Immunology in the Twentieth Century: From Basic Science to Clinical Application grew out of common knowledge that those who survived many of the common infectious diseases rarely contracted the same disease again. This book charts the historical development of this vital branch of medicine in a concise volume, covering both the basic science involved and the clinical applications. Immunology as a distinctive subject developed in the mid-twentieth century as researchers started to understand how the adaptive immune system aids the defense against pathogens. The subject has grown in importance and diversified into specialist fields, such as immunohistochemistry, immunogenetics and immunopathology.

Antimicrobial peptides (AMPs), including cathelicidins and defensins are host defence peptides that carry out multiple roles in the gastrointestinal (GI) tract. Antimicrobial Peptides in Gastrointestinal Diseases presents knowledge about the physiological functions and pharmacological actions of AMPs in inflammation, cancer, and further infection of the GI tract. The book provides coverage from the basic research to clinical application for GI diseases. Current research and development of AMPs is presented, opening the way for further work on these peptides, not only in the context of GI diseases, but also for similar pathologies in other organs. AMPs are key to the regulation of human microbiome and second line defence in the GI mucosa, prevent colonization of pathogens and modulation of innate response to invading pathogens, and modify immunological reactions during inflammatory processes and oncogenic development in the GI mucosa. More importantly, AMPs possess diversified anti-microbial actions against various infectious diseases in the GI tract. With these physiological functions and pharmacological actions, AMPs have significant potential as therapeutic agents for the treatment of inflammation, cancer and further infection in the GI tract.

Neuropsychiatric manifestation in systemic lupus erythematosus (NPSLE) is one of the most recalcitrant complications of the disease. According to the 1999 ACR nomenclature and case definitions, diffuse psychiatric/neuropsychological syndromes in NPSLE (anxiety disorder, acute confusional state, cognitive dysfunction, mood disorder, psychosis) (diffuse NPSLE) present psychiatric manifestations unlike neurologic syndromes (focal NPSLE) originating from focal CNS lesions, such as cerebrovascular disease, demyelinating syndrome, headache, aseptic meningitis, chorea, seizures and myelopathy. A number of studies have reported that diffuse NPSLE is usually associated with the presence of autoantibodies against neuronal cells in serum as well as in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF). Moreover, IL-6 has been shown to be elevated in CSF of patients with diffuse NPSLE. Recently, it has been demonstrated that the severity of blood-brain barrier damages plays a crucial role in the development of acute confusional state, the severest form of diffuse NPSLE through the accelerated entry of larger amounts of autoantibodies to NMDA receptor subunit NR2 into the CNS. Since the importance of autoantibodies in the NPSLE has been now evident, such an aggressive treatment, especially B cell depleting therapy, would make sense in that it would reduce the levels of pathogenic autoantibodies, leading to a better prognosis of NPSLE. As far as we know, no single book specifically dedicated to NPSLE alone has been published as yet. As mentioned above, NPSLE constitutes a vastly expanding field of research with increasing numbers of papers published annually. Therefore, we believe that an effort to collect and critically review these publications is invaluable. Such an effort will provide an important contribution to basic researchers as well as clinicians working in the field of neurology, rheumatology, psychiatry and internal medicine fields.

Over the last several years the field of humanized mice has matured and developed into an essential component of translational research for HIV/AIDS. Humanized mice serve both as vehicles for discovery and as highly sophisticated platforms for biomedical research. In addition, humanized mice have demonstrated outstanding potential for the investigation of critical aspects of the infection and pathogenesis of the hepatitis and herpes viruses, as well as highly relevant microbial infections such as tuberculosis and malaria. Humanized Mice for HIV Research provides a comprehensive presentation of the history, evolution, applications, and current state of the art of this unique animal model. An expansion of twelve review articles that were published in Humanized Mice by Springer in 2008 (Eds: Nomura T, Watanabe T, Habu S), this book expertly captures the outstanding progress that has been made in the development, improvement, implementation, and validation of humanized mouse models. The first two parts of this book cover the basics of human-to-mouse xenotransplantation biology, and provide critical information about human immune cell development and function based on individual models created from different immunodeficient strains of mice. The third and fourth parts investigate HIV-1 biology, including different routes of transmission, prevention, treatment, pathogenesis, and the development of adaptive immunity in humanized mice. The fifth part shows the broad applicability of humanized mice for therapeutic development, from long-acting antiretroviral combinations to genetic manipulations with human cells and cell-based approaches. The sixth part includes liver tissue engineering and the expansion of humanized mice for many other human cell-tropic pathogens.

