University TRANSITION LEVEL

Success READING
TEACHING NOTES

P A R T 1 | Fundamental Reading Skills

BIOLOGY
Cohesion
Student Book pages 46–75

UNIT PROFILE OUTCOMES

You will consider the subject of biology—specifically, the topic of • Understand cohesion
vaccines. You will read about highly specialized vaccines and science’s • Recognize patterns of cohesion: cause /
challenge of staying ahead of rapidly evolving pathogens (organisms effect, compare / contrast, problem / solution
that cause disease).
• Understand cohesion in descriptions
Preview the reading “DNA Vaccines” on page 72. Skim the reading. Do
• Use outlines and graphic organizers
you notice any comparisons? Cause / effect relationships? Solutions to
problems? Description language? Common collocations? • Recognize collocations

GETTING STARTED
Go to MyEnglishLab to listen to Professor Siegel and to complete a self-assessment.

FUNDAMENTAL SKILL
UNDERSTANDING COHESION

NOTICING ACTIVITY A
What Is a Vaccine?
An introduction to a variety of different types of vaccines and their functions.
Key Points:
• A vaccine is a form of preventive treatment effective for managing infectious diseases.
• Toxins encourage the body to launch immune responses. An antigen is a small molecule that the functioning immune system
recognizes. The immune response builds up antibodies that will fight the toxin. Through this process, immunity to specific
antigens can be established.
• A pathogen is any type of matter that can create a disease. The six different classes of infectious agents are: virus, bacteria,
fungus, parasitic worms, and protozoan. Prions are also included as an infectious agent. Each of these could be a pathogen that
causes a specific disease.
• Vaccines work by aiding the immune system to recognize and attack a specific type of virus. Typically, a vaccine uses a
weakened form of the full virus to allow the body to build up a defensive immune response successful in preventing viral
infection.
• Antibodies are proteins designed to fight an antigen created by the immune system. Different antibodies are required to fight
different types of infection.
• Vaccines that contain antigens but no viral particles are called subunit vaccines. A subunit vaccine is a type of inactive vaccine
that only contains the antigenic viral material.
• There are several types of vaccines that can be used to fight bacterial infections. These include recombinant vector vaccines,
live attenuated vaccines, and toxoid vaccines. Each vaccine works in a similar way by pushing the body to produce an immune
response that creates antibodies that will create immunity to specific types of infection.
• Anti-vaxxers are people who choose to reject vaccination based on personally held beliefs, often without any scientific
foundation.

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MyEnglishLab: NOTICING ACTIVITY PRACTICE
Herd Immunity
An introduction to the concept of herd immunity.
Key Points:
• Herd immunity is the threshold percentage of vaccination required to prevent the spread of viruses between vaccinated and
unvaccinated people. The percentage of vaccinated individuals required to achieve herd immunity will vary depending on the
type of virus a vaccine is designed to prevent.
• Vaccinations are typically not administered to infants or pregnant women. When vaccines are administered effectively, herd
immunity will provide protection to those who have not been vaccinated.
• A person is immunosuppressed when that person’s immune system has been compromised so that it does not effectively fight
against bacterial infections. Immunosuppression can occur as a result of some genetic diseases. Immunosuppression is also a
side effect of radiation treatment and some forms of chemotherapy.

