How does the body’s immune system mobilize for rejection of a transplanted organ?
The body’s response to a transplanted organ is the same as the immune response to any antigen or foreign body. The general immune response involves the body’s ability to destroy invading microorganisms and and nonliving foreign organic materials through the action of certain white blood corpuscles and antibodies in the blood. The production of antibodies to fight the antigens, or foreign substance(s) is at stake. An antibody is a specific substance produced by tissues of the body when they are stimulated by an antigen, examples of which are bacteria, toxins and foreign proteins, and capable of neutralizing or giving immunity against the specific antigen. The antibodies react in the bloodstream with the invading materials, which are called antigens.. The antigens are thus neutralized. Natural immunity results from the inherent ability of the body to produce certain kinds of antibodies. Antibodies are not produced in the blood. They are produced in the tissues of the body, from which the
