Answer:
avoid host immune defenses
Explanation:
A pathogen that is capable of antigenic variation can avoid host immune defenses
- When a foreign pathogen enters the host, they are efficiently targeted by the host immune defenses. The immune defenses particularly identifies a specific surface protein i.e. antigen present on the pathogen and thus, form a part of the acquired immune response. So, the next time, when these pathogens attack the host, it remembers these surface proteins from the pathogens and can rapidly destroy the pathogen.
- One way of circumventing this type of acquired immune response by the pathogen is to alter the surface proteins, which allows the pathogen to acquire adequate time to re-infect the host cells.
