Echinostomes are medically- and veterinary-important parasitic flatworms that invade humans, domestic animals and wildlife and also parasitize in their larval stages numerous invertebrate and cold-blooded vertebrate hosts. The interest in echinostomes in parasitology and general biology comes from several areas: (1) Human infections; (2) Experimental models; (3) Animal infections; (4) Systematics. The application of novel techniques is moving the echinostomes to the frontline of parasitology in fields such as systematics, immunobiology in vertebrate and invertebrate organisms and proteomics among others. The Biology of Echinostomes demonstrates the application of new techniques to a group of trematodes that may serve to obtain information of great value in parasitology and general biology. The book includes basic topics, such as biology and systematics, as well as more novel topics, such as immunobiology, proteomics, and genomics of echinostomes. The authors of each chapter emphasize their content with: (i) the most novel information obtained; (ii) analysis of this information in a more general context (i.e. general parasitology); and (iii) future perspectives in view of the information presented. The subjects are analyzed from a modern point of view, considering aspects such as applications of novel techniques and an analysis of host-parasite interactions.

This publication represents the result of the fruitful workshop organised with the aim to attract the attention on the possibility of bio terrorism attack, with the s- port of NATO funds. In the last years the attention was strongly concentrated on the terrorism view similar to "military type attacks:" bomb on the trains, kamikazes, airplanes etc. As consequence many devices studied are directed to prevent these attacks such as the control of the passengers before the flight. For the people terrorism is therefore equivalent to bomb or similar and nobody think that there is also other possible and sophisticated means that can be used by the terrorist. In 1995 Sarin gas in the Tokio subway killed 12 people and affected 5,000 persons. In the USA anthrax was sent by mail to many federal offices. These events and other cases attract the attention on these possible terrorist attacks and the first recommendations for preventing theses events were\elaborated in the United State and in Europe. The possible agents and the modality that can be used for the diffusion are analysed and food and water are considered the principal and more favourable way. The story and the principal decision about this were reported in the first article of this collection which introduces the concept of bio-terrorism.

Humans suffer from numerous parasitic foodborne zoonoses, many of which are caused by helminths. The helminth zoonoses of concern in this book are normally limited to diseases of animals which have now become transmissible to humans. In the past these diseases were limited to populations living in low- and middle-income countries, but the geographical limits and populations at risk are expanding and changing because of growing international markets, improved transportation systems, and demographic changes (such as population movements). The World Health Organization (WHO) has estimated that the number of people currently infected with food borne trematodes alone exceeds 41 million, but worldwide the number of people at risk, including those in developed countries, is 750 million. The increasing recognition of the public health significance of these zoonoses, especially their complicated epidemiologies, and their links to poverty, intensification of agriculture, environmental degradation, and lack of tools for control- has been welcome. However, the development of priorities for a national public health system is often a competitive exercise, and the argument for devoting appropriate attention and resources to foodborne parasitic zoonoses is generally handicapped by the lack of good health and economic impact data. The genesis of this book was a desire to draw attention to the problem of these zoonoses and to hopefully, inspire greater efforts to acquire a reliable global impact assessment and therefore a basis for improved prevention and control actions for these zoonoses.

This book reviews not only the prevalence and distribution of these zoonoses, including available health and economic impact data, but will highlight gaps in knowledge that must be filled in order to gain the assessment needed to depict the overall importance of a particular zoonosis. This is critical for comparisons to other pressing public health and development needs in resource allocations. The topics on epidemiology, diagnosis, and clinical aspects emphasize the knowledge gaps that limit a full understanding of these zoonoses, and target where greater research investments on these parasitic diseases should be focused.

Toxocara and Toxocariasis, Volume 109 in the Advances in Parasitology series, includes medical studies of parasites of major influence, along with reviews of more traditional areas, such as zoology, taxonomy and life history, all topics which help to shape current thinking and applications. This latest release includes chapters on organism and the recognition of the disease, dogs (and cats) disease, diagnosis, prevalence of infection, and treatment, and more.

