Week 3 Lec: Antigens and MHC Flashcards
The immune response of lymphocytes is triggered by materials called?
immunogens
This term refers to a substance that reacts with antibody or sensitized T cells but may not be able to evoke an immune response in the first place.
antigen
It is a foreign substance that can initiate an immune reponse.
antigen
These are macromolecules that trigger adaptive immune response.
antigen
Factors influencing the immune response?
- Age
- Overall Health
- Dose
- Route of Inoculation
Relationship between immunogens and the antigens?
All immunogens are antigens but not all antigens are immunogens.
Most common portal of entry?
mucous membrane
The ability of an immunogen to stimulate a host response depends on the following characteristics?
- Macromolecular size
- Chemical composition
- Molecular complexity
- The ability to be processed and presented with MHC molecules
Macromolecular size of immunogen?
10,000 daltons
Chemical composition of immunogen?
composed of protein and polysaccharides; proteins are more immunogenic than polysaccharides
Why do humans accept modifications within their body systems (hip replacement, knee replacement, elbow replacement, artificial heart valve, etc.)?
because the materials used for the procedure are made of teflon or nylon, which are non-immunogenic
True or false: pure lipids and pure carbohydrates are never immunogenic.
True
How do pure lipids and pure carbohydrates become immunogenic?
when they attach and combine with other molecules such as proteins and carbohydrates (ex: lipids + proteins = lipoproteins, nucleic acids + proteins = nucleoproteins, glycogen + lipids = glycolipids)
True or false: Although an immunogen must have a molecular weight of at least 10,000 Dalton, only a small part of the immunogen is actually recognized in the immune response.
True
These are molecular shapes or configurations that are recognized by B or T cells.
Epitopes
For proteins, epitopes recognized by B cells may consist of ______ amino acids.
6 to 15
This key portion of the immunogen is known as the determinant site or?
Epitope
Epitope where amino acids follows one another on a single chain.
Linear Epitope
Linear Epitope is also called?
Sequential
Type of epitope that results from the folding of one chain or multiple chains, bringing certain amino acids from different segments of a linear sequence or sequences into close proximity with each other so they can be recognized together.
Conformational Epitope
T-cell epitopes are?
linear
They are non-immunogenic materials that, when combined with a carrier, create new antigenic determinants.
Haptens
Examples of Haptens?
- Poison Ivy
- Drug related
Poison ivy (Rhus radicans) contains chemical substances called __________, which are haptens. Once in contact with the skin, these can couple with tissue proteins to form the immunogens that give rise to _______________.
catechols; contact dermatitis