Innate immunology studies the nonspecific defenses of the immune system, including physical barriers, chemicals, and cells that attack foreign substances. It works together with the adaptive immune system to protect the body from foreign substances. Researchers use this information to determine the body’s response to specific organisms and the effectiveness of medications.
Innate immunology deals with the function and structure of the immune system. More specifically, it focuses on innate immunity. The immune system is divided into two groups: innate and adaptive.
Innate immunology focuses on the nonspecific defenses of the immune system. These defenses include chemicals found in the blood, physical barriers, and cells created to attack foreign substances. Studying this area helps researchers determine how quickly the body responds to exposure to the antigen.
The innate and adaptive immune systems work towards the same goal of protecting the body from foreign substances, but how they achieve this goal is different. The innate immune system is ready to defend itself from the moment exposure occurs, but the adaptive immune system takes longer to respond: it has to adapt. Innate immunology has shown that it is the adaptive immune system that defends itself against the specific antigen that triggered the response; the innate immune system is nonspecific because it reacts to all antigens in the same way. The innate immune system does not remember the antigens it has previously been exposed to.
Although innate immunology studies the innate immune system, it must also study how the innate and adaptive systems work together. There are many components of one affecting components of the other. For example, if the adaptive immune system discovers an organism it has encountered previously, it will work more quickly to destroy it without taking as long to adapt, but if there is an additional organism or infection that goes unrecognized, the innate immune system it will already be on defense when the adaptive system kicks in. At the same time, when the innate immune system builds a cellular defense, the adaptive system responds accordingly. The innate system reacts first, however, because the adaptive system needs more time to recognize and respond.
Through innate immunology, research has shown that there are several elements of the innate system. The anatomical barriers are the first defenses and are physical, like the skin. If the anatomical barriers are damaged, infection begins; defenses include inflammation. Macrophages and natural killer cells provide part of the cell barriers.
By learning how the immune system works to fight infection, researchers contribute important biomedical information. With the details learned about the innate system, one also learns how the body will respond to specific organisms. This helps determine how effective medications are and when they are needed to boost the body’s natural responses.
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