title: A commentary on the Zinkernagel-Hengartner 'Credo 2004'.
abstract: In 'Credo 2004', Zinkernagel and Hengartner give us a food-for-thought analysis of immune responsiveness based on a 'pragmatic and empiric point of view.' The Credo 2004 postulates derived by inductive extrapolation from observation to generalization do not satisfactorily account for immune behaviour because they lack a conceptualization as illustrated here. Nevertheless, Credo 2004 is certainly valuable in a limited framework because it is based on the most likely of assumptions namely that the immune system was evolutionarily selected to protect against infectious agents, and therefore the study of pathogens will most accurately reveal how the immune system responds normally to protect. After reformulating them, the postulates of Credo 2004 are analysed with respect to their generality.
authors.affiliation: Conceptual Immunology Group, The Salk Institute for Biological Studies, La Jolla, CA 92037, USA. cohn@salk.edu
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Cohn
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001402:B-Lymphocytes / Q000276:immunology*; D005075:Biological Evolution; D006801:Humans; D007107:Immune System / Q000276:immunology*; D007239:Infections / Q000276:immunology*; D013601:T-Lymphocytes / Q000276:immunology*