Unit 4 Reflection

The integumentary system is the body's first line on non-specific defense. The skin has the dermis, epidermis and hypodermis in its layers. The epidermis is stratified squamous and flake off constantly. The dermis is where a tattoo would go. It has 2 layers the papillary, it feels things, and the reticular, that has glands and some pressure receptors. The hypodermis is the deepest layer and attaches the skin to the organs. In the dermis there are the glands. The sudorifous glands that produce sweat that contains lysosomes that help defend the body since the sweat is inhospitable by pathogen. The sebaceous glands produce sebum to oil the skin, but sebum also kills off pathogens. The ceruminous gland is a modified sweat gland that produces earwax, another non-specific defense for the body. Nails protect the finger tips from physical injury and continuously grow. In the integumentary system there can be burns or cancer. Burns are rated a first, second or third degree burn. A first degree burn is like a sun burn. The second degree goes to the dermis and is the most painful because that's where the nerves are. A third degree is the most dangerous and cannot regenerate. Cancer and tumors can be malignant, dangerous, or benign, harmless. Malignant tumors can break off and spread throughout the body. There are various treatments for cancer but many have harsh side effects.

This is a picture of my horse's dock with the melenoma on it. Equine melenoma is special because it is almost always genetic. Grey horses are at highest risk for this condition. Since this case is so advanced it cannot be removed, like we talked about in class, because there is not enough functional skin to regrow in the surgery site. The angiogenesis is obvious in these tumors for when the external crust is removed is bleeds and you can see small blood vessels in the tissue. The melenoma only grows on the dock, sheath, penis, and mouth. The only time it can become a problem is if it physically obstructs the daily life such as defecation, urination or eating. 

The immune system has specific and nonspecific defenses. Any entrance to the inside of the body must have a way to flush out pathogens. Mucus (respiratory), stomach acid, urination, defecation, vaginal fluid, and tears all are used to flush out pathogens before they can infect the body. Once a pathogen is inside the nonspecific response inside the body happens. This contains interferon that stop viruses from latching onto cells, the compliment calls over phagocytes, NKC kill infected cells, and phagocytes engulf pathogens. This non specific defense attacks the invasion until the specific defense, which is slower, can respond. The later nonspecific response is inflammation and fever. Fever aims to kill of the pathogen with inhospitable body temperatures. Whenever you are trying to diagnose a horse you take their temperature to see if it might be infection. Inflammation is when more blood comes to the area to bring WBC and repairs the area. My horse had cellulitis. His leg was swollen and hot adn he had a fever. Later on his skin began to crack and ooze out pus from the inflammatory response. Finally the specific response will kick in. This specifically targets this one invader and destroys it. Vaccines help us have a faster specific response to an invader because there are already some cells that remember the vaccine invader and match it to the real thing faster. This is why you don't get as sick the second time you have something, because your body has a memory of the invader. Cell mediated is with T cells(cells attack), Humeral response is with B cells(antibodies). When an invader is sensed the activated T cell divides and makes various types to T cells. Some of these cells are memory cells that remember the invader and trigger a faster response the next time. B cells create antibodies that attack the pathogen.

This is my hose's leg shortly after the initial inflammation. HIS leg had an inflammatory response to an infection that caused tissue damage. The difference between when the leg was infected and the scar tissue left behind is initially it was hot and more swollen and he had a fever. It then started oozing out pus (the dead WBC) then went cool.  

This unit I have improved on my connection to my life, which has been an area I wanted to grow. Now I would like to start organizing my work. A majority of my worksheets are shoved in the bottom of my backpack right now and I have been regularly loosing worksheets, leading me to forget some homework assignments. I can start by just keeping up with my notebook. I will paste the notes in and write the page number that day. In the VARK survey I got kinestetic 10, and 2 or 3 for the rest. I am a Kinesthetic learner, someone who learns best by acting it out and doing it. This makes sense because I have to memorize things until I have the opportunity to act it out like in a dissection. In dissections I understand things very quickly because I can touch what I am learning Then what i am learning is real and I can understand.