What do T cells do?
T cells are key fighters in what’s known as your adaptive immune system. Think of your adaptive immune system as a specialized smart system that’s constantly monitoring for threats. Once it detects an intruder, your adaptive immune system builds a customized defense to fight it.
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Each T cell is unique in that it’s designed to fight only one type of intruder. Once your immune system identifies the threat, it locates the specific T cell designed to defeat it and recruits that T cell for battle. The T cell copies itself, making more T cells to defeat the intruder. These T cells that join the fight are called effector cells. When your immune system is working properly, these effector T cells destroy the threat, helping rid you of infection and disease.
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Your T cells continue to protect you even after the intruder’s gone. Some of your T cells become memory cells instead of effector cells. Unlike effector T cells, memory T cells aren’t fighters. Instead, they remember the intruder so that if it returns, your immune system recognizes it and quickly mounts a defense.
How do T cells work in the immune system?
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T cells work once they’re activated. Several steps have to happen before a T cell activation:
- A cell called an antigen-presenting cell (APC) locates evidence of the intruder and attaches it to a structure called major histocompatibility complex (MHC). This step is important because T cells can’t recognize evidence of an intruder unless it’s attached to MHC.
- The T cell binds to the MHC. There are two types of MHC. One fits each type of T cell. The CD8 receptor on a cytotoxic T cell can only bind to MHC-1. The CD4 receptor on a helper T cell can only bind to MHC-II.
- Once the T cell binds with all the matching parts, it activates. The binding is important because it ensures that the T cell is the right one to fight the intruder.
An activated cytotoxic T cell kills infected cells or cancer cells. An activated helper T cell sends signals that tell other immune cells what actions to take to fight the intruder.
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