immunology
Meaning of immunology: Immunology is the scientific study of the immune system, including how it defends against infection and contributes to allergic and autoimmune disease.
Definition of immunology
Immunology is the branch of biological science devoted to the study of the immune system, the network of cells, tissues, and organs that defends the body against infection and other harmful agents. It examines how the immune system recognizes threats, mounts a response, and, in some cases, malfunctions.
Clinical immunology applies this knowledge to conditions such as immunodeficiency, in which the immune system is underactive, autoimmune disease, in which the immune system mistakenly targets the body's own tissues, and allergic disease, in which the immune system reacts to substances that are not inherently harmful. Immunologists are physicians or scientists who specialize in this field.
Advances in immunology have also informed the development of vaccines and other treatments that work by influencing the immune system's activity.
Used in a sentence
The patient was referred to immunology for evaluation of recurrent infections.
Good to know
Immunodeficiency and autoimmune disease represent opposite patterns of immune dysfunction, an underactive immune response in one case and a misdirected immune response against the body's own tissue in the other.
Word origin
Where “immunology” comes from
Formed from immuno-, from Latin immunis, meaning "exempt," and -logy, from Greek logia, meaning "study of."