6.

3 Defence against infectious disease

Pathogens
A pathogen is a living organism or virus that invades the body and causes a disease. Most
pathogens are bacteria and viruses. Protozoa, parasitic worms and fungi can also be
pathogenic.
Viruses have no metabolism so they all are pathogenic because they have to invade the
body. They take over the nucleic acid and protein synthesis mechanisms of cells and
directs them to make more viruses.

Antibiotics
Antibiotics are natural substances that slow down the growth of bacteria. There are about
50 manufactured for medical use. These work in different ways but they are effective
because prokaryotic and eukaryotic cells have different metabolic pathways. They enter
the bacterial cells during their growth and division.
Some antibiotics block the protein synthesis of bacteria while they do not affect human
cells. Others destroy their cell walls while they are reproducing and cause the cell to
rupture.
Viruses are not living organisms and have no metabolic pathways or their own so
antibiotics cannot be used against them because they use the human cells as hosts. This
would just destroy our own cells.
Not all bacterial infections can be fought with antibiotics though.

The immune system and defence

The immune system has several lines of defence against pathogens to protect us from
these.
First line of defence
The first line of defence is the skin. It forms a barrier against the entry of pathogens into
the body. It is toughened in the surface by the protein keratin so most microorganisms
cannot get past the skin. It as well produces chemical secretions that prevent the growth
of fungi and bacteria. Also, it has a low pH, that prevents the growth of bacteria.
Another type of first line of defence is mucous and other liquids in the body. When
pathogens enter the body they will sometimes be trapped in the sticky mucous and be
expelled by the cilia. The pathogens are trapped and send to the epiglottis where they are

killed with the acid of the stomach. They are as well prevented to enter the lungs in this
way. Saliva, tears and mucus all are first defence.
Second line of defence
The second line of defence is set up to fight pathogens that get through the first line of
defence. A very important part of the bodys second line of defence are phagocytes. These
are a form of leukocytes that ingest bacteria, viruses and dust particles to destroy them.
The can even change shape to ingest microbes.
The membrane of the phagocyte surrounds the microbe and then joins together to form a
vesicle. Then lysosomes in the phagocyte fuse with it and release enzymes to kill the
microbes. This is called phagocytosis.
These can also squeeze in and out of capillaries.
Third line of defence
This is the most complex line of defence and is only used when pathogens overcome the
two previous. Pathogens here are killed chemically.
Antigens are antibody generating substances. They are proteins found in the plasma
membranes or cell walls of bacteria or in the protein coat of virus. The body recognises
these as not being a part of the body and they trigger to switch on an immune response.
This response will be the production of antibodies. Antibodies are molecules produced in
response to any antigen entering the body. Each antibody is specific to an antigen. They
are designed to destroy antigens, and therefore the cells in which they are contained.
Antigens have a very specific structure, which is imitated by the antibodies so they can
bind to these and destroy them.
Some antibodies cause bacterial cells to clump together to make job for phagocytes
easier. Others break their cell walls, deactivate the bacterial toxins or act as a recognition
signal for phagocytes.

Antibody production
HIGHER LEVEL DESCRIPTION IS BETTER. Antibodies are produced by the lymphocytes,
which are a form of leukocytes. These lymphocytes are specialised to that each one makes
a specific type of antibody, so there is a very big range of lymphocytes in the body.
1. Stem cells give rise to lymphocytes.
2. When an antigen is detected, a lymphocyte that can make a specific antibody is
selected.
3. It then binds to its specific antigen and is activated.

4. There are many different types of lymphocytes in the blood, giving protection
against many different antigens.
5. Activated lymphocytes divide repeatedly by mitosis to produce identical cells.
6. One set will be memory cells, that will be stored in the bloodstream and contain
that specific antibody against the antigen, just in case they are needed in the future
for protection.
7. Another set will release their antibodies into the bloodstream.
8. These will circulate and reach the antigens they match and help destroy the
pathogens.

Outline the effects of HIV on the immune system

HIV stands for human Immunodeficiency virus. It is a retrovirus, so it uses RNA to make
DNA and insert it in the host cell. The virus contains two strands of RNA inside a protein
coat and the enzyme reverse transcriptase.
It uses the lysogenic cycle to replicate the virus within human cells and many times rests
dormant.
The process of how it invades and affects human cells follows:
1. The virus enters the host cell, then its RNA is translated into DNA, and inserted into
the cells nucleic acid.
2. The capsule of the virus fuses with the membrane of the cell so RNA can enter.
3. The outside of the virus, with the antigens, remains on the outside of the cell.
4. The virus will remain in the cell even when it divides, so it increases its population.
5. The outside of the virus is covered in binding proteins, that attach to CD4 receptors
in helper T-cells.
6. It remains dormant for long periods of time, about 10 years.
7. When T-cells attach to infected cells they become infected too.

The effects of this virus are a reduction in the number of lymphocytes in the body and a
loss of the ability to produce antibodies. The immune system is incredibly weakened by the
virus, so diseases infect the body. People do not die from the virus itself, but from the
diseases they get while having the virus. The T-cells they infect are the ones that instruct
other lymphocytes to start the creation of antibodies.
The virus is difficult to fight because it targets the immune system cells, it infiltrates it.
Furthermore, it makes the immune system unable to recognise a pathogen and unable to
recognise the HIV, so it is extremely protected.
The following graph shows the development of the virus:

Describe the cause, transmission and social implications of AIDS

AIDS is the final stage of HIV, where the immune system is so affected by the virus that
the body dies from other infections. The most common transmission ways are during sex
and when using syringe needles to administer drugs.
HIV is transmitted in blood, vaginal secretions, semen, breast milk and sometimes across
the placenta. In many countries it is transmitted by blood transfusions.
It was thought to be a disease that only drug users and gays had, but it has been proven
that it can be transmitted in many other ways. It is the main cause of death in many parts
of Asia, Africa and Latin America.