Examines how conspiracy theories and related forms of misinformation and disinformation about the Covid-19 pandemic have circulated widely around the world. Commissioned by recognised experts on area studies and conspiracy theories, making use of the existing COMPACT (Comparative Analysis of Conspiracy Theories) network run by Butter and Knight. Presents case studies on how Covid conspiracism has played out, using a range of methods from a variety of disciplinary perspectives.

Revealing essential roles of the tumor microenvironment in cancer progression, this book provides a comprehensive overview of the latest research on the role of interleukins in the tumor microenvironment. Each chapter focuses on the various ways to target the tumor microenvironment by intervention in the interleukin biology, including IL-6, IL-7, IL-10, IL-12, IL-22, IL-23, and IL-24 signaling. Taken alongside its companion volumes, Tumor Microenvironment: The Role of Interleukins - Part B updates us on what we know about various aspects of the tumor microenvironment, as well as future directions. This book is essential reading for advanced cell biology and cancer biology students as well as researchers seeking an update on research in the tumor microenvironment.

With detailed contributions from more than 40 leading authorities, this edition comprehensively explores the immunobiology, pathophysiology, and clinicial manifestations of graft-versus-host disease (GvHD), offering sections revealing the most up-to-date research on immune activation and dysregulation, the pathophysiology of target organ damage, and GvHD prevention and treatment. 53 illustrations.

This book reviews current immunotherapeutic strategies for gastrointestinal (GI) malignancies, including immune composition, immune checkpoint inhibitors, cell therapy, and peptide vaccines used to protect against esophageal, gastric, hepato-biliary, pancreatic and colorectal cancers. It also discusses the current challenges of using immunotherapy for the treatment of gastrointestinal malignancies. The book reviews highly sensitive and specific immunomarkers for the detection of GI malignancies, and examines therapeutic vaccines and the major cytokines involved in GI immunotherapy, as well as their basic biology and clinical applications. In closing, the book explores various aspects of computational biology for the detection and treatment of GI malignancies.

This book focuses on lipid metabolism in tumor immunity, covering the application of lipidomics in tumor immunity and all aspects of lipid metabolism in tumor microenvironment. During the progression of tumors, tumor cells and immune cells interact in a dynamic microenvironment. Targeting the immune system has a high potential for treating cancer. However, due to the high heterogeneity of the tumor microenvironment, only a small percentage of patients experience such clinical benefits of tumor immunotherapy. Therefore, understanding the tumor microenvironment is crucial for tumor immunity. Recently, lipid metabolism is an emerging research direction and contributes to cell survival and biofunctions in tumor microenvironment, which is of great interest and significance to be elucidated. This book provides the doctors, researchers, and scientists with a cutting-edge overview of the lipid metabolism and its role in tumor immunity. It also yields benefits for pharmaceutical companies regarding drug discovery.

Microbial Diversity in the Genomic Era presents insights on the techniques used for microbial taxonomy and phylogeny, along with their applications and respective pros and cons. Though many advanced techniques for the identification of any unknown bacterium are available in the genomics era, a far fewer number of the total microbial species have been discovered and identified to date. The assessment of microbial taxonomy and biosystematics techniques discovered and practiced in the current genomics era with suitable recommendations is the prime focus of this book.

Top scientific authors contribute their expertise and put a wealth of complex information into perspective in Skin Immune System: Cutaneous Immunology & Clinical Immunodermatology, Third Edition. This edition provides an overview of the skin immune system (SIS), a totally updated section on immunodermatological diseases, and six new chapters. Part I presents historical and comparative information on immunodermatology and includes a new chapter on the immunogenetics of inflammatory skin disease, while Part II covers the cellular elements of SIS and highlights newly defined functional subclasses of cells. Part III describes the humoral elements of SIS and provides two new chapters which focus on defensins and cathelicidins, and on the chemokines of human skin. Part IV discusses how the cellular and humoral elements of SIS interact under different circumstances and includes a new chapter on signal transduction pathways in cutaneous immunology. Part V focuses on dermatological diseases with a significant immunological background with a new chapter on the immunology of cutaneous drug eruptions, followed by Part VI on immunotherapy in dermatology, which features a new chapter reflecting the recent wave of products from biotechnology. Since the publication of the previous editions, a great deal of significant information has become available in almost all areas of cutaneous immunology and clinical immunodermatology. This progress has now been reflected in a completely updated and expanded resource.

