Chapters authored
Immune System Disorders: Hypersensitivity and Autoimmunity
The immune response is known as a physiological mechanism to protect the body, providing defense to different systems that compose it and allowing its proper functioning. The ability to keep the organism free from foreign agents depends on the mechanisms of natural resistance or innate immunity, as well as the resistance that can develop over time through adaptive immunity. However, when these defense mechanisms fail, it can trigger injuries and diseases in the tissues, such as hypersensitivity, which is characterized as an excessive and undesirable reaction, produced by the immune system; as well as autoimmunity, which refers to the failure of the mechanisms of immunological tolerance, causing the reaction of the immune system against the body itself.
Part of the book: Immunoregulatory Aspects of Immunotherapy
Pathogenesis of Periodontal Disease
Inflammation is a physiological response of the innate immune system against several endogenous or exogenous stimuli. Inflammation begins with an acute pattern; however, it can become chronic by activating the adaptive immune response through cellular and noncellular mechanisms. The main etiologic factor of periodontal disease is bacteria which substantially harbor the human oral cavity. The most common periodontal diseases are gingivitis and periodontitis, whose main characteristic is inflammation. The knowledge of how immune mechanisms and inflammatory responses are regulated is fundamental to understanding the pathogenesis of periodontal disease. The purpose of this chapter is to show the current panorama of the immunological mechanisms involved in the pathogenesis of periodontal disease.
Part of the book: Periodontal Disease