What is My Primary Immune Response?
Your primary immune response, or innate immunity, is how your body responds the first time you encounter a pathogen (e. g., a cold virus). The chances of you having antibodies for a new virus are almost impossible. On your first exposure your body will make antibodies, but it will take awhile. First Line of Defense Your primary immune response is carried out by white blood cells, which are always circulating around in your blood whether you are battling an infection at the moment or not. One type of white blood cell is the Macrophage. Macrophages are big eaters. They eat anything they find that they determine is foreign. This is a great thing when they are cleaning up dead cells and such. Most macrophages succeed in killing any virus cells they encounter, even if they have to kill themselves in the process. But every once in awhile a virus cell wins and keeps the macrophage from destroying it. The virus then hijacks the macrophage and reproduces inside it. The macrophage then becomes a
