12 Questions
What is the term used to describe the adaptive immune system's capability to distinguish millions of different antigens?
Specificity
How many B and T lymphocytes are there in an adult?
0.5 to 1 × 10^12
What is the total collection of lymphocyte specificities sometimes called?
Lymphocyte repertoire
What is the term for a group of cells derived from one lymphocyte that express identical antigen receptors?
Clone
What is the functional significance of specificity in adaptive immune responses?
Ensures that immune responses are precisely targeted to microbial pathogens
What is the clonal selection hypothesis?
Predicted that clones of lymphocytes specific for different antigens develop before encountering these antigens
What enables the immune system to respond to a large variety of antigens?
Diversity of lymphocytes
What leads to enhanced responses upon repeated exposures to the same antigens?
Memory
What prevents injury to the host during responses to foreign antigens?
Nonreactivity to self
What is the marked proliferative expansion of the clone of lymphocytes specific for any antigen upon exposure called?
Clonal expansion
Before exposure to any one antigen, how many cells are specific for that antigen?
As few as 1 in 100,000 or 1 in 1,000,000 lymphocytes
What ranges from approximately 1000 to 10,000 cells?
The total number of lymphocytes capable of recognizing and reacting against any one antigen
Test your knowledge on the crucial properties of adaptive immune responses and their effectiveness in combating infections. Learn about specificity, diversity, memory, and self vs non-self recognition in the adaptive immune system.
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