Biology of cognition and an explanation of immunological phenomena

RESUMO

The way of seeing and the conversations it involves determine what we see and what we do. The way of seeing frames the questions we regard as important and the kinds of answers we will accept as valid. The theoretical framework of immunology is cognitive, based on anthropomorphic terms, as if the organism were able to discriminate between its components (self) and foreign materials (nonself). Immunological jargon is still based on the founding metaphors of defensive specific immune responses. No other language is available to guide research and teaching in Immunology. No systemic notions are currently available, although immunologists often refer to an immune system and all theories refer to the control of the actions of isolated clones of lymphocytes. Based on the Biology of Cognition and Language of Humberto Maturana, we propose a paradigmatic change that shows how the concept of specificity, as used in immunology, confounds domains of desscription that must be kept separated. In this alternative paradigm, the canonical icons of immunology (i.e., specific antibodies and the satellite notions of memory and tolerance) are no longer used to explain the organization of the immune system and immunological phenomena.