DISEASE AND IMMUNITY Biology

10. DISEASES AND IMMUNITY

The immune system is the
body's defense against
disease and foreign
organism, under the form of:
▪Antibody production
▪Phagocytosis
10. DISEASES AND IMMUNITY
Transmissible disease:
Pathogen is a disease- is a disease in which the
causing organism. pathogen can be passed
from one host to another.
VIRUS
▪Viruses are not made of cells.
▪The individual virus particles are
called virions and are
simply made up of a protein coat
(called a capsid) that encloses
some genetic material.
▪The genetic material in a virion
can either be DNA or a similar
molecule called RNA.
BACTERIA
▪Bacteria are all single-celled.
▪The cells are all prokaryotic. This means they
do not have a nucleus or any other structures
which are surrounded by membranes.
▪Bacterial infection can be treated by
antibiotics, the antibiotics works by Disrupting
the production of the cell wall and so prevent
the bacteria from reproducing, or even cause
them to burst open, and interfere with protein
synthesis and thus arrest bacterial growth.
10. DISEASES AND IMMUNITY
Pathogens responsible for
transmissible diseases can be
spread either through:
▪Direct contact
▪Indirect contact
▪Droplet
 vector is any agent that carries and transmits an
infectious pathogen into another living organism

10. DISEASES AND IMMUNITY

Direct contact transmission
▪Through directly touching
blood or other body fluids
▪Example:
▪Spreading of HIV virus
through needles and casual
sexual intercourse.
▪Spreading of Plasmodium
causing malaria through
vector mosquito
Malaria transmission cycle
Cause: Plasmodium
Vector: Anopeles
Direct contact happen when
infected mosquito ‘bites’ a
human, the mosquito then
injects saliva to stops the
blood from clotting, which
also inject hundreds of
malarial parasites.
10. DISEASES AND IMMUNITY
Indirect contact transmission
▪Through contaminated
surfaces or food,
▪from animals
▪from the air
 SALMONELLA FOOD POISONING
Cause: Salmonella sp.
Treatment: antibiotic
Prevention: wash hands
before and after
handling food
Some people carry
intestinal pathogens
without showing any
symptoms of disease.
These people are called
carriers
 10. DISEASES AND IMMUNITY

Droplet
▪large infectious particles
sprayed into the air from the
respiratory tract of an
infected individual.
10. DISEASES AND IMMUNITY
Controlling the spread of
disease:
▪Hygienic food preparation
▪Use different surfaces or areas
to prepare meat, poultry, and
vegetables.
▪Disinfect cooking equipment immediately
after use.
▪Wash hands prior to preparation, and
again immediately after touching
raw foods.
10. DISEASES AND IMMUNITY
Controlling the spread of disease:
▪Water Treatment
▪Boiling the water used for
drinking to destroy any
pathogens.
▪Protect water supply by
▪ensuring that untreated human
sewage cannot reach them
▪treating the water to make it safe by
filtration and chlorination
10. DISEASES AND IMMUNITY
Controlling the spread of disease:
▪Sewage Treatment
 10. DISEASES AND IMMUNITY
Controlling the spread of disease:
▪Good personal hygiene
▪Proper shower
▪avoid sharing personal items such as
clothing and towel as their owners may be
carrying the infection without knowing or
admitting it.
Tinea (‘ringworm’) - a fungal parasite
give rise to the various forms of this
disease. The fungus attacks the
epidermis and produces a patch of
inflamed tissue.
 10. DISEASES AND IMMUNITY
Controlling the spread of
disease:
▪Waste disposal
▪Garbage cans made of galvanised
steel or strong plastic, with a closely
fitted lid to exclude flies and keep
out scavenging animals.
▪Burning waste (may cause pollution)
▪Burying waste deep enough to
prevent rats using it as food
 10. DISEASES AND IMMUNITY
Defences against disease:
▪Mechanical barriers – skin, mucus
membranes and hair in the nose.
▪Chemical barriers – stomach acid,
mucus produced by the lining of the
trachea and bronchi, and tears which
contain an enzyme called lysozyme.
▪Cells – phagocytosis and antibody
production by white blood cells.
▪Vaccination – can enhance the body’s
defense.
 10. DISEASES AND IMMUNITY
Antibodies and immunity:
▪On the surface of all cells there are
chemical substances called antigens.
▪Lymphocytes produce proteins
called antibodies which attack the
antigens of pathogen that invade the
body
▪or neutralize toxins produced by bacteria.
▪The antibodies may attach to the surface
of the bacteria to mark them, making it
easier for the phagocytes to find and
ingest them.
10. DISEASES AND IMMUNITY

Antibodies and immunity:

▪Some lymphocytes memorise the
antigens the body has been exposed
to.
▪They can rapidly reproduce and
produce antibodies to respond to
further infections by the same
pathogen.
Each pathogen has its
own antigens, which
have specific shapes,
so specific antibodies
which fit the specific
shapes of the
antigens are needed.
B AND T LYMPHOCYTES
▪The B cells produce antibodies that are
released into the blood and attack antigens
directly or stick to the surface membrane of
infected or alien cells, e.g. cells carrying a virus,
bacteria, cancer cells or transplanted cells. Some
of the B cells remain in the lymph nodes as
memory cells
▪‘Killer’ T cells have receptor molecules on their
surface, which attach them to these surface
antibodies. The T cells then kill the cell by
damaging its cell membrane.
▪‘Helper’ T cells stimulate the B cells to divide
and produce antibodies. They also stimulate the
phagocytes to ingest any cells carrying
antibodies on their surface.
10. DISEASES AND IMMUNITY
Phagocytosis
▪Phagocytes have the
ability to move out of
capillaries to the site of
an infection.
▪They then engulf
(ingest) the infecting
pathogens and kill them
by digesting them using
hydrolytic enzymes
10. DISEASES AND IMMUNITY
Active immunity:
▪the defence against a pathogen
by antibody production in the
body.
▪This is gained after an infection
by a pathogen, or by vaccination.
▪Memory cells are formed in
active immunity hence the
immunity last longer
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fMdbWxc3cj8 Systemic: not confined to the initial infection site, but
work throughout the body

10. DISEASES AND IMMUNITY

Vaccination:
▪Inoculation of (vaccinated)harmless
pathogen (which has antigens) to
your body
▪The antigens trigger an immune
response by lymphocytes which
produces antibodies.
▪Memory cells are produced that give
long-term immunity.
Systemic immunisation can protect
whole populations.
 10. DISEASES AND IMMUNITY
Herd Immunity:
a form of indirect protection from infectious
disease that occurs when a large percentage
of a population has become immune to an
infection, thereby providing a measure of
protection for individuals who are not immune.
10. DISEASES AND IMMUNITY

Passive Immunity:
▪Is a short-term defence against a
pathogen by antibodies acquired
from another individual.
▪This is temporary as no memory
cells are formed.
10. DISEASES AND IMMUNITY
Passive Immunity:
▪A baby’s immune responses are not
yet fully developed, so when a
mother breastfeeds her baby, the
milk which contains the mother’s
white blood cells produces
antibodies and provide the baby
with protection against infection.
10. DISEASES AND IMMUNITY: AUTOIMMUNE
Type 1 diabetes:
▪Also known as juvenile-onset diabetes.
▪Due to the inability of islet cells in the pancreas to produce sufficient
insulin.
▪Rubella virus infection can cause the body’s immune system to attack
the islet cells that produce insulin. This is classed as an autoimmune
▪The outcome is that the patient’s blood is deficient in insulin and
he/she needs regular injections of the hormone in order to control
blood sugar levels and so lead a normal life.
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