What kinds of immunisations are there?
Inactivated Organisms
Attenuated Live Organisms
Secreted Products
Recombinant Components
Constituents of Cell Walls
See: Green Book
Inactivated Immunisations
- What are inactivated immunisations?*
- How do they work?*
- Give two examples.*
Inactivated immunisations cannot cause disease
A first injection stimulates a primary antibody response dominated by IgM (and later IgG).
Subsequent injections lead to a secondary antibody response dominated by IgG.
Examples include Pertussis and Inactivated Poliomyelitis Virus
Attenuated Live Immunisations
- What is an attenuated live immunisation?*
- What complications can occur?*
- Give an example of an attenuated live immunisation.*
Usually does not cause the infection, but might cause a milder form (e.g. rash in measles)
The live organism grows in the patient
Examples include MMR
Antigens and Conjugation
- What kinds of antigens exist?*
- What does ‘conjugation’ refer to?*
- Give two examples of conjugated immunisations.*
Plain polysaccharide antigens stimulate the immune system less broadly than protein antigens.
Polysaccharide antigens can be conjugated (i.e. attached to a protein) to help the immune system respond more broadly.
Protein antigens
- Tetanus
- Diphtheria
- Influenza
Polysaccharide antigens (conjugated)
- Hib
- MenC
Adjuvants
Name two adjuvants.
Inactivated immunisations may contain adjuvants, which enhance the antibody response.
Examples include aluminium phosphate and aluminium hydroxide.
