The experience that we go through in life contributes a great deal to what we will be in the future. The environment around us is also very influential in terms of what we want to do career-wise in the future. Although I appear to lead an ordinary teenage life just like the rest of my friends in Florida Virtual High School, I suffer an immune deficiency, a chronic disease commonly known as dysgammaglobulinanemia. This is a condition that I was born with, and the main challenge is that I cannot easily counter infections like anybody else. It is probably this rare condition that I have that has driven my ambition and dreams of becoming an immunologist someday.
It is also worth mentioning that my younger sister Cary suffers from a brain injury on the front right part of her brain, a condition she suffered after she was involved in an accident a few years back. She has also been a source of my inspiration in my dreams and ambitions to one day carry the title of infectious disease specialist. It is also vital to recognize that the circumstances surrounding my sister and I have been made even difficult by the fact that our mother had to deal with both our complicated problems single-handedly as my father left home many years ago without providing us any basic needs.
Having gone through these situations during the first seventeen years of my life, I have even more strength to strive so as to make sure that I am going to be of help to others with similar or even more complex conditions than that of my sister’s or mine in future.
One thing, however, I discovered is that despite one’s conviction on a particular field of career, it is important to consult an expert in that field just to be sure if that is exactly what you want to do. I needed to know all that there is to know about an immunologist.
Therefore, my first step in my research was to organize an interview with a renowned immunologist who has been in the field for over 20 years now. This was none other than Doctor Paolo Casali. I picked on him for consultation, particularly because of his great contribution with his thorough research on issues related to human immunity and its reaction to several diseases.
I, therefore, contacted the faculty of Biology and Medicine of California University, and at first, it seemed impossible to reach him. Having explained my case thoroughly, I eventually got through, and he gave me an appointment in a fortnight’s time. During this period, I took time to gather several questions, which I would ask the great professor during our interview. I, therefore, was very anxious for our interview, as I knew that far beyond doubt that his expertise in the field of immunology would be very relevant to me.
The interview was scheduled to take place on Wednesday the 14th at 2.00 pm, and I made sure that I got to the University of California 1 hour before two o’clock just to make sure that I don’t miss out on him. At exactly 2.00 o’clock, he led me upstairs to his well-equipped library, where we held our interview. By the end of the 1-hour interview, I felt that all the questions and fears that I had earlier had been settled, and now more than ever, I realized that I had taken the right career path.
However, just to add more to what the great professor talked to me about, I found it important to visit a library and look at a few books on the same topic.
Indeed it is amazing how such a subject crucial to every person could lack reference materials. I visited various libraries, and the responses I got were unbelievable! Either there were very few books, or they were all on loan or that the books are too few so that you are given a very small fraction of time to use, or you find that the available ones do not contain any relevant information or that a library does not have any book at all on immunology.
However, after going from one library to another, I eventually settled on one, which at least had several books on immunology. One book, however, captured this subject in an extraordinary manner prompting me to select it. It is known as Immunology by D. male. Being a recently published edition, the book covers all areas of immunology virtually, discussing at length the immunity system of a human being and its counter-reactions to various infections.
The immune system is often thought to be one of the most complex systems of the body, mostly because there are so many different ways in which it can react against pathogens. The reason for the complexity of the immune system is, however, easy to understand; infectious agents vary commonly in size, lifestyle location within the body, and in the damage which they produce. The importance of the immune system is well demonstrated in those who suffer immune deficiency. These persons are at high risk of infection. (Male,49).
I also got an opportunity to review yet another resourceful book material on the same topic. The book is known as Immunology: Essential and Fundamental and is highly recommended for students, especially those with a special interest in pursuing the area of immunology like me. The book is written by Sullabha Patuk and Ulmi Palan. In this book, the immunity system is well described as a watchdog in a human’s body whose job is to guard the body against diseases. This it does by content reacting with disease-causing micro-organisms like a virus.
The players and the principles of the immune system are most easily understood by following the fate of an intruder that tries to gain entry into the body. When a pathogen fails on intact skin, it will be unable to cross this barrier and will eventually be shed along with an outer layer of skin cells. A pathogen trying to gain entry through the respiratory system will likely suffer the same fate. However, if the barriers have been broken, maybe through cuts and wounds, then the pathogen will enter and consequently cause an infection. However, the pathogen will encounter an antimicrobial that will make its task of infection be difficult. Phagocytic cells are activated by chemicals signals released by the pathogen and the damaged tissue. This form potential killing machines (Sulabha, Ulmi 72).
. Just to be sure that my research was thorough, I visited a few sites to find more about immunology. From my research, I, first of all, found that two major organs that deal with the immune system are the thymus and bone marrow. Thus immunology revolves around the components of cells and molecules. A major classification that I noted is clinical immunology, which revolves around disorders of the immune system which consequently cause diseases. These diseases are also classified into two categories, which are immunodeficiency and autoimmunity. Immunodeficiency is caused due to lack of immune system, thus the inadequate response.
On the other hand, autoimmunity involves an attack by an immune system on its own body.
A classic example of a disease that directly affects and gradually weakens the immune system is AIDS. The human immunodeficiency virus is responsible for the destruction of immunity.
In my research, I, however, noted that components of the system are sometimes used to treat immunotherapy, a condition that is common during cancer treatment. It may also be used on HIV patients. Every living organism has an immune system that is responsible for protecting the organism from diseases.
The condition I suffer from is, therefore, a disorder that may be classified under immunodeficiency. I can therefore confidently state that from the interview with Doctor Paulo, the various library researches, and now the internet research, I am not only enlightened about my condition, but I also feel that this is the career path that I want to take to be of assistance to others. I have therefore learned a lot as far as immunology is concerned.
Works Cited
Golub Edward S. Immunology. New York, Open University Worldwide Limited, 2003.
Janis Kuby. Immunology, London, W H Freeman, 1997.
Male D. Immunology, New York, Open University Worldwide Limited, 2003.
Richard Golds. Immunology. London WH Freeman, 2003