vakcinoj

Vakcinoj is a term referring to vaccines, which are biological preparations that provide active acquired immunity to a particular infectious disease. A vaccine typically contains an agent that resembles the disease-causing microorganism and is often made from weakened or killed forms of the microbe, its toxins, or one of its surface proteins. When administered, vaccines stimulate the body's immune system to recognize the agent as a threat, destroy it, and "remember" it. Should the vaccinated person later encounter the actual disease-causing microorganism, the immune system will be prepared to quickly neutralize it.

The development of vaccines has been a cornerstone of modern public health, leading to the eradication or significant reduction of many previously devastating diseases such as smallpox, polio, and measles. They work by priming the immune system to mount a rapid and effective response without the individual suffering the full course of the illness. Different types of vaccines exist, including live-attenuated vaccines, inactivated vaccines, toxoid vaccines, and subunit vaccines, each employing a distinct strategy to induce immunity. Mass vaccination campaigns are crucial for achieving herd immunity, a form of indirect protection that occurs when a large percentage of a population has become immune to an infection, thereby providing a measure of protection for individuals who are not immune.