Immune system - T Cells, Antigens, Receptors

immune system

Table of Contents

Introduction
Mechanisms of the immune system
- Nonspecific, innate immunity
  - External barriers to infection
    - Skin
    - Mucous membranes
  - Chemical barriers to infection
    - Chemicals with incidental protective effects
    - Antimicrobial proteins
      Complement
      Interferons
    - Proteins from naturally occurring bacteria
  - Cellular defenses
    - Scavenger cells
      Granulocytes
      Macrophages
    - Natural killer (NK) cells
  - Nonspecific responses to infection
    - Acute-phase response
    - Inflammatory response
- Specific, acquired immunity
  - The nature of lymphocytes
    - General characteristics
      Location in the lymphatic system
      T and B cells
    - Ability to recognize foreign molecules
      Receptor molecules
      Antigens
    - Diversity of lymphocytes
  - B-cell antigen receptors and antibodies
    - Basic structure of the immunoglobulin molecule
    - Classes of immunoglobulins
      IgG
      IgM
      IgA
      IgD
      IgE
    - Normal production of antibody
  - T-cell antigen receptors
    - Structure of the T-cell receptor
    - Function of the T-cell receptor
  - Life cycle of T and B lymphocytes
    - T cells
    - B cells
  - Activation of T and B lymphocytes
    - Activation of T cells
      Helper-T-cell activation
      Results of helper-T-cell activation
    - Activation of B cells
  - Antibody-mediated immune mechanisms
    - Protective attachment to antigens
    - Activation of the complement system
    - Activation of killer cells
    - Other antibody-mediated mechanisms
    - Transfer of antibodies from mother to offspring
  - Cell-mediated immune mechanisms
  - Immunity against cancer
  - Prophylactic immunization
    - Passive immunization
    - Active immunization
Evolution of the immune system
- The development of immunity in major animal groups
  - Immune capacity among invertebrates
  - Immune capacity among vertebrates
- Genetic origins of the immune system

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T-cell antigen receptors are found only on the cell membrane. For this reason, T-cell receptors were difficult to isolate in the laboratory and were not identified until 1983. T-cell receptors consist of two polypeptide chains. The most common type of receptor is called alpha-beta because it is composed of two different chains, one called alpha and the other beta. A less common type is the gamma-delta receptor, which contains a different set of chains, one gamma and one delta. A typical T cell may have as many as 20,000 receptor molecules on its membrane surface, all of either the alpha-beta ...(100 of 13540 words)

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