>-why aren't vax shots done in the veins and arteries? Why the arm muscle? If it's in the vein, wouldn't that carry the "product" around faster?
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>-if the vax/needle is put in the arm/muscle, how does that product move around the body? Does our immune system just update our OS with the new info and its filed away?
Your immune cells move around your body and find anything it doesn't recognise. There's no need for the vaccine to move, it'll be found.
Once it is - antigen presenting cells like macrophages eat the peptides and go back to the lymph nodes to alert your other immune cells. It does this by literally presenting it to them. Then only the specific immune cells that react with the exact peptide shape will respond, and start to generate an immune response (antibody production, B & T cell expansion).
Once this has happened, your body has essentially been taught how to react if it sees the same thing in future. Some cells remain in a dormant state (called memory cells), waiting for the next time they come across what they "remember". This drastically reduces the time needed for your immune system to react, which in turn reduces the damage the pathogen can do.
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>-why the arm soreness? Is it because a needle pierced the muscle? If so, wouldn't that pain happen right away like stubbing a toe? Or does the arm hurt from the product? And why?
There's a few typical signs of infection/inflammation - from latin: calor, dolor, rubor, tumor. Heat, pain, redness, and swelling. These are by-products of what happens when you have an active immune response. Your body will widen your blood vessels to bring more immune cells to the area, which in turn allows more fluid to get there. This extra fluid causes the swelling, and the swelling causes the pain by putting pressure against local nerves.
In this case, your vaccine shot is like a localised pseudo-infection, so it invokes the same response.
challengemaster t1_j0tregm wrote
Reply to How are vaccines delivered via needle? by pinstrip_pickles
>-why aren't vax shots done in the veins and arteries? Why the arm muscle? If it's in the vein, wouldn't that carry the "product" around faster?
>
>-if the vax/needle is put in the arm/muscle, how does that product move around the body? Does our immune system just update our OS with the new info and its filed away?
Your immune cells move around your body and find anything it doesn't recognise. There's no need for the vaccine to move, it'll be found.
Once it is - antigen presenting cells like macrophages eat the peptides and go back to the lymph nodes to alert your other immune cells. It does this by literally presenting it to them. Then only the specific immune cells that react with the exact peptide shape will respond, and start to generate an immune response (antibody production, B & T cell expansion).
Once this has happened, your body has essentially been taught how to react if it sees the same thing in future. Some cells remain in a dormant state (called memory cells), waiting for the next time they come across what they "remember". This drastically reduces the time needed for your immune system to react, which in turn reduces the damage the pathogen can do.
​
>-why the arm soreness? Is it because a needle pierced the muscle? If so, wouldn't that pain happen right away like stubbing a toe? Or does the arm hurt from the product? And why?
There's a few typical signs of infection/inflammation - from latin: calor, dolor, rubor, tumor. Heat, pain, redness, and swelling. These are by-products of what happens when you have an active immune response. Your body will widen your blood vessels to bring more immune cells to the area, which in turn allows more fluid to get there. This extra fluid causes the swelling, and the swelling causes the pain by putting pressure against local nerves.
In this case, your vaccine shot is like a localised pseudo-infection, so it invokes the same response.