Video Transcript
Which of the following is not a method that antibodies use to target and attack pathogens? (A) Neutralization, (B) inflammation, (C) agglutination, (D) opsonization, or (E) antitoxin action.
This question asks us about methods that antibodies use to target and attack pathogens. There are several of these antibody methods, so let’s go over each of them. The first of these methods is called neutralization. Normally, a pathogen can infect its target cell by using receptors on the cell surface of its target cell. Antibodies can block this action by binding to the proteins on the pathogen that would interact with these receptors. This neutralizes the ability of the pathogen to infect its target cell.
Another method used by antibodies is agglutination. This is when antibodies can cause pathogens to clump together. In this state, these pathogens are unable to infect their target cells. Another method is called opsonization. This is where an antibody combine to a pathogen to alert other cells of the immune system. These other immune cells can recognize the antibody bound to a pathogen and destroy it, for example, by phagocytosis. Another method that we’ll discuss is antitoxin action. Some pathogens can be harmful to our body by producing toxins that can kill our cells. These toxins can be destroyed by antibodies that recognize them. This protects our cells from the harmful effects of the toxin.
As we can see, these are all methods that antibodies use to target and attack pathogens. This question is asking us, which of the answer choices is not a method used? All of these are methods used by antibodies except for inflammation. Inflammation is part of the innate immune system, which is separate from the adaptive immune system, which makes use of antibodies. Therefore, the correct answer is (B), inflammation.
