The serum is used to neutralize toxins (e.g. snake venom) and to fight certain microorganisms. It is worth finding out in what situations the serum can be used, what exactly it is and what risks are associated with its administration.
Contents:
- What is serum?
- Serum in treatment
- When is serum used?
What is serum?
Serowica is the part of the plasma devoid of fibrinogen and some clotting factors. Plasma is the substance in which blood cells - white, red and platelets are suspended. Fibrinogen, in turn, is one of the proteins responsible for clotting.
The serum is straw-colored (light yellow) and is formed after centrifuging the blood cells, or if the blood clots, the clot is removed, it remains in the test tube. The serum has a very rich composition, in addition to water, it contains proteins, mineral s alts, inorganic particles, its volume in the human body is estimated at about 3.5 liters.
These proteins are albumin and globulins, their tasks are very diverse:
- are responsible for the maintenance of fluid inside the blood vessels and the oncotic pressure (pressure exerted by the blood on the walls of the vessel)
- are blood buffers, i.e. they provide a constant pH
- are responsible for the transport of hormones (e.g. transthyrein), metals (e.g. copper transporting ceruloplasmin and iron transporting haptoglobin), ions, vitamins, fatty acids (apoliprotein), amino acids, free hemoglobin (haptoglobin), enzymes and many others substance
- the serum also contains some of the protein clotting factors
- gamma-globulins are antibodies circulating in the blood, produced by plasma cells, their task is to fight infections. They are components of the so-called humoral immune response, they specifically recognize, destroy or neutralize antigens, which may be pathogens or toxins. Some of the antibodies are also directed against blood group antigens (anti-A and anti-B antibodies)
Deficiency of plasma proteins occurring in the course of kidney and liver diseases or during intense fasting is hypoproteinemia, it leads not only to impaired immunity, iron metabolism or clotting, but also to edemaresulting from the drop in oncotic pressure.
It is also worth mentioning the laboratory tests of blood, the determinations of which are performed from the serum, which means that after collection, the blood is centrifuged, the morphotic elements (blood cells) are isolated, and the remaining serum is analyzed. This way, for example, blood glucose, hormones, enzymes or tumor markers are determined.
Serum in treatment
As mentioned, one of the components of the serum are antibodies, i.e. the body's resistance factors that fight against microorganisms or toxins. Thanks to their presence in the serum, it has become a method of treating some infections or poisoning (so-called bacterial exotoxins). This serum is obtained either by laboratory methods or from animals.
When infected or vaccinated with a microorganism, after a few weeks, animals begin to produce antibodies against these pathogens. Then blood is drawn and properly purified to obtain the so-called antiserum.
You can also isolate these antibodies from sick or vaccinated people. Serum therapy is a very specific method of treatment, that is, the microorganisms against which the serum has been produced are effective only and only against them. Unfortunately, there is a small group of diseases that can be treated in this way.
When is serum used?
This preparation is most often administered in emergency situations, when the disease progresses very quickly, the disease is dangerous, and the body is unable to produce antibodies quickly enough.
Under natural conditions, the process of producing specific antibodies takes several weeks after contact with the pathogen, so for some diseases it is much too slow. After administration of the serum, a so-called passive acquired immune response is produced. Its ingredients fight the microorganism, and the body has time to produce its own antibodies and fight.
Serum differs from vaccines in that it provides antibodies ready to fight, while vaccines are killed microorganisms that stimulate the immune system to produce its own antibodies, which lasts quite a long time.
Therefore, in emergency situations, when the disease is already ongoing, vaccines are not effective. In the case of some particularly dangerous diseases and high risk of infection, serum is administered for disease prevention.
Diseases that are treated with immune serums are primarily infections, but also ailments caused by microbial toxins (in this case, the antibodies given are the so-called antitoxin), they include:
- tetanus
- gas gangrene
- rabies
- measles
- viper venom intoxication
- botulism (botulism)
- diphtheria
In addition, there is an isolated human serum protein used in conditions not necessarily associated with infections: hypovolemia, protein, antibody and albumin deficiency.
The use of serums is not free from complications, sometimes there are very strong allergic reactions, even leading to anaphylactic shock, which is why this substance is used in the most serious cases.
It is worth mentioning that modern molecular biology has made it possible to produce immunoglobulins, i.e. particles contained in the serum responsible for the fight against pathogens.
Thanks to this, the risk of allergic reactions was minimized while maintaining the functionality of the serum. However, as immunoglobulins are not produced against all toxins and microbes, immune sera are still an important treatment option.
Serum is a component of blood, it contains many proteins, including immune antibodies, they are the reason why it can be used in medicine, often it is the last option for treating serious diseases.
The discovery of the possibility of such therapy in poisoning and diseases was so groundbreaking that the discoverers of the immune serum received the Nobel Prize for its production and demonstration of its usefulness in therapy.
About the author
Bow. Maciej GrymuzaA graduate of the Faculty of Medicine at the Medical University of K. Marcinkowski in Poznań. He graduated from university with an over good result. Currently, he is a doctor in the field of cardiology and a doctoral student. He is particularly interested in invasive cardiology and implantable devices (stimulators).