ABSTRACT
The immune system protects the body against infection and removes damaged, diseased and dead cells. To perform this task without damaging the individual’s own tissue, the immune system must differentiate between its own and foreign tissue. This ability is developed in fetal life and is usually maintained throughout life. Differences in membrane protein structures primarily characterize tissue. If the ability to differentiate between one’s own and foreign tissue is lost, the immune system ‘attacks’ the person’s own tissue and autoimmune disorders arise.
