Question

The principle of vaccination is to produce immunity against a disease. Explain.

Answer 1

Vaccination is the practice of artificially introducing germs or the germ substance into the body for developing resistance to particular diseases.

• Scientifically, this practice is called prophylaxis and the material introduced into the body is called the vaccine.
• The vaccine or germ substance is introduced into the body usually by injection and sometimes orally (e.g. polio drops).
• Inside the body, the vaccine stimulates lymphocytes to produce antibodies against the germs for that particular disease.
• Antibodies are an integral part of our immunity. Their function is to destroy the unwanted particles which enter the body.
• Vaccines give our immunity a signal to produce specific antibodies. Hence, the principle of vaccination is to produce immunity against a disease.