past paper questions

Question 1

what does AIDS stand for

Answer 1

acquired immune deficiency syndrome

Question 2

effect of HIV-1 on human immune system

Answer 2

infects immune cells

specifically CD4 T cells

Question 3

mechanism of using host cell receptors for tissue invasion

Answer 3

tissue tropism

Question 4

importance of epithelial cells in the intestine expressing CCR5 against HIV-1

Answer 4

allows the HIV viral envelope glycoprotein gp120 to bind and for transcytosis of the virus to occur

Question 5

what is CCR5

Answer 5

chemokine receptor

Question 6

examples of host cell receptors bound by gp120

Answer 6

CCR5
CXCR4
CD209

Question 7

what is CXCR4

Answer 7

chemokine receptor

Question 8

what is CD209

Answer 8

c-type lectin receptor on dendritic cells

Question 9

which cells express CCR5

Answer 9

M cells

Question 10

which components of innate immune system maintain viral immunity

Answer 10

complement
natural killer cells
type 1 interferons

Question 11

which components of the adaptive immune system maintain viral immunity

Answer 11

cellular - CD8 T cells

humoral - antibodies

Question 12

how do antibodies provide immunity to viral infections

Answer 12

neutralisation

NK cell-mediated ADCC

Question 13

examples of opportunistic yeast pathogens of AIDS patients

Answer 13

candida
cryptococcus
histoplasma

Question 14

what is dimorphism

Answer 14

the ability of a yeast pathogen to switch between yeast and filamentous growth

Question 15

examples of opportunistic mould pathogens of immunocompromised patients

Answer 15

aspergillus
fusarium
mucor
scedosporium

Question 16

haematological malignancy

Answer 16

cancer that begins in blood-forming tissue cell e.g. bone marrow or in immune cells

Question 17

haematological malignancy patients typically suffer from what type of infection

Answer 17

pulmonary infection by moulds

Question 18

which immune cells are crucial for maintaining pulmonary immunity to fungal pathogens

Answer 18

macrophages

neutrophils

Question 19

how does CpG DNA initiate an immune response

Answer 19

• CpG DNA binds to TLR 9
• NFkB pathway activated via Myd88 adaptor protein
• activation of transcription factors results in the production of cytokines e.g. IL-1, IL-6, TNF
• also chemokines, adhesion molecules and co-stimulatory molecules

Question 20

examples of bacterial PAMPs

Answer 20

lipopolysaccharide 
fibrinogen
heat shock proteins
single/double-stranded RNA
flagellin

Question 21

examples of diseased that have toxoid vaccines

Answer 21

diptheria 
tetanus
anthrax
cholera
botulism

Question 22

immune response induced by toxoid vaccine

Answer 22

antibody response

kills toxin by neutralisation

Question 23

effect of unmethylated CpG DNA motifs

Answer 23

act as immunostimulants

Question 24

CpG

Answer 24

DNA
PAMP
recognised by PRR - TLR9

Question 25

what mediates entry of the virus into cells of the respiratory epithelia

Answer 25

haemagglutinin (HA)

Question 26

which receptors on human respiratory epithelia does the virus bind?

Answer 26

receptors that have the α-2,6 sialic acid linkage to galactose

Question 27

what mediates viral release from cells of the respiratory epithelia

Answer 27

Neuraminidase (NA)

Question 28

3 major components of innate immunity to viruses?

Answer 28

Complement, Type 1 interferons, Natural Killer (NK) cells

Question 29

what is Major adaptive immunity to viruses mediated by

Answer 29

CD8 T cells | antibodies

Question 30

Which cellular compartments of the cell does MHC II | monitor for foreign antigen?

Answer 30

endosomal and lysosomal compartments

Question 31

effector functions of complement

Answer 31

Inflammation – C3a C5a Opsonisation - C3b Lysis (MAC) – C5-C9

Question 32

bacterial diseases are associated with C9 deficiency?

Answer 32

Meningitis and sepsis caused by Neisseria

Question 33

vaccines that induce antitoxin antibodies

Answer 33

Diphtheria, tetanus, anthrax, pertussis

Question 34

how does formaldehyde detoxification work

Answer 34

formation of inter- and intra-molecular cross-links between amino groups in lysine and glutamine residues

Question 35

problems associated with formaldehyde detoxification

Answer 35

Reversion batch-to-batch variability balance between loss of toxicity and loss of immunogenicity production difficulties associated with the need to grow the pathogens and purify the toxin

Question 36

bacterial polysaccharide

Answer 36

LPS O-antigen

Question 37

processing of the polysaccharide antigen when a glycoconjugate is used

Answer 37

- glycol-conjugate is internalized into an endosome of the B cell - processed into glycanP saccharides, peptides and glycanP-peptides. - MHCII presentation of glycanP-peptide to CD4+ T cells - Activation of the T cell by the carbohydrate/MHCII - T-cell production of cytokines - B cell matures to become a memory B cell.