Infectious Disease and Immune Response

Flashcards covering key vocabulary terms and concepts related to infectious diseases and immune responses, based on lecture notes.

Signs

Objective evidence of disease observed by a healthcare professional.

Symptoms

Subjective evidence of disease reported by the patient.

Communicable Disease

A disease that is transmitted from one individual to another.

Noncommunicable Disease

A disease that is not transmitted between individuals.

Iatrogenic Disease

Illness caused by medical examination or treatment.

Nosocomial Disease

Infections acquired in hospitals or healthcare settings.

Zoonotic Disease

Diseases transmitted from animals to humans.

Pathogenicity

The ability of an organism to cause disease.

Primary Pathogens

Microorganisms that can cause disease in healthy individuals.

Opportunistic Pathogens

Microorganisms that cause disease primarily in immunocompromised individuals.

Koch's Postulates

A set of criteria to establish a causative relationship between a microbe and a disease.

Prevalence

The total number of cases of a disease in a given population at a specific time.

Incidence

The number of new cases of a disease in a specific population during a given time period.

Epidemic Disease

An outbreak of disease that occurs in excess of what is normally expected in a population.

Pandemic Disease

An epidemic that has spread over several countries or continents.

Complement System

A group of proteins that enhance (complement) the capabilities of the immune system.

Phagocytosis

The process by which a cell engulfs large particles or cells.

Cytokines

Signaling proteins that mediate and regulate immunity, inflammation, and hematopoiesis.

Mast Cells

Immune cells that release chemicals such as histamine during inflammatory responses.

Inflammation

A localized response to injury that involves swelling, redness, heat, and pain.

Natural Killer Cells

A type of lymphocyte that plays a role in the innate immune response by attacking infected or cancerous cells.

Hematopoiesis

The process by which blood cells are formed in the bone marrow.

PAMPs

Pathogen-associated molecular patterns recognized by the innate immune system.