Exercise answers

Skin, mucus, vomiting/diarrhoea, friendly bacteria, white blood cells, fever, lymph nodes,
antibodies
Body defence Function
skin To form a tough, impenetrable barrier
mucus To trap pathogens
Vomiting/diarrhoea To flush pathogens out of the digestive
tract
Friendly bacteria To compete with pathogens for space on
body surfaces
White blood cells To destroy pathogens and produce
antibodies
Fever To slow bacterial growth and speed up
metabolism
Lymph nodes To filter lymph to stop bacteria entering the
blood
Antibodies To prove immunity to pathogens

1st Line of defence

Body surfaces

1. Skin
a. tough outer layer that is only penetrated through breaks or wounds
b. sweat and tears have an antimicrobial action that keeps pathogens under control
c. Skin cells are constantly shed, which removes pathogens from the skin’s surface

2. Respiratory tract
a. Pathogens breathed into lungs are trapped in mucus, which are produced by cells that
line the respiratory tract
b. the cilia moves the mucus up to the throat so it can be removed from the body.

3. Digestive tract
a. Pathogens that enter the stomach are killed by stomach acid or are tapped in mucus.
b. If infection occurs the gut contracts to flush pathogens out of the body through vomiting
or diarrhoea.
c. friendly bacteria live on the body’s inner and outer surface to protect the body by
competing with pathogens for space.

4. Friendly bacteria
2nd Line of defence

Inflammatory response

1. Increased blood flow to the infection site

2. White blood cells

a. phagocytes (a type of white blood cells) move out of the blood into tissues to destroy
invading microbes and damaged cells
b. white blood cells produce substances that raise body temperature causing a fever. This
slows down microbial growth and speeds up the body’s metabolism (this speeds up white
blood cell activity and tissue repair)

3. Debris cleared by lymph nodes.

3rd Line of defence

Immune response

1. Production of antibodies

2. Antibodies remain in blood, providing future immunity