Download The Lymphatic and Immune Systems

The Lymphatic and Immune Systems
Your eyes itch; your nose is runny; you break out in hives, and hives itch, too. What
happened to your otherwise feeling of perfect comfort? Your body initiated a vigorous
immune response to a specific foreign molecule, usually a protein, to which you are
allergic. Daily your body is subjected to cuts, scrapes, bumps, bruises, burns, bites,
stings, and a multitude of disease-causing microorganisms such as bacteria and
viruses; any one of these has significant potential to cause harm to your body.
Usually you stay healthy because of the tremendous effort of the all-important
lymphatic and immune systems. Lymphatic vessels collect tissue (interstitial) fluid,
which is called lymph once it enters the lymphatic vessels. Specialized white blood
cells traveling in blood and lymph provide protection to tissues and clean up tissue
debris, such as dead cells. And, interestingly, an additional function of the lymphatic
system aids in the absorption of fats. Whether or not your career goal involves the
health profession, this chapter is of paramount importance to you because it explains
how disease organisms travel throughout the body and how your body mounts an
attack to contain and eradicate these organisms.
1: Perceive clearly and fully the structure and function of the lymphatic
vessels and lymph.
__ Describe the structure and distribution of lymphatic vessels.
__ Define lymph, explaining the formation process and its contents.
__ Describe lymph, comparing and contrasting it to both interstitial fluid and blood.
__ Identify each type of lymphatic vessel, indicating important functions and
specialized structural features.
__ Define lacteal, explaining its location and function.
__ Explain why it is possible for disease-causing organisms and cancer cells to gain
easy access to the lymphatic stream.
__ Describe the mechanics of lymph flow, including how flow is maintained.
__ Identify two main lymph ducts, and explain the drainage pathway of each.
__ Describe the entire course of the thoracic duct.
__ Trace a drop of lymph from its point of formation to its return to the bloodstream.
2: Understand the structure and function of lymph nodes.
__ Identify primary locations of lymph nodes in the body.
__ Explain how lymph nodes function as lymphatic organs.
__ Diagram a simple flowchart of the pathway of lymph into, through, and out of a
lymph node.
__ Define and distinguish the anatomical terms afferent and efferent, hilum, and
sinus and sinusoid.
3: Understand the structure and function of lymphoid tissues.
__ Identify the type of tissue that makes up lymphoid tissue.
__ Summarize the basic characteristics of lymphoid tissues, including their locations.
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Human Anatomy
__ Relate the structure of lymphoid tissue to its infection-fighting function.
__ Define MALT and where it is found
__ Relate the structure of a lymphoid nodule to its immune function.
__ Distinguish lymph nodes from aggregated lymphoid nodules.
5: Understand the structure and function of lymphoid organs
__ List structures classified as lymphoid organs – bone marrow, spleen, tonsils,
aggregated lymphoid nodules in the intestine, appendix and thymus
__ Describe the anatomical location of each of the listed lymphoid organs
__ Describe the significant histological features of each of the listed lymphoid organs
__ Describe the immune functions of each of the listed lymphoid organs
__ Distinguish the red pulp from the white pulp of the spleen
6: Identify some specific disorders of the lymphatic and immune systems and
explain the effects of aging.
__ AIDS, chylothorax, lymphangitis, mononucleosis, Hodgkin’s lymphoma, NonHodgkin’s lymphoma
__ Explain a simple way to identify an enlarged spleen, and describe the ramifications
of a ruptured spleen.
__ Explain why the effectiveness of the immune system declines with age.
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