Taking an antigen into a cell and enzymatically cutting it into smaller pieces is known as what?
AAntigen presentation
BAntigen neutralization
CAntigen agglutination
DAntigen processing
Answer & Solution
Correct answer: D. Antigen processing
1. T cells do not recognise free-floating antigen, so antigen-presenting cells internalize it first.
2. Antigen processing is the mechanism that enzymatically cleaves the antigen into smaller pieces.
3. Antigen presentation is the later step, when a fragment sits in the peptide-binding cleft of an MHC molecule at the cell surface.
4. Processing therefore comes first and presentation second, so the two terms are not interchangeable.
_Source: OpenStax Anatomy and Physiology (CC BY 4.0), Ch 21 "The Lymphatic and Immune System", section 21.3 The Adaptive Immune Response: T lymphocytes and Their Functional Types_
Keep practising The Lymphatic and Immune System
Browse all The Lymphatic and Immune System questions for NCK Licensing Exam (Nursing), or explore more Anatomy & Physiology topics.
Related questions
Order the inflammatory responseMatch each antibody to its jobActive or passive immunity?Sort the three lines of defenceImmune and lymphatic bingoIn systemic lupus erythematosus, soluble antigens and antibodies precipitate along blood vWhich drug is used against anaphylactic shock because it raises blood pressure and relaxesWhy must the influenza vaccine be reformulated for each flu season?