What are the functions and effects of lymph?

Lymph is not unfamiliar to those who are familiar with the human body, because it belongs to a system in our body, so it is called the lymphatic system. This system is very powerful and is often involved in the body's immunity. It can be said that without the existence of lymph, the human body will basically not remain healthy. So the question is, what are the functions and effects of lymph?

The main functions of lymph nodes are to filter lymph and participate in immune responses.

① Filter lymph fluid. Lymph nodes are located along the pathways of lymphatic drainage. When pathogens, foreign bodies and other harmful components invade the superficial connective tissue inside the body, these harmful components can easily enter the capillary lymphatic vessels throughout the body with the tissue fluid and reach the lymph nodes with the lymph return.

Due to the greatly increased volume in the lymph sinus, the flow rate of lymph becomes extremely slow, so that the harmful components in the lymph have ample opportunities to come into contact with the macrophages in the sinus as they flow in twists and turns. Most of them are cleared or confined to the lymph nodes, effectively preventing the harmful components from entering the blood circulation and harming other parts of the body.

② Participate in immune response. Humoral immunity and cellular immunity

Lymph nodes play an important role in specific immune responses such as sarcoma. Lymphatic drainage enables lymph nodes to quickly receive stimulation from antigens that invade the body, and through a series of complex cellular and humoral factors, they initiate an immune response specific to the antigen. Lymph nodes can not only eliminate antigen components that enter the lymph nodes through immune response, but also initiate immune responses in other parts of the body, especially areas invaded by harmful components, by outputting effector lymphocytes or immune active components, thereby promptly relieving damage to the body. After the immune response, the antigen-specific memory cells produced by the lymph nodes monitor the re-invasion of these harmful components at any time through the recycling of lymphocytes.