Adoptive immunity is best illustrated by which scenario?

Adoptive immunity is best illustrated by which scenario?

• A. Vaccination with a killed pathogen
• B. Administration of a vaccine to stimulate antibody production
• C. Natural infection leading to antibody production
• D. Transfer of immune cells from an immune donor to a recipient

Answer: (D)

Adoptive immunity involves transferring immune cells from a donor to a recipient to provide immunity, rather than triggering the recipient to make their own response. This is exactly what happens in scenarios like bone marrow transplants or donor lymphocyte transfers, where T cells, B cells, or other immune cells from an immune donor repopulate or supplement the recipient’s immune system. The recipient gains immunity because they receive ready-made immune effector cells, not because their own immune system was stimulated by an antigen. Vaccination or natural infection, by contrast, rely on the recipient’s immune system to encounter an antigen and mount a response, which is a form of active immunity.

Adoptive immunity involves transferring immune cells from a donor to a recipient to provide immunity, rather than triggering the recipient to make their own response. This is exactly what happens in scenarios like bone marrow transplants or donor lymphocyte transfers, where T cells, B cells, or other immune cells from an immune donor repopulate or supplement the recipient’s immune system. The recipient gains immunity because they receive ready-made immune effector cells, not because their own immune system was stimulated by an antigen.

Vaccination or natural infection, by contrast, rely on the recipient’s immune system to encounter an antigen and mount a response, which is a form of active immunity.