9/23/2022

Immune system
A presentation by Dr. Qais Baryalai

Immune system
• Human body is surrounded by microbes, and these microbial
organisms try to enter the body
• Human immune system identify and neutralize these microbes by
three layers of defense mechanism
• First line of defense: mechanical, chemical and biologic barriers, prevent
entry of microbes to the body
• Once entered into human body, second line of defense is to fight these
microbes via innate system.
• If innate immune system was unable to eliminate infection, then third line of
defense is adaptive immune system

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Barriers to infection
• Mechanical barriers:
• Epidermis of the skin, mucous membranes of the gastrointestinal, respiratory, and
urogenital tracts and cilia of the respiratory tract
• Chemical barriers
• The acidic environment of the skin, stomach, and vagina
• Secretion of microbicidal molecules such by skin, lacrimal glands, respiratory and GI
tracts such as defensins, RNases, DNases, and lysozyme
• Biological barriers
• The skin, gastrointestinal, respiratory and urogenital tracts are colonized by more
than 500 commensal bacterial and other microbial species, called normal flora
• Normal flora is not pathogenic under normal circumstances, and avoid entry of
other infections to body

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Cont…
• Immune system: The system of the human body that recognize and
fight microbes, and kill cancerous cells in the body
• Immune system must be able to recognize self from non-self
• If immune system became unable to recognize self from non-self,
then hypersensitivity and autoimmune reactions can occur
Parts of immune system
1. Innate immune system
2. Acquired immune system

Immune system

Innate immune system Adaptive immune system

Cellular immune system Humoral immune system

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Innate immune system

• Innate immune system provide non-specific immune response against
infection characterized by:
1. Fast acting system
2. Fight different microbes by the same cells and same techniques “Non-
specific”
3. Has the ability to fight few infections “limited diversity”
4. Second infection elicit same response as 1st infection “no memory”

Components of innate immunity

1. Phagocytes
• Macrophages
• Neutrophils
2. Complement system
3. Natural killer cells
4. Eosinophils, basophils and mast cells

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Complement system
• A set of proteins produced by the liver and circulate in the liver
• These proteins bind bacteria, and result in bacterial cell death
• Act both as part of the innate and acquired immune systems
• Function:
1. Promote inflammation
2. Cause cell lysis
3. Opsonization
• Opsonization is the process, that opsonins are tagged to foreign pathogens for
elimination
• Opsonins example include IgG and C3b of complement system

Natural killer (NK) cells

• Natural killer cells are lymphocytes
• They function in innate immune system
• No memory
• Do not require antigen presentation
• NK cells granules contain hydrolytic enzymes such as perforins and
granzymes, that cause lysis of cells
• Function:
• Kill human cells that are infected by virus
• Kill human cancerous cells
• Activate macrophages

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Acquired/adaptive immune system

• Adaptive immune system is body defense mechanism for specific immune
response against infections characterized by:
1. Slow-acting system that require days to develop
2. Adaptive immune response is specific for a particular antigen (different
mechanisms for different infections)
3. Can fight a lot of infections “Extensive diversity”
4. Second infection elicit a faster and stronger immune response “immunologic
memory”
• Lymphocytes are responsible for acquired immunity
• Types of adaptive immune system
1. Cellular immune system (By T-lymphocytes)
2. Antibody-mediated /humoral immune system (By B-lymphocytes)

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Antigen presentation
• Adaptive immune system can’t be activated effectively by free
antigens in the blood and tissue
• It require antigen presentation in order to be activated
• Pathogen must be engulfed, broken down and then transported to cell
surface and presented in association with MHC molecules to activate T cells

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Major histocompatibility complex molecules

• Major histocompatibility molecules are cell surface receptors
• MHC molecules are two types
• MHC class I molecules are expressed on all nucleated cells
• MHC class II MHC molecules are normally found only on Antigen-presenting cells
• Antigen-presenting cells
1. B lymphocytes
2. Macrophages
3. Dendritic cells
• Function of MHC molecules
• Their role is to ‘present’ small antigenic peptides to the T-cell receptor.

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References
• Guyton and hall, 2016. Textbook of medical physiology, 13th ed.
ELSEVIER
• K.E. Barret; S.M. Barman; Scott Boitano; H.L.Brooks, 2016 Ganongs
review of medical physiology, 25th ed. LANGE
• Linda. S. Costanzo, 2011. BRS physiology, 5th ed. Lippincott, Williams
and wilkins
• R. R. Preston; Thad. E. Wilson, 2013. Lippincott illustrated review of
physiology, 1st ed. Lippincott, Williams and wilkins
• K. Sembulingam, Prema. Sembulingam, 2019. Essentials of Medical
physiology, 8th ed. JAYPEE

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