In multicellular organisms the establishment, maintenance, and programmed alterations of cell-type specific gene expression patterns are regulated by epigenetic mechanisms. Thus, epigenetic alterations (DNA methylation, DNA associated Polycomb-Trithorax protein complexes, histone modifications) ensure the unique transcriptional activity and phenotypic diversity of diploid cells that carry identical or nearly identical DNA sequences. Because DNA methyltransferase I (DNMT1) associates with replication foci during S phase and prefers hemimethylated DNA as a substrate, DNMT1 ensures the clonal propagation of cytosine methylation patterns (maintenance methylation). Thus, DNA methylation may provide a memory function by helping progeny cells to "remember" their proper cellular identity. An alternative system of epigenetic memory, the Polycomb and Trithorax groups of protein complexes, that may operate both independently from and in concert with DNA methylation, ensures the heritable regulation of gene expression via modification of histone tails. The complex interplay of epigenetic regulatory mechanisms permits both the dynamic modulation of gene expression and the faithful transmission of gene expression patterns to each progeny cell upon division. These carefully orchestrated processes can go wrong, however, resulting in epigenetic reprogramming of the cells that may manifest in pathological changes, as it was first realized during the studies of epigenetic alterations in malignant tumors. By now it became a well established fact that not only genetic changes, but also the disruption of epigenetic regulation can result in carcinogenesis and tumor progression. Scientists working in other fields soon followed the pioneering work of cancer researchers, and revealed that epigenetic dysregulation forms the basis of a wide spectrum of human diseases.

Examines how conspiracy theories and related forms of misinformation and disinformation about the Covid-19 pandemic have circulated widely around the world. Commissioned by recognised experts on area studies and conspiracy theories, making use of the existing COMPACT (Comparative Analysis of Conspiracy Theories) network run by Butter and Knight. Presents case studies on how Covid conspiracism has played out, using a range of methods from a variety of disciplinary perspectives.

Mathematical, statistical, and computational methods enable multi-disciplinary approaches that catalyse discovery. Together with experimental methods, they identify key hypotheses, define measurable observables and reconcile disparate results. This volume collects a representative sample of studies in T cell immunology that illustrate the benefits of modelling-experimental collaborations and which have proven valuable or even ground-breaking. Studies include thymic selection, T cell repertoire diversity, T cell homeostasis in health and disease, T cell-mediated immune responses, T cell memory, T cell signalling and analysis of flow cytometry data sets. Contributing authors are leading scientists in the area of experimental, computational, and mathematical immunology. Each chapter includes state-of-the-art and pedagogical content, making this book accessible to readers with limited experience in T cell immunology and/or mathematical and computational modelling.

This book illustrates the significance and relevance of immunotherapy in modern-day therapeutics. Focusing on the application of immunotherapy in oncology, neurodegenerative and autoimmune diseases, it discusses the drug delivery systems, and pre-clinical and clinical methodologies for immunotherapy-based drugs. It also comprehensively reviews various aspects of immunotherapy, such as regulatory affairs, quality control, safety, and pharmacovigilance. Further, the book discusses the in vitro validation of therapeutic strategies prior to patient application and management of immunotherapy-related side effects and presents case studies demonstrating the design and development (pre-clinical to clinical) of immunotherapy for various diseases. It also describes various design considerations and the scale-up synthesis of immunotherapeutics and screening methods. Lastly, it explores the important aspect of cost-effectiveness and rational immunotherapy strategies.

