Immunology and Serology Flashcards

Flashcards on Immunology and Serology

What is immunology?

The branch of microbiology that focuses on the immune system and its applications in diagnostics and medicine.

What are vaccines?

Suspensions of organisms (or their component parts) used to induce an immune response, leading to immunological memory.

What is herd immunity?

When enough members of a population are vaccinated, the disease cannot effectively be transmitted, protecting at-risk groups.

What is a live attenuated vaccine?

A vaccine that includes a living pathogen that has had its virulence severely reduced.

What are the pros of live attenuated vaccines?

Provided lifelong immunity and a highly effective immune response

What are the cons of live attenuated vaccines?

Risk of mutation because they are reproducing live pathogens

What is an inactivated killed vaccine?

A vaccine that includes a dead pathogen that is cultured and neutralized.

What are the pros of inactivated killed vaccines?

They are generally safer than live attenuated vaccines.

What the cons of inactivated killed vaccines?

Less effective immunity because it only induces a humoral response and typically requires a booster

What is a subunit vaccine?

A vaccine that includes selected antigenic fragments of a pathogen.

What are the pros of subunit vaccines?

Much safer than both live attenuated and inactivated killed vaccines, and suitable for immunocompromised persons.

What are the cons of subunit vaccines?

Expensive and difficult to manufacture and typically requires a booster.

What is a toxoid vaccine?

A vaccine that includes inactivated toxins produced by a pathogen.

What are the pros of toxoid vaccines?

Good for infants and young children

What are the cons of toxoid vaccines?

The pathogen must produce a toxin that can be inactivated and typically requires a 10 year booster regiment

What is a virus-like particle (VLP) vaccine?

A vaccine that includes non-pathogenic engineered molecules that resemble viruses but lack the ability to be infectious.

What are the pros of virus-like particle (VLP) vaccines?

Non-infectious, means no risk of disease, and lowered risk of side effects

What are the cons of virus-like particle (VLP) vaccines?

Most complicated vaccine to manufacture, generally expensive to manufacture, and really only applied to viruses* and viral like epitopes

What is a polysaccharide vaccine?

A vaccine that includes portions of a capsule.

What are the pros of polysaccharide vaccines?

Increases immunity to a difficult group of microorganisms

What are the cons of polysaccharide vaccines?

Induces a weak immune response, only works on capsulating organisms, and doesn't induce an immune response in children younger than 15 months

What is a conjugated vaccine?

A vaccine that combines polysaccharides from capsules with proteins that elicit an immune response.

What are the pros of conjugated vaccines?

Stronger than either of the of the antigens alone, provides lasting immunity to an antigen that would otherwise not, and effective in children as young as 2 months

Cons of conjugated vaccines

Takes a long time to develop

What is a nucleic acid vaccine?

A vaccine that includes pathogenic nucleic acids.

What are the pros of nucleic acid vaccines?

Stimulates both humoral and cellular immunities, provided long term immunity, no risk of infection, cost-effective

What are the cons of nucleic acid vaccines?

Cannot make proteins that humans cannot make (i.e. bacterial polysaccharides) and potential to transfect non-target cells

What is a recombinant vector vaccine?

Focuses on the delivery method of engineered DNA to a host cell.

What are the pros of recombinant vector vaccines?

Highly specialized and targeted vectors deliver the antigens more efficiently than traditional methods and live pathogens mean that the immune response will typically be greater

What are the cons of recombinant vector vaccines?

Mild risk of mutation into a pathogenic form

What are adjuvants?

Chemical additives that allow a vaccine to be more effective.

What is sensitivity in diagnostic immunology?

The probability that a test is reactive if a specimen is a true positive.

What is specificity in diagnostic immunology?

The probability that a test will not be reactive if a specimen is a true negative.

How do immunological diagnostic tests function?

Using humoral antibodies to interact with antigens; known antibodies can identify unknown pathogens, and vice versa.

What are monoclonal antibodies?

Uniform, highly specific antibodies produced in large quantities from hybridomas.

What is a precipitation reaction?

Soluble antigens bind to antibodies, creating interlocking aggregates (lattices) that precipitate out of solution.

What are agglutination reactions?

Particulate antigens binding to antibodies to form visible aggregates.

What is a neutralization reaction?

Antigen-antibody reaction where the harmful effects of an exotoxin or virus are blocked by antibodies to the toxin.

What is a complement-fixation reaction?

Complement serum protein binds to and is fixed to the antigen–antibody complex.

What are fluorescent-antibody techniques?

Bioengineering antibodies with fluorescent dyes allows them to be visualized for identification or detection.

What is ELISA?

Using enzymes to visualize the presence of antigens or antibodies

What is Western blotting?

Used to identify specific proteins in a mixture. Separates proteins using electrophoresis, then stains them with a blot.