Immunological Memory
For more details on this topic, see Immunity (medical).When B cells and T cells are activated some will become memory cells. Throughout the lifetime of an animal these memory cells form a database of effective B and T lymphocytes. Upon interaction with a previously encountered antigen, the appropriate memory cells are selected and activated. In this manner, the second and subsequent exposures to an antigen produce a stronger and faster immune response. This is "adaptive" because the body's immune system prepares itself for future challenges. Immunological memory can either be in the form of passive short-term memory or active long-term memory.
Read more about this topic: Adaptive Immune System
Famous quotes containing the word memory:
“Beauclerc: You’ve got a good memory for one who drinks.
Eddie: Drinkin’ don’t bother my memory. If it did, I wouldn’t drink. I couldn’t. You see, I’d forget how good it was. Then where’d I be? I’d start drinkin’ water again.”
—Jules Furthman (1888–1960)