🛡️ Immunology — Intermediate#

Scope — Cellular players, antigen recognition, and coordination between innate and adaptive responses.

Key concepts#

• Immune cells — macrophages, dendritic cells, T cells, B cells, and natural killer cells.
• Antigen presentation — display of antigen fragments on MHC molecules to activate T cells.
• Humoral vs cell‑mediated immunity — antibody‑based versus T‑cell‑based responses.

Seed Q&A triads#

• Q: Why are dendritic cells critical for adaptive immunity?
  A: They capture antigens and present them to T cells, linking innate detection to adaptive activation.

• Q: How do B cells and T cells differ in function?
  A: B cells produce antibodies; T cells coordinate responses or directly kill infected cells.

• Q: What is immunological memory?
  A: The ability of the immune system to respond more rapidly and effectively upon re‑exposure to a previously encountered antigen.

Short exercises#

• Trace the steps from pathogen entry to antibody production, identifying key cells involved.