Specific Immune Response

This chapter describes the molecular and cellular components involved in the specific immune response. It starts with explaining the evolutionary aspects, especially the “common roots” of many structural elements that underlay both the nervous system and the immune system. After describing the immunoglobulin superfamily members and their duplication in the evolution, the work addresses the issue of the milieu of the immune response and the nature of the immunogens, especially the wide-ranging spectrum of epitopes. The work portrays the primary antibody response, involvement of B and T cells, antigen processing, antigen presentation, activation of T cells, formation of B cell–T cell conjugates, and the clonal expansion of B cells. Details of the antibody response (including the repertoires of antibody) are given, and special attention is paid to isotype switch and affinity maturation. Thereupon the secondary immune response and formation of memory is explained, and also the processes of induction and maintenance of tolerance, anergy, and apoptosis are given. Besides the T-dependent responses, also responses not requiring T cell help, specific cytotoxic responses as well as involvement of regulatory T cells (Tregs) are portrayed. This chapter does not address the innate immune response (nor the field of Toll-like receptor family) that is left to another chapter(s) of this volume.