Basics of a Virus and Immunity
Written by Noa Bass
Reviewed by Brooke McKee-Bass, DC
5 July 2020
With the current pandemic of COVID-19, it is important to understand the basics of a virus and immunity. This article provides a fundamental understanding of the biology and processes of a virus, the body’s immune system, and efforts that can help your immunity.
A virus is a microscopic parasite that requires a host cell in order to thrive and reproduce. The first step that a virus takes in the journey of inhabiting a host cell is traveling into the host’s body. This can be done several ways including respiratory passages and open wounds. Next, the virus must attach to the surface of a host cell. “They do so by recognizing and binding to cell surface receptors, like two interlocking puzzle pieces.” ¹ Once the virus has attached to the surface, it can begin to make its way across the membrane of the cell through many different modes of entry. From there, the virus can now release its genomes, or instructions, to produce viral proteins and create favorable conditions within the host to allow for the spread of the virus.
Now that you have some basic background on the enemy, let’s talk about our body’s biggest force of combat: the immune system. The immune system is a collection of cells and proteins that protect from foreign antigens, which include viruses. It can be viewed as having two lines of defense. The first line of defense is called innate immunity and is a non-specific mechanism, which means that it is called into combat as soon as an antigen is discovered, but also has no memory and no ability to recognize the same pathogen in the future. On the other hand, the second line of defense is known as adaptive immunity and is antigen-specific. Therefore, adaptive immunity “involves a lag time between exposure to the antigen and maximal response.” ² The trademark of the second mechanism is its ability to remember antigens and subsequently have a faster and more efficient response if the same antigen were to be present. Rather than being two exclusive forms of immunity, innate immunity and adaptive immunity are complementary in giving your body its best chance of fighting off any intruders. ²
In efforts to improve your immune system, you would first want to choose a healthy lifestyle including not smoking, eating a clean diet, exercising regularly, and getting adequate sleep. While no supplement can cure an illness or 100% protect your body, research shows that some supplements can improve your immune response and correct deficiencies within your body. Vitamin D is a fat-soluble nutrient that “enhances the pathogen-fighting effects of monocytes and macrophages - white blood cells that are important parts of your immune defense - and decreases inflammation, which helps promote immune response.” ³ An important mineral that is added to supplements is zinc. Zinc plays a crucial role in immune cell development and the inflammatory response. Zinc supplements, curing the body of its zinc deficiency, can help protect against respiratory tract infections and may even reduce the duration of these infections. Lastly, the powerful antioxidant vitamin C functions to enhance immune cells’ ability to protect against infection. While these are not the only important vitamins and minerals needed for your body to be at its best, fixing these deficiencies with supplements can be a great start on the journey back to health.
Written by Noa Bass
Reviewed by Brooke McKee-Bass, DC
5 July 2020
With the current pandemic of COVID-19, it is important to understand the basics of a virus and immunity. This article provides a fundamental understanding of the biology and processes of a virus, the body’s immune system, and efforts that can help your immunity.
A virus is a microscopic parasite that requires a host cell in order to thrive and reproduce. The first step that a virus takes in the journey of inhabiting a host cell is traveling into the host’s body. This can be done several ways including respiratory passages and open wounds. Next, the virus must attach to the surface of a host cell. “They do so by recognizing and binding to cell surface receptors, like two interlocking puzzle pieces.” ¹ Once the virus has attached to the surface, it can begin to make its way across the membrane of the cell through many different modes of entry. From there, the virus can now release its genomes, or instructions, to produce viral proteins and create favorable conditions within the host to allow for the spread of the virus.
Now that you have some basic background on the enemy, let’s talk about our body’s biggest force of combat: the immune system. The immune system is a collection of cells and proteins that protect from foreign antigens, which include viruses. It can be viewed as having two lines of defense. The first line of defense is called innate immunity and is a non-specific mechanism, which means that it is called into combat as soon as an antigen is discovered, but also has no memory and no ability to recognize the same pathogen in the future. On the other hand, the second line of defense is known as adaptive immunity and is antigen-specific. Therefore, adaptive immunity “involves a lag time between exposure to the antigen and maximal response.” ² The trademark of the second mechanism is its ability to remember antigens and subsequently have a faster and more efficient response if the same antigen were to be present. Rather than being two exclusive forms of immunity, innate immunity and adaptive immunity are complementary in giving your body its best chance of fighting off any intruders. ²
In efforts to improve your immune system, you would first want to choose a healthy lifestyle including not smoking, eating a clean diet, exercising regularly, and getting adequate sleep. While no supplement can cure an illness or 100% protect your body, research shows that some supplements can improve your immune response and correct deficiencies within your body. Vitamin D is a fat-soluble nutrient that “enhances the pathogen-fighting effects of monocytes and macrophages - white blood cells that are important parts of your immune defense - and decreases inflammation, which helps promote immune response.” ³ An important mineral that is added to supplements is zinc. Zinc plays a crucial role in immune cell development and the inflammatory response. Zinc supplements, curing the body of its zinc deficiency, can help protect against respiratory tract infections and may even reduce the duration of these infections. Lastly, the powerful antioxidant vitamin C functions to enhance immune cells’ ability to protect against infection. While these are not the only important vitamins and minerals needed for your body to be at its best, fixing these deficiencies with supplements can be a great start on the journey back to health.
- Vidyasagar, A. (2016, January 06). What Are Viruses? Retrieved June 25, 2020, from www.livescience.com/53272-what-is-a-virus.html
- SE. Turvey, D., FA. Bonilla, H., KM. Murphy, P., KD. Stone, C., HW. Schroeder, L., PGH. Gell, R., . . . J. Chinen, W. (1970, January 01). An introduction to immunology and immunopathology. Retrieved June 25, 2020, from https://aacijournal.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/1710-1492-7-S1-S1
- Kubala, J. (2020, May 08). Can Supplements Fight Coronavirus (COVID-19)? 15 Immune Boosters. Retrieved June 26, 2020, from https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/immune-boosting-supplements