. This lesson introduces its defining characteristics and the distinct roles of B and T lymphocytes.

Specificity is the ability of adaptive defenses to recognize and target particular molecular features associated with a pathogen. Protection against one pathogen does not automatically protect against unrelated pathogens. For example, immune memory following chickenpox is specific to varicella-zoster virus; it does not provide protection against measles or polio.

All flashcards

What are pathogen-associated molecular patterns (PAMPs)?
Molecular patterns shared across many pathogens, unlike more pathogen-specific antigens.
What is humoral immunity?
Adaptive defense involving B cells and the antibodies they produce.
What is cellular immunity?
Adaptive defense involving T cells, including the targeting of infected cells.
What is opsonization?
Coating a pathogen with molecules that make it easier for phagocytes to bind and engulf.
What is agglutination?
Antibody cross-linking that clusters targets into larger aggregates.

Quiz questions

  1. What is an epitope?Answer: An exposed antigen region recognized by an antibody or T cell.
  2. How can a hapten become antigenic?Answer: By attaching to a larger carrier molecule, usually a protein.
  3. Which part of an antibody determines its class or isotype?Answer: The constant region of its heavy chain.
  4. Which antibody class is the only one that crosses the placenta?Answer: IgG.
  5. What initiates antibody-triggered activation of the classical complement pathway?Answer: C1 recruitment after IgG or IgM binds a target.

Based on Microbiology by Nina Parker, Mark Schneegurt, Anh-Hue Thi Tu, Philip Lister, Brian M. Forster (OpenStax), licensed CC BY 4.0. Adapted into a summary, flashcards and quizzes.

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