How to Fight Infection: Vaccination

These flashcards cover key concepts related to vaccination and immunity, aimed at helping students prepare for their exam.

Vaccination

A method of inoculating individuals to develop immunity against a disease.

Immune System

The body's defense system against pathogens and diseases.

Plasmid

A genetic structure that can replicate independently of chromosomal DNA, often used in genetic engineering.

Epidemiologist

A professional who studies the patterns, causes, and effects of health and disease conditions in populations.

Recombinant DNA Technology

A technology that allows for the cutting and recombining of DNA fragments to produce new genetic combinations.

Antibody

A protein produced by the immune system that helps to identify and neutralize foreign objects like bacteria and viruses.

Herd Immunity

A form of indirect protection from infectious diseases that occurs when a large percentage of a population becomes immune.

Attenuated Vaccine

A vaccine containing live pathogens that have been weakened so they cannot cause disease.

Toxoid Vaccine

A vaccine that contains inactivated toxic compounds from pathogens to stimulate an immune response without causing disease.

Subunit Vaccine

A vaccine that contains only parts of the pathogen (like proteins or polysaccharides) instead of the whole pathogen.

Intramuscular Injection

A method of vaccination where the vaccine is injected directly into the muscle.

mRNA Vaccine

A type of vaccine that uses messenger RNA to instruct cells to produce a protein similar to that of the pathogen to provoke an immune response.