SUPPORTING SKILL 1
RECOGNIZING PATTERNS OF COHESION: CAUSE / EFFECT, COMPARE / CONTRAST/, PROBLEM / SOLUTION
Exercise 1A
Live Attenuated Vaccines and Inactivated Vaccines
An exploration of different types of vaccine and how they function.
Key Points:
• Nonpathogenic vaccines use viral material from a virus similar to the one the vaccine is designed to treat.
• A person who has been treated with a vaccine to prevent a specific viral or bacterial infection is inoculate or inoculated.
• Attenuated pathogenic viruses use a weakened strain of the live virus. The virus is weakened in lab conditions through a
variety of means, including creating purified vaccine solutions. Attenuated (weakened) pathogenic vaccines require proper
storage and handling in order to be effective. For most, keeping the weakened virus alive requires refrigeration of the
virus.
• A live virus vaccine, also known as a live attenuated virus, uses a form of the virus that has been weakened (attenuated) in
some way, or a virus that has been structurally altered.
• A dead virus vaccine, also known as an inactivated vaccine, contains pathogenic materials from a virus that has been
processed to become harmless. An inactive virus can no longer reproduce itself in a host and is effectively dead material.
• Some vaccines contain antigens, but no viral particles.
• The immune system has several parts that help it to fight infection. One of the most important components is the white blood
cell. White blood cells have different subtypes. One subtype is the lymphocyte. Lymphocytes are cells that are usually found
in the lymph nodes of the human body. The lymphocytes include:
• T cells, which help the body adapt to viruses and provide immunity from future attacks
• B cells, which also help with adaptive immunity using forms of antibodies
• Natural Killer cells (NK cells), which are the body’s first responders to viral infection
• Polio is one of the most studied viruses. The viral structure of polio has been known to biologists since the early 1900s. The
structure is extremely well documented and continues to be used as a model for generating vaccines for viruses with similar
structures.
• Polio causes a variety of symptoms similar to the flu, such as fever, sore throat, physical aches, pains, dizziness, and nausea.
The virus is capable of infecting the brain and spinal cord, which can cause paralysis.
• Live attenuated viruses are more effective for long-term immunity to a virus than inactive vaccines. Live attenuated viruses
also pose a slight risk of potential real infection as the vaccine is based on live, but weakened, virus that can potentially revert
to previous strength and cause an actual infection.
• Live attenuated viruses must be refrigerated to maintain viability. This is because the live parts of the virus used to make the
vaccine need to remain active.

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MyEnglishLab: EXERCISE 1 MORE PRACTICE
Measles
An exploration of the measles virus and how it can be contained through the use of vaccines.
Key Points:
• There is a distinction between droplet and airborne viruses.
• Airborne viruses can float freely in the air, lingering and traveling long distances.
• Chicken pox, measles, and other common viruses are airborne viruses.
• Droplet viruses tend to be respiratory in nature. Droplet transmission occurs when fluid is launched into the air, for example
through sneezing.
• Measles is a common childhood virus. The virus is extremely contagious and can survive on surfaces for up to two hours.
• Measles symptoms include red eyes, runny nose, itchy rash, high fever, and loss of appetite. The fever can lead to complications
from the virus and poses a specific threat to young children.

SUPPORTING SKILL 2
UNDERSTANDING COHESION IN DESCRIPTIONS
Exercise 2A
The MMR Vaccine and Anti-Vaxxers
A discussion of the impact on herd immunity from parents refusing to vaccinate children.
Key Points:
• MMR is the common abbreviation of the vaccine administered for measles, mumps, and rubella.
• A virus is a free-floating piece of genetic material that can take control of other organisms to reproduce, which is different from
being an autonomous living organism.
• Measles is a common childhood virus. The virus is extremely contagious and can survive on surfaces for up to two hours.
• Measles symptoms include red eyes, runny nose, itchy rash, high fever, and loss of appetite. The fever can lead to complications
from the virus and poses a specific threat to young children.
• Vaccines are typically distributed through the use of a syringe attached to a needle.
• The reported connection between vaccines and autism was based on a published paper in a scientific journal. Numerous
scientists and schools have tested the science established in the original paper and have proved the findings to be wholly false.
Controversy around the initial report has continued even with additional research invalidating the original piece.
• As recently as 2015, large epidemic-level outbreaks of vaccinated viruses have begun to reappear in parts of the US. These
include instances of MMR and whooping cough, all illnesses that pose a direct threat (with the possibility of death) to children
who contract the viruses. All of these viruses have functioning vaccines, but the drop in herd immunity has allowed small
epidemic pockets to emerge.
• In the United States parents can refuse to vaccinate children for religious or personal reasons.

MyEnglishLab: EXERCISE 2 MORE PRACTICE

Subunit Vaccine
A short introduction to subunit and conjugate vaccines and how they work.
Key Points:
• A subunit vaccine is a type of inactive vaccine that only contains the antigenic viral material.
• The hepatitis B vaccine is a subunit vaccine. It was developed using a process that required growing the vaccine inside of
baker’s yeast (the kind used in making bread). Essentially, scientists infected yeast with the vaccine to cause the yeast to
produce antigens of the hepatitis virus. These antigens were then cleaned to create the antigenic material used to develop the
subunit vaccine. The hepatitis B vaccine is considered a recombinant subunit vaccine.
• A recombinant vaccine is one in which the vaccine is attenuated using another attenuated virus, bacteria, or other body to
create viral antigenic materials.

