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Immunology basics

2009-02-21T18:32:22Z

117.196.211.68: /* Classical immunology */

'''Immunology''' is a broad branch of [[biomedical science|biomedical]] [[science]] that covers the study of all aspects of the [[immune system]] in all [[organism]]s. It deals with, among other things, the [[physiology|physiological]] functioning of the immune system in states of both health and disease; malfunctions of the immune system in immunological disorders ([[autoimmune diseases]], [[hypersensitivity|hypersensitivities]], [[immune deficiency]], [[transplant rejection]]); the physical, chemical and physiological characteristics of the components of the immune system [[in vitro]], [[in situ]], and [[in vivo]]. Immunology has applications in several disciplines of science, and as such is further divided.

==Histological examination of the immune system==
Even before the concept of [[immunity (medical)|immunity]] (from ''immunis'', Latin for "exempt") was developed, numerous early physicians characterized organs that would later prove to be part of the immune system. The key primary lymphoid organs of the immune system are [[thymus]] and [[bone marrow]], and secondary lymphatic tissues such as [[spleen]], [[tonsil]]s, [[lymphatic system|lymph vessels]], [[lymph node]]s, [[adenoid]]s, and [[skin]]. When health conditions warrant, immune system organs including the thymus, spleen, portions of bone marrow, lymph nodes and secondary lymphatic tissues can be [[surgery|surgically]] excised for examination while patients are still alive.

Many components of the immune system are actually [[cell (biology)|cell]]ular in nature and not associated with any specific organ but rather are embedded or circulating in various [[tissue (anatomy)|tissues]] located throughout the body.

==Classical immunology==

Classical immunology ties in with the fields of [[epidemiology]] and [[medicine]]. It studies the relationship between the body systems, [[pathogen]]s, and immunity. The earliest written mention of immunity can be traced back to the [[Pandemic|plague]] of [[Athens]] in 430 BCE. [[Thucydides]] noted that people who had recovered from a previous bout of the disease could [[nurse]] the sick without contracting the illness a second time. Many other ancient societies have references to this phenomenon, but it was not until the 19th and 20th centuries before the concept developed into scientific theory.

The study of the molecular and cellular components that comprise the immune system, including their function and interaction, is the central science of immunology. The immune system has been divided into a more primitive [[innate immunity|innate immune system]], and [[adaptive immunity|acquired or adaptive immune system]] of vertebrates, the latter of which is further divided into [[humoral immunity|humoral]] and [[cell-mediated immunity|cellular components]].

The humoral (antibody) response is defined as the interaction between [[antibody|antibodies]] and [[antigen]]s. Antibodies are specific proteins released from a certain class of immune cells (B lymphocytes). Antigens are defined as anything that elicits generation of antibodies, hence they are '''Anti'''body '''Gen'''erators. Immunology itself rests on an understanding of the properties of these two biological entities. However, equally important is the cellular response, which can not only kill infected cells in its own right, but is also crucial in controlling the antibody response. Put simply, both systems are highly interdependent.

In the 21st century, immunology has broadened its horizons with much research being performed in the more specialized niches of immunology. This includes the immunological function of cells, organs and systems not normally associated with the immune system, as well as the function of the immune system outside classical models of immunity.aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaassssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssddddddddddddddffffffffffffffgggggggggggggggggg

==Clinical immunology== 
Clinical immunology is the study of [[disease]]s caused by disorders of the immune system (failure, aberrant action, and malignant growth of the cellular elements of the system). It also involves diseases of other systems, where immune reactions play a part in the pathology and clinical features.

The diseases caused by disorders of the immune system fall into two broad categories: [[immunodeficiency]], in which parts of the immune system fail to provide an adequate response (examples include [[chronic granulomatous disease]]), and [[autoimmunity]], in which the immune system attacks its own host's body (examples include [[systemic lupus erythematosus]], [[rheumatoid arthritis]], [[Hashimoto's disease]] and [[myasthenia gravis]]). Other immune system disorders include different [[hypersensitivity|hypersensitivities]], in which the system responds inappropriately to harmless compounds ([[asthma]] and other [[allergy|allergies]]) or responds too intensely.

The most well-known disease that affects the immune system itself is [[Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome|AIDS]], caused by [[HIV]]. AIDS is an immunodeficiency characterized by the lack of CD4+ ("helper") [[T cells]] and [[macrophages]], which are destroyed by HIV.

Clinical immunologists also study ways to prevent [[transplant rejection]], in which the immune system attempts to destroy [[allograft]]s or [[xenograft]]s.

