D115 Practice Questions 3: Key Concepts in Immunology and Disease

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Western Governors University 

D115 Advanced Pathophysiology for the Advanced Practice Nurse

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D115 Practice Questions 3: Core Concepts in Immunology and Disease

1. Which factor has the greatest impact on an antigen’s ability to elicit an immune response?
   a. Size
   b. Structural complexity
   c. Quantity administered
   d. Degree of foreignness

2. Which statement best characterizes the secondary immune response?
   a. It includes a prolonged latent period.
   b. IgM is the primary antibody produced.
   c. There is a marked increase in IgG production.
   d. Memory cells must first be generated.

3. How should a nurse accurately describe the function of natural killer (NK) cells?
   a. They induce apoptosis without assistance from other immune cells.
   b. They attack cells expressing normal MHC class I molecules.
   c. They do not possess antigen-specific receptors.
   d. They mature in the thymus gland.

4. Alloimmunity refers to:
   a. An immune response directed against tissues from another individual of the same species.
   b. Loss of immune tolerance to self-antigens.
   c. Immune reactions to environmental antigens.
   d. A severe, systemic allergic reaction.

5. What is the primary pathophysiologic mechanism in a type I hypersensitivity reaction?
   a. Antibodies bind to tissue-specific antigens.
   b. Immune complexes deposit within blood vessels.
   c. T lymphocytes drive the immune response rather than antibodies.
   d. IgE-mediated mast cell activation and mediator release occur.

6. Autoimmunity develops when:
   a. Molecular mimicry causes cross-reactivity with self-antigens.
   b. The immune system rejects transplanted tissue.
   c. The immune system mounts a response against the body’s own antigens.
   d. Acute transplant rejection occurs.

7. Secondary immunodeficiency may result from:
   a. Excessive dietary zinc intake.
   b. Chronic stress, such as caring for an elderly parent with Alzheimer’s disease.
   c. Prescribed aspirin use.
   d. Congenital or inherited immune defects.

8. In ABO blood type incompatibility, red blood cells are primarily destroyed by:
   a. Natural killer cell–mediated cytotoxicity.
   b. Macrophage ingestion in circulation.
   c. Phagocytosis within the spleen.
   d. Complement-mediated cell lysis.

9. What is the earliest timeframe in which laboratory testing can detect HIV infection following sexual exposure?
   a. 1–2 days
   b. 4–10 days
   c. 4–8 weeks
   d. 2–4 months

10. Which feature best describes exotoxins?
    a. They are released only when bacterial cells die.
    b. They are structural components of gram-negative cell walls.
    c. They activate complement and coagulation cascades.
    d. They are actively secreted during bacterial growth.

11. A patient experiences mild fatigue and generalized discomfort shortly after exposure to a family member with influenza. Which stage of infection is most likely present?
    a. Convalescent stage
    b. Incubation stage
    c. Prodromal stage
    d. Invasive stage

12. Which statement regarding parasitic infections is accurate?
    a. Parasites adhere to host cells using pili or fimbriae.
    b. Candida albicans is considered a parasitic organism.
    c. Parasites are transmitted exclusively through person-to-person contact.
    d. Malaria is a common parasitic disease.

13. A patient with HIV develops pneumonia caused by Pneumocystis jirovecii. This finding indicates:
    a. Adequate helper T-cell levels are present.
    b. The patient is HIV-positive but asymptomatic.
    c. The patient is in the early stage of HIV infection.
    d. The disease has progressed to AIDS.

14. Antibiotics most commonly exert their effects by:
    a. Strengthening bacterial cell walls.
    b. Inhibiting bacterial protein synthesis.
    c. Accelerating bacterial DNA replication.
    d. Increasing folic acid production in bacteria.

15. Which dietary practice is associated with a reduced risk of colon cancer?
    a. Increased dairy consumption
    b. Limiting high-fat food intake
    c. Increasing vitamin C–rich foods
    d. Eliminating artificial food dyes

16. Individuals with long-term asbestos exposure (greater than 40 years) are at highest risk for developing:
    a. Bladder cancer
    b. Leukemia
    c. Stomach cancer
    d. Lung cancer