BODY DEFENSE MECHANISMS

• The body has developed defense mechanisms to

control and to cope with the constant attack of
microorganisms
Our Skin
The body has three lines of defense:
Stops microbes entering the body unless it is cut or damaged
• Physical Barriers

• Defensive Cells & Proteins, Inflammation,

and Fever The First Line of Defense: Physical Barriers
• The Immune System Skin

• Cells filled with keratin, making skin

impenetrable, waterproof, and resistant to
disruptive toxins and most invaders

• Dead cells are shed and replaced (1 million

every 40 min), taking microbes with them

Mucous Membranes

• The inner surfaces of the body are guarded

by mucous membranes that line the
respiratory, digestive, urinary, and
reproductive systems and protect the
internal lining

• Sweat produced by glands in the skin wash away

microbes and their acidity slows bacterial growth.

• Mucous membranes produce sticky mucous that

traps many microbes
Innate Immune System
• Saliva and tears contain an enzyme called lysozyme
• Non-specific
that kills bacteria by rupturing their cell walls
• Acts against all pathogens
• Cerumen (ear wax) – produced in the ear canal and
• Involves physical and chemical barriers protects the canal by trapping dirt and dust particles

• Surface tissues and organs (skin, mucus,

saliva, etc.)

• The process of inflammation

• Complement proteins

• Specialized immune cells (phagocytes,

natural killers, etc.)

The First Line of Defence

What happens if pathogen slips by our surface barriers and

enter your internal environment?

• If a pathogen penetrates the first line of defense,

these cells play a role in inhibiting or destroying the
pathogen before it harms the body.
The Eyes
• They are non-specific and react to the presence of
Tears produce chemicals called enzymes which can kill some any foreign organism or substance
microbes on the surface of the eye
• Phagocytes

• Engulf pathogens, damaged tissue,

or dead cells

• Neutrophils, Macrophages, Eosinophils

• Discharge destructive enzymes to

destroy pathogens too big for
The Respiratory System phagocytes (e.g., parasitic worms)
Mucus and tiny hairs in the nose stop microbes entering our • Natural Killer Cells
lungs
• Seek out abnormal cells (e.g., cancer cells)
We sometimes sneeze or cough these harmful microbes away
from our body
 Classifications of WBCs

Macrophages

• large, irregularly shaped WBCs that patrol and

ingest microorganisms through phagocytosis

Neutrophils

most abundant, engulf bacteria and releases disinfecting

chemicals

Natural Killers

• only acts on tissues infected with virus. (by

puncturing)

• releases perforins

• Natural Killers

• only acts on tissues infected with virus. (by

puncturing)

• releases perforins

• Collects and recycle body fluids

• Plays major role in fighting bacterial and viral

infections
Dendritic cells
• Consists of; lymphatic vessels and organs, nodes,
lymph nodes are phagocytes that process and alert adaptive and innate
immune system when an antigen is present.
Lymph Tissues:

• Tonsils

• Thymus

• Spleen

• Bone marrow

Eosinophils

target parasitic worms

Basophils Inflammatory Response

contains histamines that causes inflammation during • Symptoms: swelling, redness, heat
immune responses.
• Infected tissues release large amounts of histamines
Acts also on ectoparasite infection and prostaglandins – increases temp. and blood
flow

• Increased permeability of local capillaries

• Neuthrophils are the first to get to attack microbes

• Macrophages releases regulatory protein, called

interleukin-1 which acts together with bacterial
neurotoxins

Redness: caused by increased blood flow to the damaged

area

Heat: increased blood flow elevates the temperature in the

Mast Cells area of injury, increasing metabolic rate of the body cells
also contains histamines and other substances Swelling: histamine makes capillaries more permeable than
usual
Acts on allergy and injury
Pain: causes person to protect the area and prevent
additional injury

Fever:

• A fever is an abnormally high body

temperature caused by pyrogens (chemicals
that set the “thermostat” in the brain to a
higher set point)

• A mild or moderate fever helps the body

fight bacterial infections by slowing the
growth of bacteria and stimulating body
defense responses

The Third Line of Defense: The Immune System

• Immunity means protection from infections

• The cells and molecules responsible for immunity

constitute the immune system and their collective
and coordinated response to the foreign substance
i.e. infectious agents is called immune response

• When the first two line of defense of the body

cannot prevent the infection, the immune system
acts to eliminate the infectious agent and prevent
Antimicrobial Proteins the body from infection

Antigen Immune response/immunity generally consists of two steps:

• Foreign substances that trigger immune Step-1: Recognition of the pathogen or foreign molecule
responses. Step-2: Mounting reaction against the pathogen to
Blood and interstitial fluids contain antimicrobial degradation
proteins that discourage microbial growth.

• Cytokines: signal to attract more macrophages,

neutrophils, and dendritic cells.

• Interferons: released by infected cells to bind with

neighboring cells to produce antiviral proteins

• Complement system: inactive blood proteins, that

complements immune, allergic, and inflammatory
reaction.

• Transferrins: iron-binding proteins, inhibit bacterial

growth by reducing iron concentration in the blood.
 Mechanism of Humoral Immune Response

Antibodies: specialized proteins against invading pathogens

Mechanisms by which antibodies inhibit infection:

• Neutralization: prevent a virus or toxic proteins from

binding their targets

• Opsonization: a pathogen tagged by antibodies is

consumed by a macrophage or neutrophils

• Complement activation: antibodies attached to the

Adaptive Immune Response (Specific) surface of the pathogen cell activate the
complement system
Three main groups:
Five general types of antibodies
• Macrophages
• IgA (immunoglobulin alpha) – found in mucosal
• T – lymphocytes (matures in bone marrow) areas (e.g. gut, respiratory tract and etc.)
• Helps in cellular • IgD (immunoglobulin delta) – functions mainly as an
immunity/cell-mediated antigen receptor on B cells that has not been
immune response exposed to antigens
• B – lymphocytes (matures in thymus gland) • IgE (immunoglobulin epsilon) – binds to allergens
and triggers histamine release from mast cells and
• Direct body immunity or
basophils. (acts on allergies and parasitic worms)
humoral immune
response • IgG (immunoglobulin gamma) – provides majority of
antibody-based immunity
• They distinguish the difference between
“self” and “non-self” cells, which carries • IgM (immunoglobulin mu) – expressed on the
protein molecules called, antigens surface of B cells (monomer) and in a secreted form
(pentamer).
• Adaptive immunity initiates specific immune
response for long-term protection

Humoral Immune Response