The immune system of a human being is the defense of the body against disease-causing germs. The removal of pathogens from a human body is important for survival whereby body has many interacting layers for defense. The first levels of protection for the body are the physical barriers a human being has, such as the skin, sneezing or coughing. Nevertheless, these physical barriers are not very efficient and sometimes disease-causing germs overcome these barriers. For this reason, human beings have an immune system that is comprised of a network of molecules and cells that fight infections caused by pathogens which are the second line of defense. It is thought of having two phases of response which are known as innate and adaptive immune response. This paper will compare and contrast the innate and adaptive defenses in the human body and provide examples for each. Also, this paper will discuss how exercise can affect thus two defenses.
The innate immune system, also known as the immediate response, is the system that reacts within minutes or hours after a pathogen has attacked a human body to prevent diseases (Reid & Sim, 2008). This immune system is very complex and contains biochemical and cellular pathways. These pathways are responsible for recognizing the disease-causing germs and actively remove them and activate the adaptive immunity. Cells in the innate immune system identify pathogens through detecting the markers on them. As a result, this triggers the release of signaling molecules which attract the cells to help fight the infection a process known as inflammation. Every infection in the body is treated in the same way, and the immune cells in the innate defense do not adapt their response when a pathogen has been fought. The first line of defense in the innate immune system consists of the skin, mucous membranes and gastric acid in the stomach. For instance, the mucus membranes in the nasal tract act as a filter that stops large particles from the getting to the respiratory system.
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The adaptive immune system is responsible for complex infections in the human body (Reid & Sim, 2008). This immune system starts working after the innate immunity is fully activated in the body. For instance, the antigen that has entered in the body is recognized by particular immune cells, and then reactions in the form of antigen-antibody reaction get started. Also, this immune system generates a memory of antigens which help the memory cells to identify the same pathogen when it attacks the body in future. An example of organs that help the adaptive immune system are T-Lymphocytes which recognize the pathogen causing infection destroy them and get them out of the human body. They originate from the bone marrow and grown in the thymus gland and are capable of binding to infectious cells. Another example is the B-lymphocytes which make the antibodies to the infection while the T-cells are busy fighting the pathogens. They are released into the bloodstream with unique proteins that specifically combat this infection the body.
Some of the differences between the innate and adaptive immunity are that cells in the innate immunity are always active every time and are alert to fight any foreign object that gets into the body (Playfair & Bancroft, 2013). On the other hand, the cells in the adaptive immunity remain silent and start being active after the antigen has been recognized. In innate immunity, the response to the pathogens is made immediately, but in adaptive immunity, the response comes after one to two weeks after the infection. Another difference is that in innate immunity the response to the pathogens is immediate, but the potency and effectiveness are very limited while in adaptive immunity, the levels of potency and effectiveness are very high since the combatting cells are so powerful and highly specialized. Regarding inheritance, the innate immunity system is inherited from parents and passed to the children while adaptive immunity is not inherent. In innate immunity, the cells recognize all types of disease-causing infection such as bacteria and viruses while the cells in the adaptive immune system are highly specific to the pathogens.
One similarity of these two immune systems is that they both play the role of protecting the body from disease-causing infections. The dendritic cells play a significant role in connecting these two systems together which make them able to identify the antigens using the receptors in the innate immune system which later leads to the initiation of the adaptive defense system. Another similarity is that both immunities involve the white blood cells in killing pathogens. In both innate defense and adaptive, physical exercises activate an array of immunology and hormonal responses. Evidence show that exercise can improve the inflammation of neurons and pathologies by targeting the anti-inflammatory cytokines (Lammert & Zeeb, 2014). Exercises can slant cytokines towards the inflammatory signature which highly contribute to the benefits of exercise and protects against infections associated with cases of low-grade inflammation. Also, exercise directly impacts the innate defense system by targeting the TLR.
It is clear that our bodies need to be protected from disease-causing germs for our survival. The immune system is located in many places in the human body and involves many organs and cells. Some of the non-specific mechanisms used for defense are the skin and mucous membranes which fall under the first line of defense for the body. The innate immune system immediately responds to the pathogen attacking the body but is not cannot maintain memory nerves. The adaptive immune system comprises of B and T cells which allow our bodies to target specific pathogens attacking the body. This makes both the innate and adaptive immunity systems essential for the survival of human beings.
References
Lammert, E., & Zeeb, M. (2014). Metabolism of human diseases: Organ physiology and pathophysiology.
Playfair, J. H. L., & Bancroft, G. J. (2013). Infection and immunity .
Reid, K. B. M., & Sim, R. B. (2008). Molecular aspects of innate and adaptive immunity . Cambridge, UK: Royal Society of Chemistry.