Fossil Parasites, the latest edition in the Advances in Parasitology series established in 1963, contains comprehensive and up-to-date reviews on all areas of interest in contemporary parasitology, including medical studies of parasites of major influence, such as plasmodium falciparum and trypanosomes. The series also contains reviews of more traditional areas, such as zoology, taxonomy, and life history, which help to shape current thinking and applications. Parasitism is a dominant life history strategy and we know it has existed for millions of years. Detecting parasitism in the fossil record is problematic because we rarely see direct evidence and usually must rely on indirect evidence to infer its existence. This unique volume takes a broad and systematic view of direct and indirect evidence for parasitism in the fossil record.

"Medical Mycology: cellular and Molecular" techniques is a clear and concise overview of the subject that details the techniques essential for ongoing research in the area. Drawing together contributions from both scientists and clinicians working in the field, the text will provide a valuable perspective on the applicability of specific techniques to patient care.

A wide range of molecular, immunological and cytological techniques are discussed throughout, with the inclusion of protocol section in each chapter designed to provide both a background a up-to-date account of the applications of each procedure. Every technique is fully referenced and illustrations are provided where required to enhance student understanding. comprehensive introduction to the key techniques critical to the study of medical mycology clear explanation of how each technique is applied in the lab contributions from internationally recognised experts in the field outlines the background to many techniques required for the successful completion of a research project

An invaluable reference for students of microbiology, biochemistry and molecular biology as well as postgraduates and researchers in the field of medical mycology looking for an up-to-date overview of the latest laboratory techniques.

Findings from the field of evolutionary biology are yielding dramatic insights for health scientists, especially those involved in the fight against infectious diseases. This book is the first in-depth presentation of these insights. In detailing why the pathogens that cause malaria, smallpox, tuberculosis, and AIDS have their special kinds of deadliness, the book shows how efforts to control virtually all diseases would benefit from a more thorough application of evolutionary principles. When viewed from a Darwinian perspective, a pathogen is not simply a disease-causing agent, it is a self-replicating organism driven by evolutionary pressures to pass on as many copies of itself as possible. In this context, so-called "cultural vectors"--those aspects of human behavior and the human environment that allow spread of disease from immobilized people--become more important than ever. Interventions to control diseases don't simply hinder their spread but can cause pathogens and the diseases they engender to evolve into more benign forms. In fact, the union of health science with evolutionary biology offers an entirely new dimension to policy making, as the possibility of determining the future course of many diseases becomes a reality. By presenting the first detailed explanation of an evolutionary perspective on infectious disease, the author has achieved a genuine milestone in the synthesis of health science, epidemiology, and evolutionary biology. Written in a clear, accessible style, it is intended for a wide readership among professionals in these fields and general readers interested in science and health.

This second volume of PDR SPECIAL TOPICS contains five review articles, covering nearly the entire field of fungal diseases in humans as well as therapeutic approaches. The main emphasis of the book lies in antifungal therapy: the most relevant information on the present state of the art of antifungal chemotherapy for dermatomycoses, subcutaneous and invasive mycoses is summarized, and open questions and unsolved problems are presented. The book is ideal for both the practitioner as well as advanced student.

This book covers all details for a successful control and elimination strategy against propagation of deadly liver and intestinal flukes of the genus Schistosoma in China. Cancer due to schistosomiasis is still common in subtropical countries and affords hundred thousands of human and animal deaths per year. Expert authors play close attention to the biology and morphologic aspects of Schistosoma species as well as the history and status quo of schistosomiasis epidemiology. In a unique way, the present work illustrates the need to involve strategic measurements, and to control both adult worms and larval parasite stages. With a special focus on Jiangxi Province, the authors present an effective management plan, ranging from intermediate host snail control to diagnostic tools, medical aid, as well as public health education. This approach from China can be used as blueprint in other countries hit by the same worm infections. The contents of this book will thus be meaningful for academics and practitioners in the fields of parasitology, public health, as well as human and veterinary medicine.

