The war within us : everyman's guide to infection and immunity / Cedric Mims.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Mims, Cedric A.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Infection.

Immunology.

Medical microbiology.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (289 p.)

Place of Publication:

San Diego, CA. : Academic Press, c2000.

Language Note:

English

Summary:

Infectious diseases are the leading cause of death worldwide. In The War Within Us, well-known author and infectious disease specialist Cedric Mims makes the intricacies of the immune system and infectious diseases less baffling for the general reader and answers the questions of how things work and why. The story is told in terms of the ancient conflict between the invader (the infectious disease) and the defender (the body's immune system) and the strategies and counter-strategies used by both sides, making it a book that is both informative and interesting to read. The War Wit

Contents:

Front Cover; The War Within us: Everyman's guide to infection and immunity; Copyright Page; CONTENTS; Preface; Introduction; PART 1: THE PARASITE VERSUS THE HOST; Chapter 1. The parasite versus the host; Parasitism as a way of life; But parasites have problems; Problems for the host; A rogue's gallery of microbial parasites of humans; PART 2: HOW WE DEFEND OURSELVES; Chapter 2. Surfaces barriers and the early defences; Body surfaces; Inflammation - it feels bad but is a wonderful device; The phagocytes, essential weapons in the early defences; Chemical weapons

interferons and other substances in early defenceChapter 3. Immune defences; A royal experiment and the beginnings of immunology; The immune system; Chapter 4. Chinks in the armour; things that go wrong with our defences; Faulty surface defences; Faulty phagocytes; Faulty immune response; Can drugs stimulate the immune system?; The brain speaks to the immune system; what happens during stress; Our defences are affected by age; The sexual perspective on host defence; The impact of host genes on defence; Nutrition and host defence; The puzzle of pollutants and host defence

PART 3: THE MICROBE'S RESPONSE TO OUR DEFENCEChapter 5. Breaching the early defences; A microbe with good answers; Special devices for attaching to the body and entering it; Doing damage to the surface defences; Coping with the physical environment; Getting enough food; Coping with interferons and complement; Outmanoeuvring the phagocyte; Chapter 6. How to evade immune defences; A dozen devious devices; Arranging for exit; PART 4: THE DISEASE; Chapter 7. From residents to big killers; Unexpected intruders round the eyes; The residents; How diseases are named; Signs and symptoms

The big killersBig killers from long ago; Chapter 8. How microbes cause disease; Most microbes don't; The microbe releases a toxin; The microbe on its own does the damage; The host injures itself; The microbe causes cancer as a late effect; The microbe stays forever; Microbes as possible culprits, etc; Chapter 9. Thumbnail sketches of seven selected diseases; Syphilis and civilization; Measles and its invasion plan; Typhoid; a trail of illness from a slippery cook; Prion diseases; the mystery and the menace; The common cold gets commoner; Malaria triumphant; Legionnaires' disease

a fresh-water bacterium leaps at the opportunityPART 5: WHAT THE FUTURE HOLDS; Chapter 10. The threat of new diseases; Old diseases remain as a threat; What Does it takes to eradicate a microbe, once and for all?; Where would new diseases come from?; Chapter 11. Our answers to infectious diseases; Hygiene; Antimicrobial drugs; Vaccines; Natural therapy; Thoughts on the very distant future; Selected reading; Glossary; Index

Notes:

Description based upon print version of record.

Includes bibliographical references (p. 251-2) and index.

ISBN:

1-281-03332-4

9786611033323

0-08-054267-0

OCLC:

476109613