Ace the Oncology Nursing Game: 2026 Chemo-Bio Certification Practice Test Adventure!

Lymphocytes produce substances known as interferons, which play a crucial role in the immune response. Interferons are signaling proteins that are released in response to viral infections and some other biological stimuli. Their primary function is to enhance the immune response, particularly by activating various immune cells, including macrophages.

By stimulating macrophages, which are key players in the process of phagocytosis, interferons help enhance the body's ability to engulf and destroy pathogens. This makes interferons important in the defense against infections, as they increase the effectiveness of phagocytosis and the overall immune response.

Antigens, produced by pathogens themselves, may trigger an immune response, but they do not directly stimulate phagocytosis. Hormones are primarily regulatory molecules in the body influencing various physiological functions, not immune responses. Antibodies, while produced by B lymphocytes to neutralize pathogens, do not stimulate the act of phagocytosis themselves; they mark pathogens for destruction by phagocytes but do not activate phagocytosis directly like interferons do.