Dickson D. Despommier's vivid, visceral account of the biology, behavior, and history of parasites follows the interplay between these fascinating life forms and human society over thousands of years. Despommier focuses on long-term host-parasite associations, which have evolved to avoid or even subvert the human immune system. Some parasites do great damage to their hosts, while others have signed a kind of "peace treaty" in exchange for their long lives within them. Many parasites also practice clever survival strategies that medical scientists hope to mimic as they search for treatments for Crohn's disease, food allergies, type 1 diabetes, organ transplantation, and other medical challenges. Despommier concentrates on particularly remarkable and often highly pathogenic organisms, describing their lifecycles and the mechanisms they use to avoid elimination. He details their attack and survival plans and the nature of the illnesses they cause in general terms, enabling readers of all backgrounds to steal a glimpse into the secret work of such effective invaders. He also points to the cultural contexts in which these parasites thrive and reviews the current treatments available to defeat them. Encouraging scientists to continue to study these organisms even if their threat is largely contained, Despommier shows how closer dissection of the substances parasites produce to alter our response to them could help unravel some of our most complex medical conundrums.

This book illustrates the importance and significance of Quorum sensing (QS), it's critical roles in regulating diverse cellular functions in microbes, including bioluminescence, virulence, pathogenesis, gene expression, biofilm formation and antibiotic resistance. Microbes can coordinate population behavior with small molecules called autoinducers (AHL) which serves as a signal of cellular population density, triggering new patterns of gene expression for mounting virulence and pathogenesis. Therefore, these microbes have the competence to coordinate and regulate explicit sets of genes by sensing and communicating amongst themselves utilizing variety of signals. This book descry emphasizes on how bacteria can coordinate an activity and synchronize their response to external signals and regulate gene expression. The chapters of the book provide the recent advancements on various functional aspects of QS systems in different gram positive and gram negative organisms. Finally, the book also elucidates a comprehensive yet a representative description of a large number of challenges associated with quorum sensing signal molecules viz. virulence, pathogenesis, antibiotic synthesis, biosurfactants production, persister cells, cell signaling and biofilms, intra and inter-species communications, host-pathogen interactions, social interactions & swarming migration in biofilms.

Parasites are a major issue affecting animal and human health, welfare, and economic productivity. This book provides 555 questions to test your knowledge of animal and tropical parasitology, to help you study anywhere, with any amount of time. Key features: Covers the most important and the most neglected parasites in a concise manner. Questions address parasite biology, epidemiology, diagnostics and management, all in relation to animal health. Includes key zoonotic parasites and their impact on human health. Uses multiple choice questions, true or false statements, fill-in-the-blanks, and more, to enable independent learning and self-testing. Provides explanatory answers to aid further revision and study. A self-test resource for veterinary and animal science students that is also of interest to medical students interested in parasitology or zoonoses, this book provides a convenient, useful, and current source of information to anyone interested in learning, revising and assessing their knowledge in parasitology.

This completely updated second edition provides a clear account of how immune responses operate and how parasites can evade immunity. Parasites have evolved to exploit hosts' bodies, whereas hosts have evolved immune systems to control infections. Host-parasite interactions therefore provide fascinating examples of evolutionary "arms-races" in which the immune system plays a key role. Including an expanded section on anti-parasite vaccines, the text focuses on modern research in immunoparasitology directed at understanding and exploiting the capacity to develop effective anti-parasite immunity. The experimental basis of this research is emphasized throughout. The text is aimed at undergraduates and postgraduates with interests in either parasitology or immunology and contains introductory sections on these topics.