==Immunotherapy==
:''See main article [[Immunotherapy]]''

The use of immune system components to treat a disease or disorder is known as immunotherapy. Immunotherapy is most commonly used in the context of the treatment of [[cancer]]s together with [[chemotherapy]] ([[Medication|drug]]s) and [[radiotherapy]] ([[electromagnetic radiation|radiation]]). However, immunotherapy is also often used in the immunosuppressed (such as [[HIV]] patients) and people suffering from other immune deficiencies or autoimmune diseases.

==Diagnostic immunology==
:''See main article [[Diagnostic immunology]]''
The specificity of the bond between antibody and antigen has made it an excellent tool in the detection of substances in a variety of diagnostic techniques. Antibodies specific for a desired [[antigen]] can be conjugated with a radiolabel, fluorescent label, or color-forming enzyme and are used as a "probe" to detect it.

==Evolutionary immunology==
Study of the immune system in extant and [[extinction|extinct]] species is capable of giving us a key understanding of the [[evolution]] of species and the immune system.

A development of complexity of the immune system can be seen from simple phagocytotic protection of single celled organisms, to circulating antimicrobial peptides in insects to lymphoid organs in vertebrates. Of course, like much of evolutionary observation, these physical properties are often seen from the [[anthropocentric]] aspect. It should be recognized that every organism living today has an immune system absolutely capable of protecting it from most forms of harm; those organisms that did not adapt their immune systems to external threats are no longer around to be observed.

[[Insect]]s and other [[arthropod]]s, while not possessing true adaptive immunity, show highly evolved systems of innate immunity, and are additionally protected from external injury (and exposure to pathogens) by their [[chitin]]ous shells.

==See also==
* [[Autoimmunity]]
* [[List of immunologists]]
* [[History of immunology]]
* [[Serology]]
* [[Immunodeficiency]]
* [[Medical technologist]]
* [[Osteoimmunology]]

== References ==
* [http://en.wikibooks.org/wiki/Immunology Wikibooks Immunology Textbook]
* Goldsby RA, Kindt TK, Osborne BA and Kuby J (2003) '''Immunology''', 5th Edition, W.H. Freeman and Company, New York, New York, ISBN 0-7167-4947-5

== External links ==
{{WVD}}
* [http://www.dayofimmunology.org/ April the 29th - the annual Day of Immunology]
* [[Annual Review of Immunology]] ([http://arjournals.annualreviews.org/loi/immunol journal home])
* [http://www.biomedcentral.com/bmcimmunol/ BMC: Immunology]- [[BioMed Central]]:Immunology is an [[open access journal]] publishing original peer-reviewed research articles.
* [http://www.fleming.gr Biomedical Sciences Research Center "Alexander Fleming" Institute of Immunology]
* [http://www.brt-labs.com/ BRT-Burleson Research Technologies] Tests the effects of pharmaceuticals in the developmental stage on the immune system.
* [http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/bv.fcgi?rid=imm.TOC&depth=2 Janeway's Immunobiology textbook] Searchable free online version at the [[National Center for Biotechnology Information]]
* [http://www.mugen-noe.org/ MUGEN NoE] murine models for immunological disease
* [[Nature Reviews Immunology]] ([http://www.nature.com/nri/index.html journal home])
* [http://www.immport.org The Immunology Database and Analysis Portal] - an NIAID-funded database resource of reference and experiment data covering the entire immunology domain
* [http://medweb2.unige.ch/immunologie/ Transplantation Immunology] Interesting web site made by the faculty of medicine of the University of Geneva dealing with the immunological issues linked with the transplantation of materials genetically different between donor and recipient (hematopoietical stem cells, organs or the transfusion of blood).
* [http://media.med.sc.edu/microbiology2007/ Online lectures in immunology] University of South Carolina
* [http://www.aaaai.org/ American Academy of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology] Medical specialty organization

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Archive:Data acquisition system

2009-01-27T17:21:31Z

117.196.131.34:

A '''data acquisition system''' is a device designed to measure and log some parameters. The purpose of the data acquisition system is generally the analysis of the logged data and the improvement of the object of measurements. The data acquisition system is normally electronics based, and it is made of hardware and software.
The hardware part is made of sensors, cables and electronics components (among which memory is where information are stored). The software part is made of the data acquisition logic and the analysis software (and some other utilities that can be used to configure the logic or to move data from data acquisition memory to a laptop or to a mainframe computer).
An example: [[Data logging]], carried out by a '''data acquisition system''' (DAS), can be used to measure parameters such as [[temperature]] and [[humidity]] in storage facilities with perishable products; the measurement data are then stored for analysis to improve quality assurance.
Another example: a '''data acquisition system''' can be placed on a race car to measure RPM and vehicle speed to analyze car's behaviour once it's back to pits and improve the car setup.

