Reflecting on the lesson
Choose one concept in our lesson today, give a brief explanation about the concept and cite how would you apply this learning in your everyday life.
Modern fictional media has popularized the idea of creatures that lurk in the dark as one of the scariest forms of entertainment. In comparison, there exist horrors in real life such as hidden stalkers, derelict alleyways, or even the night itself. In viewing all these, one thing’s for sure: The most unsettling things are the ones we cannot see. Such can be said with microbes. Often, people never really know when or where they strike. You could go outside and have a leisurely walk while passing people by, and, suddenly, you just might find yourself suddenly struck by the flu the next day. Here, their microscopic nature is ironically what makes such a large impact.
Luckily, the human body presents a complex feature called immunological memory. This ability represents the body’s memory for certain antigens that have triggered immune responses in the past. These learned immune responses would then be initiated again, should the relevant specific antigens arise again. To be more distinct, a person’s immunological memory persists because of long-lasting antibodies and very long-lived lymphocytes that manifest during clonal selections of antigen-stimulated B cells and T cells. Moreover, whether cell-mediated or antibody-mediated, immune responses would be quicker and more intense after a second exposure to an antigen, as compared to the first exposure. This is because only a minuscule amount of cells have the correct specificity for a response, and it would take several days to build the right amount of cells for maximum intensity. But after that initial encounter, there would already be thousands of memory cells that can proliferate and differentiate into helper T cells, cytotoxic T cells, or plasma cells within a few hours once the same antigen makes another appearance (Tortora & Derrickson, 2018).
This mechanism of the body explains why vaccination is a prevalent practice. Especially during the COVID-19 pandemic, vaccines play a critical role in reducing the risks of getting a disease by working with the body to build protection. Specifically, when a person receives a vaccine, which usually contains attenuated or inactivated microbes, the body’s B cells and T cells are prompted. The vaccine essentially acts like the first encounter with a live pathogen; however, the effects of its antigens would be much weaker as it would be more controlled. Thus, the body would recover much faster while accumulating a better immune response. Should there be exposure to the actual antigen as an infecting microbe, the body would already treat it as the subsequent encounter and attack it with the appropriate cells that originated from the numerous acquired memory cells. Considering all these, vaccination remains a key component of primary health care and an irrefutable human right (World Health Organization, 2019). In particular, vaccines underscore health security as a vital tool against antimicrobial resistance. Likewise, it is unequivocally a crucial investment among countries with its implications in the control of infectious disease outbreaks.
Overall, microbes pose a threat to health with their seemingly invisible attacks against the body; therefore, the natural defense mechanism of immunological memory is nothing short of significance. This feature of the immune response is, no doubt, a testament to the human body’s tendency to persevere through obstacles — and in this case, against microbes. In understanding immunological memory, vaccines were developed. Eventually, these vaccinations became a vital aspect of healthcare with their preventive capabilities. As such, it is imperative to put efforts into becoming inoculated with the proper vaccines to ultimately build a solid resistance to microbial invasions. After all, who would fight empty-handed when there’s a shield nearby?
References:
- Tortora, G. J., & Derrickson, B. H. (2018). Principles of anatomy and physiology. John Wiley & Sons.
- World Health Organization. (2019, October 29). Vaccines and immunization. https://bit.ly/3XdTI1v