Most people take eating for granted - but for some, eating can be downright dangerous. Thirty thousand Americans are hospitalized each year due to an allergic food reaction and peanut allergies in American children doubled from 1997 to 2002. Between two and ten percent of children are affected by food allergies worldwide and adverse food reactions increased hospital admissions by five hundred percent in the United Kingdom during the past two decades. Asthma cases, a reliable indicator of food allergy susceptibility, increased one hundred percent during the last thirty years. While most people assume they have a food allergy, only a very small percentage of cases are a true food allergy. For reasons still unknown, the human immune system reacts abnormally to certain foods. However, medical disorders, increased globalization of the food supply, and an upsurge of processed and convenience foods that contain food additives may also cause adverse food reactions as well. Accurate diagnosis can be extremely tricky and many sufferers never learn what causes their symptoms.

Why are adverse food reactions on the rise? How can an accurate diagnosis be made? Is it even possible to enjoy foods and stay safe and healthy? These are just some of the questions this book will answer while helping the reader to learn all they can about why adverse food reactions happen, distinguish between a true food allergy and a food hypersensitivity, and outline strategies to successfully manage and live with them.

Nitric Oxide and Other Small Signalling Molecules, Volume 72, the latest release in the Advances in Microbial Physiology series, continues the long tradition of topical, important, cutting-edge reviews in microbiology. The book contains updates in the field, with comprehensive chapters covering the Biochemistry of cysteine persulfides, NO signaling in yeast, The Inflammasome: Regulation of Nitric Oxide and Antimicrobial Host Defense, Nitric Oxide, aN Old molecule with NOble functions in Pseudomonas aeruginosa biology, the Emerging roles of nitric oxide synthase in bacterial physiology, and Anaerobic bacterial response to nitrosative stress.

Personalized medicine is a rapidly emerging area in health care, and asthma management lends itself particularly well to this new development. This practical resource by Dr. Stanley J. Szefler helps you navigate the many asthma medication options available to your patients, as well as providing insights into those which may be introduced within the next several years. Features a wealth of information on available asthma medications, including new immunomodulators, new responses to treatment, and new treatment strategies at all levels of asthma care. Prepares you to meet your patients' needs regarding asthma exacerbation prevention and asthma prevention. Consolidates today's available information and guidance in this timely area into one convenient resource.

Advances in Immunology, Volume 138, the latest in a long-established and highly respected publication, presents current developments and comprehensive reviews in immunology. Articles address the wide range of topics that comprise immunology, with this release including chapters on Eosinophil Development, Disease Involvement, and Therapeutic Suppression, Immunoglobulin A responses to the microbiota, Unexpected roles for intracellular complement in the regulation of TH1 responses, Magnesium in T cell signaling, and immunological synapse and T cell signaling.

The Epigenetics of Autoimmunity covers a topic directly related to translational epigenetics. Via epigenetic mechanisms, a number of internal and external environmental risk factors, including smoking, nutrition, viral infection and the exposure to chemicals, could exert their influence on the pathogenesis of autoimmune diseases. Such factors could impact the epigenetic mechanisms, which, in turn, build relationship with the regulation of gene expression, and eventually triggering immunologic events that result in instability of immune system. Since epigenetic aberrations are known to play a key role in a long list of human diseases, the translational significance of autoimmunity epigenetics is very high. To bridge the gap between environmental and genetic factors, over the past few years, great progress has been made in identifying detailed epigenetic mechanisms for autoimmune diseases. Furthermore, with rapid advances in technological development, high-throughput screening approaches and other novel technologies support the systematic investigations and facilitate the epigenetic identification. This book covers autoimmunity epigenetics from a disease-oriented perspective and several chapters are presented that provide advances in wide-spread disorders or diseases such as systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), rheumatoid arthritis (RA), multiple sclerosis (MS), type 1 diabetes (T1DM), systemic sclerosis (SSc), primary Sjoegren's syndrome (pSS) and autoimmune thyroid diseases (AITDs). These emerging epigenetic studies provide new insights into autoimmune diseases, raising great expectations among researchers and clinicians. This seminal book on this topic comprehensively covers the most recent advances in this exciting and rapidly developing new science. They might reveal not only new clinical biomarkers for diagnosis and disease progression, but also novel targets for potential epigenetic therapeutic treatment.