==Data logging systems==
Data logging systems consist of four elements:

#Measuring output ([[sensor]]s around the vehicle)
#Recording output signals (logger unit)
#Uploading/accessing recorded data ([[telemetry]])
#Analysis of recorded data. (DAQ [[software]])

The 4 elements above have specific requirements which need to physically present and included in the design process. Sensors to measure selected parameters must meet certain specifications, and the routing of the sensor [[cable]]s ensures they will not suffer from [[electromagnetic]] interference from other electronic systems. The DAQ unit (including [[memory]]) and the link from the DAQ unit to the operating platform to upload the acquired data via a [[hardwire]] cable or telemetry also must conform to requirements.

Most [[race car]]s use two types of telemetry. The first is sent to the [[engineer]]s in the pits every time the vehicle acquires more than 50[[megabyte|Mb]] of data, containing an insight into the state of the vehicle. The second is transferred each time the vehicle is in the [[pit stop|pit lane]], providing information on every part of the vehicle. With the most advanced telemetry, the data are sent constantly for analysis through a [[transmitter]] as long as a good connection is present usually through a hovering [[helicopter]] (not always possible in parts of certain [[raceways]] due to an [[overpass]] obstruction).

The [[operating platform]] is required to include specialist analysis software to view the data, usually in the form of various [[graph]]s to improve and develop the performance of the key areas and operation parameters of the vehicles running conditions. The most advanced software in [[Formula 1]] has been developed by McLaren Electronics known as Advanced Telemetry Linked Acquisition System, which displays graphs of each of the vehicle's systems on the exact section of track, in a [[Real-time computing|real time]] format. The benefits of using such a system include the fact that the parameters which can be recorded for analysis cover the whole set-up of the race vehicle (up to 127 [[Channel (communications)|channel]]s).

The parameters which are measured and recorded by a data acquisition system are broken into three generic categories, which are also interlinked due to system requirements and the complexity of major components (for example, a wheel [[speed]] sensor not only monitors the wheel speed but also the speed of the vehicle, location on the track and an input to [[traction]] and [[launch control (automotive)|launch control]] systems):

#'''[[Engine]]:''' [[Rev]]s per minute, fuel and [[oil]] pressure, water and oil temperature, [[turbo charger]] boost pressure, [[exhaust]] gas temperature, [[battery (electricity)|battery]] voltage, inlet air temperature and [[throttle]] position sensor.
#'''[[Chassis]]:''' Wheel speed, steering angle, [[lateral]] and [[longitudinal]] [[G-force]] (applied from braking and cornering), Brake line pressure, damper movement and gear position.
#*'''Advanced Chassis DAS''': Ride height, [[drive shaft]] or [[prop shaft]] [[torque]], [[Suspension (vehicle)|suspension]] loads, tyre pressure and compound temperature, and brake disk temperature. ''Optional'': [[aerodynamic]] parameters, including air speed and local air pressures.
#'''Driver:''' Both engine and chassis-related factors which are controlled by the driver, such as throttle position, gear position, steering angle and brake line pressure or directly controlled parameters such as engine revs per minute, speed and G-force.

The accurate information provided by telemetry sent by DAS in a practice run takes significant fine tuning, such as ensuring the correct [[gear ratio]]s are present according to track layout, or that the engine acceleration speed according to throttle position and sensitivity is set to the required conditions of a race. The engine control system will be programmed with suitable engine maps giving the driver more control of the throttle input. On a track with a large number of corners, the first part of pedal movement would be made very sensitive in order to effectively negotiate the course. On other courses, however, the vehicle might be required to come out of the [[chicanes]] and directly to peak power levels, thus less sensitivity required on the pedal.

The DAS during race time is monitored by engineers in the pit and [[automobile repair shop|garage]] area, who diagnose any faults which may occur. In this case, the DAS is used as an early warning system of potential mechanical failure, allowing the designers and material analysis team to easily distinguish the cause of the fault. This can result in a significant decrease of the danger to a driver.

Race strategists and engineers can use DAS with telemetry in real time for making more informed decisions pertaining to vehicle performance and driver technique. Information about other vehicles on the track can also be captured and added to the data analysis process. Total data from a motor sport event may exceed 80 gigs of storage space. A new technology born from Associate Systems research or artificial intelligence (AI) has increased the safety factor for spectators, drivers, and officials

A good example for critical data acquisition systems in motor sports can be taken from the [[2003 British Grand Prix]], when engineers in the pits observed the loss of pressure from one of Coulthards tyres. The DAS allowed the team to recall him from his practice, resolving the fault before a dangerous situation occurred, likely saving property and life.

“Formula 1 telemetry is the technological lifeblood of the sport, helping the drivers and engineers to better understand how a car functions and how they can optimise its set-up.”{{Fact|date=February 2007}}