Antibody-dependent enhancement

Antibody-dependent enhancement is when your body's immune system gets tricked by a virus. Normally, when a virus gets into your body, your white blood cells make special proteins called antibodies to fight it off. But sometimes, certain viruses can use these antibodies to their advantage. Instead of being destroyed, the virus attaches to the antibodies, and together they sneak into your cells. This is like a spy pretending to be your friend to get into your house.

Once inside your cells, the virus starts multiplying and making more copies of itself. Your body's immune system is supposed to recognize and destroy the virus, but since it is attached to the antibodies, the immune system is tricked into thinking that the virus is actually something good that it should keep around. This allows the virus to spread even more and cause more damage to your body.

Antibody-dependent enhancement is a real problem, especially with viruses like dengue fever or Zika virus. That's why scientists are working hard to find ways to prevent it from happening, so that our bodies can fight off viruses without getting tricked.