Immunity_ Key Concepts, Cells, and Responses for Nursing 2026/03/04
What is immunodeficiency?
Inadequate or impaired immune function.
What is immunocompetence?
Normal immune system function.
What does immunodeficiency increase the risk for?
Infection and cancer.
Where do blood cells/hematopoiesis originate?
In stem cells in the bone marrow (pluripotent cells)
What are colony-stimulating factors?
Growth factors that control hematopoiesis.
What does hematopoietic refer to?
The process of reproduction, growth, and differentiation of stem cells and colony-
forming units
What does pluripotent mean?
The capability of a stem cell to become different types of cells.
CFU-
committed to become a particular type of cell; produces a cell type in a specific
cell line
Cytokines are
small proteins released by cells that specifically affect cell-to-cell communication
Page 1 1 Immunity_ Key Concepts, Cells, and Responses for Nursing.pdf
,Immunity_ Key Concepts, Cells, and Responses for Nursing 2026/03/04
What are the three types of cytokines?
-Colony Stimulating Factors
- Interleukins
-Interferons
What are cytokines responsible for?
-Hematopoiesis
- cellular proliferation and differentiation
-inflammation
-wound healing
-Cellular and humoral immunity
-Control reproduction
-Growth
-Stem Cells
-CFU's?
What is a committed stem cell?
A descendant of a pluripotent stem cell that differentiates into different cell types.
Hematopoietic cytokines are
diverse substances produced mainly by bone marrow and WBCs.
What to know about Hematopoietic cytokines
-Regulate many cellular activities by acting as chemical messengers among cells
and expressed on a cell only after that cell has interacted with an antigen, so that
cytokine activation is limited to antigen-activated lymphocytes.
What do blast cells differentiate into?
Red blood cells (erythrocytes).
What do leukocyte stem cells differentiate into?
Granulocytes and monocytes.
Page 2 2 Immunity_ Key Concepts, Cells, and Responses for Nursing.pdf
, Immunity_ Key Concepts, Cells, and Responses for Nursing 2026/03/04
What do colony stimulating factors stimulate?
Formation of colonies of white blood cells (WBCs).
What are interferons responsible for?
Communication between cells to trigger immune system responses against viruses,
bacteria, parasites and tumors cells.
With interferons, think
they 'interfere on' the ability of the substance to replicate" You're gonna see
symptoms of infection
What do interleukins activate?
B and T cell & hematopoietic cells
What are white blood cells a major component of?
Host defense/body defense mechanism.
WBC are activated by?
antigens
What are the types of white blood cells?
-Neutrophils
-Monocytes,
-Lymphocytes
-Eosinophils
-Basophils.
Anemia results in
a decrease in oxygen-carrying capacity of blood and consequently a decreased
oxygen availability to the tissues
Page 3 3 Immunity_ Key Concepts, Cells, and Responses for Nursing.pdf
What is immunodeficiency?
Inadequate or impaired immune function.
What is immunocompetence?
Normal immune system function.
What does immunodeficiency increase the risk for?
Infection and cancer.
Where do blood cells/hematopoiesis originate?
In stem cells in the bone marrow (pluripotent cells)
What are colony-stimulating factors?
Growth factors that control hematopoiesis.
What does hematopoietic refer to?
The process of reproduction, growth, and differentiation of stem cells and colony-
forming units
What does pluripotent mean?
The capability of a stem cell to become different types of cells.
CFU-
committed to become a particular type of cell; produces a cell type in a specific
cell line
Cytokines are
small proteins released by cells that specifically affect cell-to-cell communication
Page 1 1 Immunity_ Key Concepts, Cells, and Responses for Nursing.pdf
,Immunity_ Key Concepts, Cells, and Responses for Nursing 2026/03/04
What are the three types of cytokines?
-Colony Stimulating Factors
- Interleukins
-Interferons
What are cytokines responsible for?
-Hematopoiesis
- cellular proliferation and differentiation
-inflammation
-wound healing
-Cellular and humoral immunity
-Control reproduction
-Growth
-Stem Cells
-CFU's?
What is a committed stem cell?
A descendant of a pluripotent stem cell that differentiates into different cell types.
Hematopoietic cytokines are
diverse substances produced mainly by bone marrow and WBCs.
What to know about Hematopoietic cytokines
-Regulate many cellular activities by acting as chemical messengers among cells
and expressed on a cell only after that cell has interacted with an antigen, so that
cytokine activation is limited to antigen-activated lymphocytes.
What do blast cells differentiate into?
Red blood cells (erythrocytes).
What do leukocyte stem cells differentiate into?
Granulocytes and monocytes.
Page 2 2 Immunity_ Key Concepts, Cells, and Responses for Nursing.pdf
, Immunity_ Key Concepts, Cells, and Responses for Nursing 2026/03/04
What do colony stimulating factors stimulate?
Formation of colonies of white blood cells (WBCs).
What are interferons responsible for?
Communication between cells to trigger immune system responses against viruses,
bacteria, parasites and tumors cells.
With interferons, think
they 'interfere on' the ability of the substance to replicate" You're gonna see
symptoms of infection
What do interleukins activate?
B and T cell & hematopoietic cells
What are white blood cells a major component of?
Host defense/body defense mechanism.
WBC are activated by?
antigens
What are the types of white blood cells?
-Neutrophils
-Monocytes,
-Lymphocytes
-Eosinophils
-Basophils.
Anemia results in
a decrease in oxygen-carrying capacity of blood and consequently a decreased
oxygen availability to the tissues
Page 3 3 Immunity_ Key Concepts, Cells, and Responses for Nursing.pdf