This second edition of Eosinophils: Methods and Protocols updates several techniques from the first edition together with novel in vitro and in vivo-based methodologies. Written by internationally recognized expert authorities, this volume provides vital techniques from eosinophil purification to experimental modelling, with each technique spelled out in clear and straightforward terms, assuming no previous knowledge of the method and without necessitating sourcing additional information elsewhere. Written in the highly successful Methods in Molecular Biology format, chapters include introductions to their respective topics, lists of the essential materials and reagents, step-by-step, readily reproducible laboratory protocols, with tips on troubleshooting and avoiding known pitfalls. Authoritative and practical, Eosinophils: Methods and Protocols, Second Edition provides the practical means to extend our knowledge of eosinophil function in health and disease, underpinning research that may in turn lead to new hypotheses for future examinations into the role of this intriguing and enigmatic leukocyte. Chapters 10 is available open access under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License via link.springer.com.

Cancer research has progressed enormously in recent years. This review volume will address recent findings in the area of T-cell therapy for cancer, including use of tumour infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs) as a therapy for melanoma, choice of target antigens, advances in engineered receptors, methods of gene transfer to T cells, review of cell processing methods and clinical trial design. Written by leadings scientists in the field, this up-to-date review on cancer research will be an important reference source to the researchers and healthcare professionals in the field.dari LOndon

This book discusses specific immune cell regulatory pathway(s), immune cell types, or other mechanisms involved in host responses to tuberculosis that can be potentially targeted for host-directed therapy (HDT). The pathways/mechanisms investigated are either protective - thus calling for pathway/factor enhancing drugs - or maladaptive - thus calling for pathway/factor inhibitory drugs. Discovery and development (pre-clinical and clinical) of candidate HDT agents will also be elucidated, as well as approaches for HDT of other diseases. The benefit to the reader will derive from learning about the biology of multiple host pathways involved in health and disease, how these pathways are disrupted or dysregulated during tuberculosis, and which druggable targets exist in these pathways. This book provides the reader with a roadmap of current and future directions of HDT against tuberculosis. Since the host pathways/factors involved in protective or maladaptive responses to tuberculosis are not disease-specific, information learned from the context of tuberculosis likely will be relevant to other infectious and non-infectious diseases.

Individualized dosing regimens specific to the patient, infection, bacteria, and antibiotic can optimize outcome. Integration of pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic data, called dual individualization, can be accomplished through the use of AUIe. AUIC dosing has been shown to predict bacteriological outcomes, hasten clinical outcomes, reduce the emergence of resistance, and be cost-effective. MPC dosing has been shown to predict the emergence of resistant submutants. AUIC and MPC information can provide guidance as to when low doses can be used, and when higher concentrations are required. This strategy can ensure efficacy, minimize toxicity, reduce the opportunity for resistance to occur, and save money. REFERENCES I. Paladino JA. Streamlining antibiotic therapy: clinical application of pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic principles. J Osteopath Med 1991; 5: 16-25. 2. Liss RH, Batchelor FR. Economic evaluations of antibiotic use and resistance - a perspective: report of task force 6. Rev Infect Dis 1987; 9 (suppI3): S297-312. 3. Holmberg SO, Solomon SL, Blake PA. Health and economic impacts of antimicrobial resistance. Rev Infect Dis 1987; 9: 1065-78. 4. Sanders cc. Mechanisms responsible for cross-resistance and dichotomous resistance among the quinolones. Clin Infect Dis 2001; 32(Suppl I ): S 1-8. 5. Ballow CH, Schentag 11. Trends in antibiotic utilization and bacterial resistance: report of the NNRSG. Diagn Microbiol Infect Dis. 1992; 15(suppl):37S-42S. 6. Rice LB, Eckstein EC, DeVente J, Shlaes OM. Ceftazidime-resistant Klebsiella pneumoniae isolates recovered at the Cleveland Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center. Clin Infect Dis 1996; 23: 118-24