Immune System and You! (And Also What Kills It)

With all of the daily activities that humans partake in, there's no wonder each and every person is exposed to hundreds of millions of 'foreign invaders.' While not all of these 'foreign invaders' are particularly harmful, the ones that are can deal quite a bit of damage to an individual. But what keeps us, as humans, healthy even after exposure to so many pathogens? The immune system is defined most simply as " network of cells, tissues, and organs that work together to protect the body.(1)" The immune system, for the most part, grows stronger each day with each new exposure. There is, though, an exception to this accelerating growth: immunodeficiency disorders. Immunodeficiency is the "inability to produce a normal complement of antibodies or immunologically sensitized T cells especially in response to specific antigens. (2)" In response to antigens (foreign bodies), the immune system provides a network of cells (T cells) to analyze and eventually rid the body of these antigens. As defined above, a person inflicted with an immunodeficiency disorder is not capable of doing such. One of the most common immunodeficiency disorders is Human Immunodeficiency Virus - HIV.

HIV is a pathogen that specifically attacks T cells (the cells used to analyze and eventually get rid of harmful antigens). Below is an image of the 'HIV Life Cycle.(3)'

With this, we can see how HIV not only attacks the CD4 (T cells) to minimize their numbers and therefore the efficiency of immune response, but also how it manipulates the cells to replicate itself and provide further damage. The more HIV, the less CD4, and the lowest possibility for proper immune response and healing. This is how HIV can eventually develop into AIDS if left untreated, and can ultimately result in death. HIV does not kill the individual but the enforcement of susceptibility to harmful foreign bodies increases. Therefore, what wouldn't normally infect and kill a person... does.

1. https://kidshealth.org/en/parents/immune.html

2. https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/immunodeficiency 3. https://aidsinfo.nih.gov/understanding-hiv-aids/fact-sheets/19/73/the-hiv-life-cycle