Infectious Diseases and HIV Conference

Immunology is a sub-discipline of biomedical science that revolves around the immune system and its reactions to infectious disease agents. The main task of the immune system is to protect the body against the action of micro-pathogens, including viruses, fungi, bacteria, and a type of worms called parasites.

Thus, dealing with immunology and infectious diseases is essential for the implementation of viable prevention strategies, vaccinations, and treatments. Immunity to infections is an extraordinarily complex process, requiring several types of immune cells including T cells, B cells, macrophages, and dendritic cells. The innate immune response forms the first line of defense in the body against the invading pathogen: it acts very nonspecifically but instantly.

This includes activation of phagocytes, secretion of inflammatory mediators, and recruitment of other immune cells to the site of infection. The adaptive immune response, involving the proliferation of both T and B cells and thus more specific than the innate, becomes activated.

T cells recognize and destroy infected cells, while B cells neutralize pathogens by creating antibodies that mark them for destruction. The adaptive response also culminates in memory cells, which protects individuals from later infections due to the same pathogen. Immunology lies at the root principle of using vaccination, which means that one attempts to generate an immune response without causing the disease itself.

Vaccination provokes an adaptive immunity, so these memory cells would recognize and respond quickly upon secondary exposure to the virus. Thus, vaccination programs have been spectacular successes in halting the pandemic spread of many infectious diseases, such as measles, polio, and flu.

In turn, the immune system can sometimes go awry and trigger immune disorders, which can be autoimmune diseases, an overreaction in which the immune system attacks some of the body's own tissues. Therefore, there has been a development of certain mechanisms of evading or suppressing the immune response by some pathogens, thus causing chronic infections or enhanced disease severity.

The recent breakthroughs in immunotherapy are among the recent findings that have opened new doors for the treatment of infectious diseases, such as viral infections, including HIV and hepatitis C.

The aim of such therapies is to improve or restore the immune response, thus improving the body's capacity to fight infections.

Continuous research in immunology yields mechanisms of immunity, effective vaccines, and treatments against immune-related disorders, all of which contribute to improvements in public health through the fight against infectious diseases.