The acquired arm of the immune system that produces a specific immune response to each infectious agent encountered and is capable of remembering the agent, thus protecting the host from future infection by the same pathogen. It is synonymous with acquired immune response.
As a first step of an adaptive immune response an antigen-presenting cell, such as a dendritic cell, traps an antigen in the periphery and migrates to the lymphoid tissues. Here it presents the antigen to T cells, evoking either a humoral response with the help of B cells, or a direct cytotoxic T cell response. Whereas the humoral responses are mainly directed against extracellular pathogens such as most bacteria, the cytotoxic T cell responses are in the case of infection with intracellular antigens such as by viruses.
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© 2005 Springer-Verlag
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(2005). Adaptive Immune Response. In: Vohr, HW. (eds) Encyclopedic Reference of Immunotoxicology. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/3-540-27806-0_17
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/3-540-27806-0_17
Publisher Name: Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg
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