First published in 1963, Advances in Parasitology contains comprehensive and up-to-date reviews in all areas of interest in contemporary parasitology. Advances in Parasitology includes medical studies of parasites of major influence, such as Plasmodium falciparum and trypanosomes. The series also contains reviews of more traditional areas, such as zoology, taxonomy, and life history, which shape current thinking and applications. The 2013 impact factor is 4.36

About 100 years ago, it was dicovered that insects transmit grave, mainly tropical diseases - very much to the astonishment of the physicians of that time, who saw this as a new, possibly easy, way of eradicating the diseases by exterminating the vectors. For some years, DDT and other then new insecticides achieved great improvements, but subsequently serious setbacks emerged: insecticide-resistance and anxiety about toxicity to man and animals. In the past twenty years, serious efforts have been made tofind alternatives, with varying degrees of success.

Lyme disease is the most common tick-borne illness in the United States, with more than 300,000 cases diagnosed each year. However, doctors are deeply divided on how to diagnose and treat it, giving rise to the controversy known as the "Lyme Wars." Firmly entrenched camps have emerged, causing physicians, patient communities, and insurance providers to be pitted against one another in a struggle to define Lyme disease and its clinical challenges. Health care providers may not be aware of its diverse manifestations or the limitations of diagnostic tests. Meanwhile, patients have felt dismissed by their doctors and confused by the conflicting opinions and dubious self-help information found online. In this authoritative book, the Columbia University Medical Center physicians Brian A. Fallon and Jennifer Sotsky explain that, despite the vexing "Lyme Wars," there is cause for both doctors and patients to be optimistic. The past decade's advances in precision medicine and biotechnology are reshaping our understanding of Lyme disease and accelerating the discovery of new tools to diagnose and treat it, such that the great divide previously separating medical communities is now being bridged. Drawing on both extensive clinical experience and cutting-edge research, Fallon, Sotsky, and their colleagues present these paradigm-shifting breakthroughs in language accessible to both sides. They clearly explain the immunologic, infectious, and neurologic basis of chronic symptoms, the cognitive and psychological impact of the disease, as well as current and emerging diagnostic tests, treatments, and prevention strategies. Written for the educated patient and health care provider seeking to learn more, Conquering Lyme Disease gives an up-to-the-minute overview of the science that is transforming the way we address this complex illness. It argues forcefully that the expanding plague of Lyme and other tick-borne diseases can be confronted successfully and may soon even be reversed.

The idea that socialism could be established in a single country was adopted as an official doctrine by the Soviet Union in 1925, Stalin and Bukharin being the main formulators of the policy. Before this there had been much debate as to whether the only way to secure socialism would be as a result of socialist revolution on a much broader scale, across all Europe or wider still. This book traces the development of ideas about communist utopia from Plato onwards, paying particular attention to debates about universalist ideology versus the possibility for "socialism in one country". The book argues that although the prevailing view is that "socialism in one country" was a sharp break from a long tradition that tended to view socialism as only possible if universal, in fact the territorially confined socialist project had long roots, including in the writings of Marx and Engels.

This book is a detailed account of the embryology, growth and metamorphosis of mosquitoes, the nutrition of larvae and adults, and egg production by the adult females. Physiological adaptations of larvae to their aquatic environment are also described. Written in a manner to be comprehensible to any informed biologist, the book has received glowing reviews.

In der Lebensmittelhygiene spielt bisher die EinschAtzung krankhafter VerAnderungen in der KArpermuskulatur von Fischen im Vergleich zum mikrobiellen Verderb und der Kontamination mit pathogenen Erregern und Umweltchemikalien eine relativ untergeordnete Rolle. In diesem Buch werden die Fischarten der Welt aufgelistet, deren KArpermuskulatur pathologisch verAndert sein kann. Ganz A1/4berwiegend sind dafA1/4r Parasiten die Ursache. Eine Reihe dieser Parasiten kann beim Menschen nach dem Verzehr zu Erkrankungen fA1/4hren. Die Lebensmittelunternehmer und die Mitarbeiter der Kontroll- und HygienebehArden mA1/4ssen das Erscheinungsbild im Filet kennen, um es von Ahnlichen Abweichungen differenzialdiagnostisch unterscheiden zu kAnnen. Nach den hierbei relevanten Fragen des Lebensmittelrechts, der Verkehrsauffassung, der Anatomie und Physiologie und der allgemeinen Pathologie der Fischmuskulatur widmet sich das Buch schwerpunktmAAig den parasitAren Ursachen der MuskelverAnderungen. Diese sind A1/4berwiegend nach der Systematik der beteiligten Parasitenkategorien geordnet. AusfA1/4hrungen zu den Untersuchungsmethoden, deren Effizienz sowie zu MaAnahmen der Vermeidung eines Gesundheitsrisikos schlieAen das Buch ab. Ein zweisprachiges Glossar, sowie zusAtzliche Register A1/4ber Fischarten, Parasiten und deren wirbellose Zwischenwirte erleichtern die Handhabung.

