TY - CHAP M1 - Book, Section TI - Adaptive Immunity: B Cells & Antibodies A1 - Levinson, Warren A1 - Chin-Hong, Peter A1 - Joyce, Elizabeth A. A1 - Nussbaum, Jesse A1 - Schwartz, Brian Y1 - 2020 N1 - T2 - Review of Medical Microbiology & Immunology: A Guide to Clinical Infectious Diseases, 16e AB - B cells perform two important functions: (1) they differentiate into plasma cells that produce antibodies and (2) they differentiate into long-lasting memory cells that respond robustly and rapidly to reinfection. Antibodies are the principal defense used by the immune system to prevent infection because, by binding to the microbes’ surfaces, they can inhibit them from attaching to target cells and/or recruit innate immune killing mechanisms. Antibodies can also inhibit toxins such as those made by tetanus and diphtheria. Nearly all vaccines are designed to generate these protective, or neutralizing, antibodies. SN - PB - McGraw Hill CY - New York, NY Y2 - 2024/04/19 UR - accessmedicine.mhmedical.com/content.aspx?aid=1171926486 ER -