Download Fighting disease

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This is an excerpt from the “Fighting Disease” presentation in Boardworks
2 of 7 Science for Australia, which contains 221 presentations in©total.
Boardworks Ltd 2013
Defences against disease
Harmful microbes can
cause disease by
damaging body cells.
Once microbes have
entered the body, it’s
important that they are
removed as quickly as
possible to reduce
damage.
The body’s immune system uses specialized cells called
white blood cells to identify and destroy the microbes.
How does the body try to stop harmful microbes from entering?
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The body’s defences
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What do white blood cells do?
If harmful microbes enter
the body the immune
system produces white
blood cells to help
defend it from microbes.
bacteria
antigen
Some white blood cells
can destroy microbes
by engulfing them.
white blood
cell
Some white blood cells are able to produce chemicals
called antibodies. These pair with matching antigens on
the surfaces of microbes and so help the white blood cells
to engulf microbes.
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Destroying microbes
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Producing antibodies
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