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• There are many variations of virus shapes and types. Some viruses look like polyhedral, or multi-sided, three-dimensional
shapes. Some viruses are more spherical in shape, or can resemble rounded boxes. Additionally, viruses can look like sticks or
strings or looped ropes. Looking at different types of viruses will help to identify the general shape of the virus.
• A virus can be described as a genetic entity, a free-floating piece of genetic material with a protein shell that can take control of
other organisms to reproduce. This is different from being an autonomous living organism.
• A capsid is the protected protein coat that surrounds a virus.
• The viral envelope, or peplos, is a protective layer that forms around the capsid of some viruses. The viral envelope uses
material from the virus structure to create an envelope from the cells of the host. The use of the host material can help improve
the ability of the virus to prevent an effective immune response before achieving rapid reproduction or infection.
• Pertussis (whooping cough) is a viral disease that was common before the introduction of the pertussis vaccine. Whooping
cough describes the severe coughing caused as the body tries to fight the virus that often ends with a sound like a whoop.
Symptoms can persist for months. Most adults can fight off the infection; however, whooping cough is extremely dangerous to
young children.
• Conjugate vaccines work by attaching a viral antigen to a protein for introduction into the body. They work as other vaccines to
help the body develop antibodies that can lead to immunity.
• Polysaccharide is a type of carbohydrate similar to sugar. It is made of many long-chains of carbohydrates. Polysaccharide is an
amino sugar.

READING-WRITING CONNECTION
USING OUTLINES AND GRAPHIC ORGANIZERS
Exercise 3C
Poliovirus
A description of the poliovirus and how the use of vaccination helped to drastically reduce the possibility of widespread epidemic-level
infections in many countries.
Key Points:
• Polio is one of the most studied viruses. The viral structure of polio has been known to biologist since the early 1900s. The
structure is extremely well documented and continues to be used as a model for generating vaccines for viruses with similar
structures.
• Polio causes a variety of symptoms ranging from basic flu-like symptoms like fever, sore throat, physical aches and pains,
dizziness, and nausea. The virus is capable of infecting the brain and spinal cord, which can cause paralysis.
• Jonas Salk developed the first effective vaccine for polio in the 1950s. At the time, the United States was hit by widespread
epidemic levels of polio infection.
• The vaccine for polio is very effective; however, the disease persists in some countries that do not have the infrastructure to
fully support vaccination at a level to establish herd immunity.
• Herd immunity is the threshold percentage of vaccination required to prevent the spread of viruses between vaccinated and
unvaccinated people.
• Nonpathogenic vaccines use viral material from a virus that is similar to the one the vaccine is designed to treat.
• A person who has been treated with a vaccine to prevent a specific viral or bacterial infection is inoculate, or inoculated.
• Attenuated (weakened) pathogenic viruses use a weakened strain of the live virus. The virus is weakened in lab conditions
through a variety of means, including creating purified vaccine solutions. Attenuated pathogenic vaccines require proper
storage and handling in order to be effective. For most, keeping the weakened virus alive requires refrigeration of the
virus.
• Where vaccines exist, it is possible to successfully eradicate a virus through vaccination programs. The best example of this is
with the smallpox virus, which has been effectively eliminated because of consistent global initiatives to vaccinate against the
illness.

PART 1 | BIOLOGY © 2017 by Pearson Education, Inc. Permission granted to reproduce for classroom use. 4
APPLY YOUR SKILLS
READ A
DNA Vaccines
A description of how DNA vaccines are created and how they work in the human body.
Key Points:
• DNA vaccines work on the same principles as other vaccines. Where other vaccines use parts of the virus, a DNA vaccine uses
the genetic material that is the core of the viral structure.
• While mostly still in the experimental stages, a DNA vaccine works by inducing a significantly strong immune response to
a viral infection. The creation of a DNA vaccine would be useful for viruses that mutate quickly, making traditional vaccines
ineffective. This includes infections like HIV and West Nile.

Go to MyEnglishLab to listen to Professor Siegel and to complete a self-assessment.

PART 1 | BIOLOGY © 2017 by Pearson Education, Inc. Permission granted to reproduce for classroom use. 5