Biology B3 - Fighting Disease (Vaccination)

What happens when your infected with a new pathogen?

it takes a few days for WBCs to know how to deal with it but by that time you may be pretty ill

What does vaccinations invlove?

injecting small amounts of dead or inactive pathogens

Why is this done?

The pathogens carry antigens, which causes your body to produce antibodies to attack them (even though the pathogen is harmless

why is the pathogen harmeless?

because it is dead or inactive

Give an example of a vaccine

the MMR vaccine

What does the MMR vaccine contain

Weakened versions of the viruses that cause measles, mumps and rubella all in one vaccine

Why are vaccines beneficial to the body?

if live pathogens of the same type appear after the vaccine, the WBCs can rapidly mass-produce antibodies to kill off the pathogen

Why are vaccines effective?

They stimulate the immune response without causing disease, Immune Memory

what are the pros of vaccination

They have helped to control communicable diseases that were once common

epidemics can be prevented if a large percentage of the population is vaccinated

what are the cons of vaccination

Vaccines don't always work - sometimes they don't give you immunity

and you can sometimes have a bad reaction to the vaccine (e.g. sweeping, or maybe something more serious like a fever or seizures) - rare