Immunologic

Immunologic describes anything related to immunology, the study of the immune system and its responses. The term is applied to processes, conditions, tests, and therapies that involve immune recognition, function, and regulation. The immune system comprises innate and adaptive components, including physical barriers, phagocytes, dendritic cells, and lymphocytes such as B cells and T cells. Humoral immunity involves antibodies produced by plasma cells, while cellular immunity involves T cell–mediated responses; together they coordinate defense, tolerance, and immune memory.

Immunologic phenomena include antigen recognition and presentation, clonal expansion, and the generation of immunologic memory. Failures or dysregulation can lead to immunodeficiency, hypersensitivity (including allergies), and autoimmunity, as well as transplant rejection and cancer immunoescape. Immunologic testing and diagnostics assess antibody levels, antigen presence, and immune cell function; common methods include serology, enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays, immunoblotting, flow cytometry, and functional assays.

Therapies and applications that are immunologic include vaccines to stimulate protective memory, monoclonal antibodies, immunomodulatory drugs, and cellular therapies such as chimeric antigen receptor T cells. Immunology research continues to explore mechanisms of tolerance, host–microbe interactions, and novel immunotherapies to treat infectious diseases, autoimmune conditions, and cancer.