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Tetanus Assignment Help
fishbiscuit:
Hello! I have an assessment task due on an infectious disease considering the cause, transmission, host response, major symptoms, treatment, prevention and control. I'm doing Tetanus.
I'm having trouble in doing the "host response" part of it :(
My teacher told me it should involve the immune response and we haven't reeeeally learnt it in class, so I've done some reading into the syllabus points but I don't really understand how it all goes together :/ but I would really like to get this assessment done early! (this month is really packed)
So for tetanus, the pathogen is a bacteria (Clostridium Tetani) and when it enters a deep puncture wound, it produces a neurotoxin, tetanospasmin, which causes tetanus. I've read that the immune system doesn't respond to this toxin because it doesn't provoke an immune response (idk why), so does the body just completely 'ignore' it...?
Would the immune system just respond in the aspect of destroying the bacteria and removing it from the body?
If so, does this involve phagocytosis and T cells and B cells?
I'm basically having trouble understanding how the immune system responds to a bacteria that produces a toxin. Does the immune system target both the bacteria and the toxin?
I'm also considering the fact that the individual has not received the vaccine for tetanus.
Sorry for the amount of questions. I have done research but I can't really find answers for specific questions or anything useful regarding immune response to the bacteria.
Thank you!
KT Nyunt:
--- Quote from: fishbiscuit on May 03, 2018, 07:08:59 pm ---Hello! I have an assessment task due on an infectious disease considering the cause, transmission, host response, major symptoms, treatment, prevention and control. I'm doing Tetanus.
I'm having trouble in doing the "host response" part of it :(
My teacher told me it should involve the immune response and we haven't reeeeally learnt it in class, so I've done some reading into the syllabus points but I don't really understand how it all goes together :/ but I would really like to get this assessment done early! (this month is really packed)
So for tetanus, the pathogen is a bacteria (Clostridium Tetani) and when it enters a deep puncture wound, it produces a neurotoxin, tetanospasmin, which causes tetanus. I've read that the immune system doesn't respond to this toxin because it doesn't provoke an immune response (idk why), so does the body just completely 'ignore' it...?
Would the immune system just respond in the aspect of destroying the bacteria and removing it from the body?
If so, does this involve phagocytosis and T cells and B cells?
I'm basically having trouble understanding how the immune system responds to a bacteria that produces a toxin. Does the immune system target both the bacteria and the toxin?
I'm also considering the fact that the individual has not received the vaccine for tetanus.
Sorry for the amount of questions. I have done research but I can't really find answers for specific questions or anything useful regarding immune response to the bacteria.
Thank you!
--- End quote ---
Hello! I don't know too much about Tetanus so I'm unsure about this. Do you have to research Tetanus? I can answer your questions for Malaria and I find Malaria has very clear cut answers...
Otherwise, I did find these websites that may be of some use:
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/12182454
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0171298504700807
It seems there definitely is an immune response as they are triggered by the Tetanus toxoid antigen. Also since there is a puncture wound (a breech of the first line of defence -the skin) this would induce an inflammatory response and phagocytosis (the second line of defence). This must occur as the second line of defence is non-specific, thus it doesn't care what type of pathogen it is attacking, it just occurs whenever there is a breach of the skin barrier to prevent any entering bacteria from progressing further.
I unfortunately don't know much more than that, but if you decide to switch to Malaria let me know ;D
vox nihili:
--- Quote from: fishbiscuit on May 03, 2018, 07:08:59 pm ---So for tetanus, the pathogen is a bacteria (Clostridium Tetani) and when it enters a deep puncture wound, it produces a neurotoxin, tetanospasmin, which causes tetanus. I've read that the immune system doesn't respond to this toxin because it doesn't provoke an immune response (idk why), so does the body just completely 'ignore' it...?
Would the immune system just respond in the aspect of destroying the bacteria and removing it from the body?
If so, does this involve phagocytosis and T cells and B cells?
I'm basically having trouble understanding how the immune system responds to a bacteria that produces a toxin. Does the immune system target both the bacteria and the toxin?
I'm also considering the fact that the individual has not received the vaccine for tetanus.
Sorry for the amount of questions. I have done research but I can't really find answers for specific questions or anything useful regarding immune response to the bacteria.
Thank you!
--- End quote ---
I'm not sure where you've read that the immune system doesn't respond to the tetanus toxin, but that's total rubbish. It's one of the most immunogenic (i.e. immune system provoking) molecules known. Indeed, we stick it onto vaccines to facilitat ethe immune response to them.
Your question about the immune system responding to the bacteria and the toxin is a good one. You're right, they respond to both. The bacterium will have multiple antigens that can trigger the immune system. The immune system will use antibodies to neutralise the toxin, but those antibodies will also attack the toxin at its soruce (the bacterium), whilst also responding to other antigens.
fishbiscuit:
--- Quote from: KT Nyunt on May 03, 2018, 08:51:48 pm ---Hello! I don't know too much about Tetanus so I'm unsure about this. Do you have to research Tetanus? I can answer your questions for Malaria and I find Malaria has very clear cut answers...
Otherwise, I did find these websites that may be of some use:
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/12182454
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0171298504700807
It seems there definitely is an immune response as they are triggered by the Tetanus toxoid antigen. Also since there is a puncture wound (a breech of the first line of defence -the skin) this would induce an inflammatory response and phagocytosis (the second line of defence). This must occur as the second line of defence is non-specific, thus it doesn't care what type of pathogen it is attacking, it just occurs whenever there is a breach of the skin barrier to prevent any entering bacteria from progressing further.
I unfortunately don't know much more than that, but if you decide to switch to Malaria let me know ;D
--- End quote ---
I don't know if I'm doing this replying thing right but here we go.
My teacher said not to do malaria (i know, grrrr)
And I've also checked those sites but I didn't really look into them, I'll make sure to understand them further. Also, thank you for clarifying the fact that it's non-specific, so I guess I'll talk about those processes for the pathogen itself. But the thing about T cells and B cells, because I'm considering the situation if the bacteria was introduced to someone who has never had the vaccine, wouldn't they do their thing before phagocytosis? Because I've read that they attack and make copies of themselves (I haven't completely understood the process... :/)
fishbiscuit:
--- Quote from: vox nihili on May 03, 2018, 09:02:54 pm ---I'm not sure where you've read that the immune system doesn't respond to the tetanus toxin, but that's total rubbish. It's one of the most immunogenic (i.e. immune system provoking) molecules known. Indeed, we stick it onto vaccines to facilitat ethe immune response to them.
Your question about the immune system responding to the bacteria and the toxin is a good one. You're right, they respond to both. The bacterium will have multiple antigens that can trigger the immune system. The immune system will use antibodies to neutralise the toxin, but those antibodies will also attack the toxin at its soruce (the bacterium), whilst also responding to other antigens.
--- End quote ---
I've read it in these sites:
https://www.bethlehem.edu/document.doc?id=506
"Unlike many infectious diseases, recovery from naturally acquired tetanus does not
usually result in immunity to tetanus. This is due to the extreme potency of the
tetanospasmin toxin; even a lethal dose of tetanospasmin is insufficient to provoke an
immune response."
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tetanus
They both say the same thing lol. Though the first one is coming from a nurse which is why I'm confused if I should trust it or not, because it doesn't sound right in the first place.
So about the immune response, the toxin will be neutralised and the bacterium will be attacked by antibodies?
Antibodies are produced after an individual has gotten the vaccine right? What if the individual has never gotten the vaccine and was exposed to this bacteria, would they have antibodies to do the attacking...?
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