Rely on this concise, systematic introduction to the biology and epidemiology of human parasitic diseases. Explore an extensive series of photographs, line drawings, and plates that aid in the recognition of medically-relevant parasites and help to build a solid understanding of the fundamentals of diagnosis and treatment.

Diagnostic Medical Parasitology covers all aspects of human medical parasitology and provides detailed, comprehensive, relevant diagnostic methods in one volume. The new edition incorporates newly recognized parasites, discusses new and improved diagnostic methods, and covers relevant regulatory requirements and has expanded sections detailing artifact material and histological diagnosis, supplemented with color images throughout the text.

This book comprehensively reviews various vector-borne diseases and their control methods. It discusses morphology, life history, and pathogenicity of protozoan and helminth parasites. Further, it analyzes host-parasite interactions and their adaptation within the host system for understanding parasitic infections. The book discusses the complex life cycle, biochemical adaptations, and molecular biology of the parasites. It investigates the immunological response to different infectious agents and explores new targets for combined therapeutic approaches. It also summarizes the evolution of parasitism and the ecology of parasites of the different phylum. Lastly, it provides information on vector biology emphasizing the role of basic vector research in developing future disease control methods and improving upon the existing approaches.

This volume begins with a short history of malaria and follows with a summary of its biology. It then traces the fascinating history of the discovery of quinine for malaria treatment, and then describes quinine's biosynthesis, its mechanism of action, and its clinical use, concluding with a discussion of synthetic antimalarial agents based on quinine's structure. It also covers the discovery of artemisinin and its development as the source of the most effective current antimalarial drug, including summaries of its synthesis and biosynthesis, its mechanism of action, and its clinical use and resistance. A short discussion of other clinically used antimalarial natural products leads to a detailed treatment of additional natural products with significant antiplasmodial activity, classified by compound type. Although the search for new antimalarial natural products from Nature's combinatorial library is challenging, it is very likely to yield new antimalarial drugs. This book thus ends by identifying ten natural products with development potential as clinical antimalarial agents.

Zoonotic diseases pose a serious threat to global health and economy. Domestic and wild birds play crucial roles in transmission and spread of important zoonotic pathogens, with significant implications on human and avian health. Although zoonotic diseases have been extensively studied, information on various aspects of avian zoonotic pathogens have not been revisited or revised to any great extent. This book is a comprehensive and updated compilation of important zoonotic diseases that are transmitted by domestic and wild birds, and consists of 21 chapters that meticulously describe the (i) etiology and evolution, (ii) complex epidemiology, such as migration pathways in context of disease transmission, (iii) pathogenesis, (iv) clinical signs and necropsy findings, (v) diagnostics including latest molecular assays, and (vi) preventative and control strategies, with an emphasis on therapeutics and prophylaxis, of important zoonotic pathogens (bacterial, fungal, parasitic and viral) of avian origin in humans and birds. Each chapter is aptly supported by interactive tables and figures, and features an updated reference section. This book aims to create awareness and enlighten students of veterinary and human medicine on the role of birds in zoonoses, and would serve as a useful reference for working veterinarians, human doctors, and public health experts.