Our immune system is in action day and night: incessantly it is attacked by bacteria, viruses and fungi from our environment. As a rule, we do not notice anything about it; this is ensured by a complicated system in which defense cells of the white blood cells, soluble proteins and organs form a team. The teammates can accomplish a “task” together, or they can “go to work” individually. In this process, all mechanisms interlock and influence each other.
Two immune system defense systems
The immune system includes the thymus and spleen as organs, as well as tissues such as bone marrow, lymph nodes, tonsils, and the lymphoid tissue of the intestine. Immune cells are found in almost all tissues of the body. A weakening or even a defect of the immune system can have serious consequences for the body.
The body has two different defense systems at its disposal: on the one hand, the so-called non-specific defense, which is already given to every newborn and is immediately directed against a broad spectrum of foreign bodies. And on the other hand the specific defense, it must first learn against whom it should act – but then all the more effective.
The nonspecific immune defense: the fast generalists
The players of the nonspecific defense take on the acute mission. Here, they don’t flinch for long. Anything foreign is attacked. They destroy virus-infected cells and tumor cells, inhibit inflammation, repel viruses by preventing their protein buildup, and slow cell growth. The supreme commanders of the non-specific immune defense are the white blood cells or leukocytes.
An important group of them are the so-called scavenger cells, also called phagocytes. This subgroup of white blood cells is able to recognize certain structures on the surface of pathogens as foreign. Some can do even more: they not only dissolve the invaders, but pass on information about the enemies, the so-called antigens, thus enabling the specific defense to “learn” the characteristics.
Sometimes, however, the phagocytes overshoot their target: when they fight harmless grasses or foods as dangerous invaders or reject a graft as a foreign body.
The specific immune defense: the trained specialists
Here, two participants assume the main responsibility: immunoglobulins and lymphocytes. Lymphocytes are the smallest white blood cells (leukocytes) and are produced in the bone marrow and the lymphoid organs thymus, spleen, tonsils, Peyer’s plaques and lymph nodes. About 95 percent of lymphocytes are also stored there in each case. When needed, they can be released into the bloodstream.
10 tips for a strong immune system
B lymphocytes and T lymphocytes.
There are two types of lymphocytes: B lymphocytes and T lymphocytes. These have different sites of formation, different tasks, and different appearances. Of the two subtypes, there are short-lived lymphocytes, which are active for only seven days, and long-lived lymphocytes, which can provide service for 500 days. The latter function as “memory cells.” They are able to remember the pathogen of a survived infection. In the event of a new infection with the pathogen, they can thus react much more quickly and effectively.
Immunoglobulins – antibodies
Lymphocytes are assisted in their work by immunoglobulins. If the body perceives a substance as foreign or “antigenic,” it defends itself against it with so-called antibodies, also known as immunoglobulins in technical language. These are proteins that are produced by the immune system. In simple terms, they are able to dock onto the foreign bodies and destroy them.
This happens in the following way: When an antigen is recognized as foreign, the immune cells produce antibodies that match that antigen exactly – like a key to a lock. This antigen-antibody complex ensures the formation of further proteins. This leads to the direct destruction of the foreign substance. Or else: The antigen-antibody complex calls specialized immune cells to the aid that there is a foreign substance in the organism. These specialized cells destroy the complex and remove it from the body.
