Pediatrics

India, Pakistan fight child vaccination backslide

India and other South Asian countries must deal with a dangerous backslide in routine infant vaccinations during 2019–2021 brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic and restrictions imposed to counter its spread, say UNICEF officials.

Vaccination

Lessons we can learn from polio vaccination campaigns

A new study examining the impact of the global polio vaccine campaign has identified important lessons that "should be considered for COVID-19 vaccine roll-outs over coming years."

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Immunization

Immunization, or immunisation, is the process by which an individual's immune system becomes fortified against an agent (known as the immunogen).

When this system is exposed to molecules that are foreign to the body (non-self), it will orchestrate an immune response, but it can also develop the ability to quickly respond to a subsequent encounter (through immunological memory). This is a function of the adaptive immune system. Therefore, by exposing an animal to an immunogen in a controlled way, its body can learn to protect itself: this is called active immunization.

The most important elements of the immune system that are improved by immunization are the B cells (and the antibodies they produce) and T cells. Memory B cell and memory T cells are responsible for a swift response to a second encounter with a foreign molecule. Passive immunization is when these elements are introduced directly into the body, instead of when the body itself has to make these elements.

Immunization be done through various techniques, most commonly vaccination. Vaccines against microorganisms that cause diseases can prepare the body's immune system, thus helping to fight or prevent an infection. The fact that mutations can cause cancer cells to produce proteins or other molecules that are unknown to the body forms the theoretical basis for therapeutic cancer vaccines. Other molecules can be used for immunization as well, for example in experimental vaccines against nicotine (NicVAX) or the hormone ghrelin (in experiments to create an obesity vaccine).

This text uses material from Wikipedia, licensed under CC BY-SA