The nurse has explained the process of phagocytosis to a client with an infected wound. The client is fascinated by the nurse's description of cells that eat other cells and asks, "Why don't they eat good cells, too?" How should the nurse respond?

Question

1. "They do, but there are not enough phagocytic cells to kill enough good cells to make a person sick."
2. "The cells migrate to the infection before they start killing other cells."
3. "They don't eat good cells because of a process called chemotaxis."
4. "These cells can tell the difference between cells from the person's body and foreign cells."

Answer 1

Correct Answer: 4
Rationale 1: Normal phagocytic cells do not kill healthy "good" cells.
Rationale 2: Phagocytic cells do migrate to the infection, but would phagocytize any foreign cell encountered on the way.
Rationale 3: Chemotaxis is the process by which phagocytes move from one site to the infection.
Rationale 4: Phagocytic cells have proteins on their surface that allow them to recognize cells and cellular components that are "nonself."
Global Rationale: Phagocytes have proteins on their surface that allow them to recognize cells and cellular components that are "non-self." When recognized as "non-self," the pathogen is internalized and destroyed within the phagocyte. They do not kill healthy or "good" cells. Chemotaxis is the process by which phagocytes migrate from one site to another, killing foreign cells along the way.