Page 16 - The Miracle in the Immune System

14 THE MIRACLE OF THE IMMUNE SYSTEM

First, various types of phagocytes, which are called
the "the eater cells" will swing into action. Then the ma-
crophages, another specific type of phagocytes, take
their turn. They all destroy the enemy by engulfing it.
Macrophages also perform other duties such as sum-
moning other defence cells to the battleground, and
raising the body temperature. The rise in temperature
at the onset of a sickness is very important, for the af-
flicted the person will feel fatigued by it and need to
rest, thus reserving the energy needed to fight against
the enemies.
If these elements of the immune system prove insuf-
ficient against the enemies penetrating the body, then
lymphocytes, the champions of the system, come into
play. Lymphocytes are of two types; B cells and T cells.
These are again further divided into sub groups.
The helper T cells are next in reaching the battle-
ground after the macrophages. They may be considered
the administrative agents of the system. After the
helper T cells identify the enemy, they warn other cells
in order to initiate a war against it.
Thus alerted, the killer T cells come into play to de-
stroy the besieged enemy.
The B cells are the armaments factory of the human
body. Following their stimulation by the helper T cells,
they immediately start to produce a sort of weapon
called the "antibody".
After the alarm is over, suppressor T cells stop the
activity of all defence cells, and therefore prevent the
war from lasting any longer than is necessary.
However, the mission of the defence army has not