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BIO 140 Human Biology I - Questions and Solutions

The Adaptive Immune Response: B-lymphocytes and Antibodies - Solutions

Review Questions

1. Removing functionality from a B cell without killing it is called ________.

  1. clonal selection
  2. clonal expansion
  3. clonal deletion
  4. clonal anergy

2. Which class of antibody crosses the placenta in pregnant women?

  1. IgM
  2. IgA
  3. IgE
  4. IgG

3. Which class of antibody has no known function other than as an antigen receptor?

  1. IgM
  2. IgA
  3. IgE
  4. IgD

4. When does class switching occur?

  1. primary response
  2. secondary response
  3. tolerance
  4. memory response

5. Which class of antibody is found in mucus?

  1. IgM
  2. IgA
  3. IgE
  4. IgD

 

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Critical Thinking Questions

1. Describe how secondary B cell responses are developed.

Solution: B cells activated during a primary response differentiate either into terminally differentiated plasma cells or into memory B cells. These memory B cells are what respond during a secondary or memory antibody response.

2. Describe the role of IgM in immunity.

Solution: IgM is an antigen receptor on naïve B cells. Upon activation, naïve B cells make IgM first. IgM is good at binding complement and thus has good antibacterial effects. IgM is replaced with other classes of antibodies later on in the primary response due to class switching.

 

Click here to return to Chapter 26

OpenStax, The Adaptive Immune Response: B-lymphocytes and Antibodies. OpenStax CNX. Jun 19, 2013 http://cnx.org/contents/018e7fef-252c-44f3-8918-eaa58b977963@4. © Jun 19, 2013 OpenStax. Textbook content produced by OpenStax is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License 3.0 license.