This issue of Immunology and Allergy Clinics, guest edited by Drs. J. Tod Olin and James H. Hull, is devoted to Exercise-Induced Bronchospasm and Laryngeal Disorders. Articles in this outstanding issue include: Exercise and the Airway: A Call to Action; Exercise and Sinonasal Disease; Exercise-Induced Laryngeal Obstruction History Background; Exercise-Induced Laryngeal Obstruction Diagnostics; Exercise-Induced Laryngeal Obstruction Speech Speech-language Interventions; Exercise-Induced Laryngeal Obstruction Performance Psychology Interventions; Exercise-Induced Laryngeal Obstruction Surgical Interventions; Excessive Dynamic Airways Collapse (EDAC); Exercise-Induced Bronchospasm Background Prevalence Sport Considerations; Exercise-Induced Bronchospasm Mechanism / Biomarkers; Exercise-Induced Bronchospasm and Environment; Exercise-Induced Bronchospasm Testing; Exercise-Induced Bronchospasm Pharm Therapies with an Eye Towards Athletes; Exercise-Induced Bronchospasm Non- Pharm; and The Future of EIB and Exercise-Induced Laryngeal Obstruction.

Provides timely reviews of topics in biotechnology, and is an invaluable reference for those in applied microbiology

This issue of Immunology and Allergy Clinics, Guest Edited by Dr. J. Andrew Bird, is devoted to Food Allergy. Articles in this outstanding issue include: Prevention of Food Allergies; Epidemiology of Food Allergy; Oral Tolerance Development and Maintenance; Diagnosis of Food Allergy; Food Allergy Management; Interventional Therapies for the Treatment of Food Allergy; Baked Milk and Egg as Oral Immunotherapy; Adjuvant Therapies for Desensitization; Alternative Therapies for Treatment of Food Allergy; Food Protein-Induced Enterocolitis Syndrome (FPIES); Diagnosis and Management of Eosinophilic Esophagitis; and Unfounded Diagnostic Procedures.

This issue of Otolaryngologic Clinics, Guest Edited by Murugappan Ramanathan Jr. and James Whitman Mims, is devoted to Allergy for the Otolaryngologist. Articles in this issue include: New Horizons in the Management of Allergy; The Role of the Sinonasal Epithelium in Allergy; The Role of Allergy in Chronic Rhinosinusitis; Manifestations of Inhalant Allergies Beyond the Nose; The Role of Allergy in Otologic Disease; Asthma Management for the Otolaryngologist; Rational Approach to Allergy Testing (in vitro/in vivo); Advances in Food Allergy; Contemporary Pharmacotherapy of Allergic Inflammation; Clinical Applications of SLIT; Efficacy of SLIT/SCIT; Immunotherapy: Treating with Fewer Allergens?; Management of Anaphylaxis; and Future Horizons in Allergy.

Advances in Microbial Physiology, Volume 71, continues the long tradition of topical, important, cutting-edge reviews in microbiology. The book contains updates in the field, with comprehensive chapters covering The Microbiology of Ruthenium Complexes, The role of plant growth-promoting bacteria in metal phytoremediation, the Mechanism and Role of Globin Coupled Sensor Signaling, Cytochrome bd and gaseous ligands in bacterial physiology, and Haem-Based Sensors of O2: Lessons and Perspectives.