Clinical Imunology

Clinical immunology is a discipline with a distinguished history, rooted in the prevention and treatment of infectious diseases in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. The conquest of historical scourges such as smallpox and (substantially) polio and relegation of several other diseases to the category of medical curiosities is often regarded as the most important achievement of medical science of the past fifty years. Nevertheless, the challenges facing immunologists in the efforts to control infectious diseases remain formidable; HIV infection, malaria and tuberculosis are but three examples of diseases of global import that elude control despite major commitments of monetary and intellectual resources. Although firmly grounded in the study and application of defenses to microbial infection, since the 1960s clinical immunology has emerged
as a far broader discipline. Dysfunction of the immune system has been increasingly recognized as a pathogenic mechanism that can lead to an array of specific diseases and failure of virtually every organ system. Pardoxically, although the importance of the immune system in disease pathogenesis is generally appreciated, the place of clinical immunology as a practice discipline has been less clear. As most of the non-infectious diseases if the human immune system lead eventually to failure of other organs, it has been organ-specific subspecialists who have usually dealt with their consequences. Recently, however, the outlook has begun to change as new diagnostic tools increasingly allow the theoretical
possibility of intervention much earlier in disease processes, often before irreversible target organ destruction occurs. More importantly, this theoretical possibility is increasingly realized as clinical immunologists find themselves in the vanguard of translating molecular medicine from laboratory bench to patient bedside.
In many settings, clinical immunologists today function as primary care physicians in the management of patients with inmune-deficiency, allergic, and autoimmune diseases. Indeed many influential voices in the clinical disciplines of allergy and rheumatology support increasing coalescence of these traditional subspecialities around their intellectual core of immunology. In addition to his or her role as a primary care
physician, the clinical immunologist is increasingly being looked to as a consultant, as scientific and clinical advances enhance his or her expertise. The immunologist with a ‘generalist’ perspective can be particularly helpful in the application of unifying principles of diagnosis and treatment across the broad spectrum of immunologic diseases. Clinical Immunology: Principles and Practice has emerged from this concept of the clinical immunologist as both primary care physician and expert consultant in the management of patients with immunologic diseases. It opens in full appreciation of the critical role of fundamental
immunology in this rapidly evolving clinical discipline. Authors of basic science chapters were asked, however, to cast their subjects in a context of clinical relevance. We believe the result is a well-balanced exposition of basic immunology for the clinician.

Read more »

biomolekuler , imunologi ,

{[['']]}

Color Atlas of Genetics

The aim of this book is to give an account of the scientific field of genetics based on visual displays of selected concepts and related facts. Additional information is presented in the introduction,

with a chronological list of important discoveries and advances in the history of genetics, in an appendix with supplementary data in tables, in an extensive glossary explaining genetic terms, and in references, including

websites for further in-depth studies. This book is written for two kinds of readers: for students

of biology and medicine, as an introductory overview, and for their mentors, as a teaching aid. Other interested individuals will also be able to gain information about current developments and achievements in this rapidly growing field. Gerhardus

Read more »

biomolekuler ,

{[['']]}

Molecular Cell Biology

Like ourselves, the individual cells that form our bodies can grow, reproduce, process information, respond to stimuli, and carry out an amazing array of chemical reactions. These abilities define life. We and other multicellular organisms contain billions or trillions of cells organized into complex structures, but many organisms consist of a single cell. Even simple unicellular organisms exhibit all the hallmark properties of life, indicating that the cell is the fundamental unit of life. As the twenty-first century opens, we face an explosion of new data about the components of cells, what structures they contain, how they touch and influence each other. Still, an immense amount remains to be learned, particularly about how information flows through cells and how they decide on the most appropriate ways to respond. Molecular cell biology is a rich, integrative science that brings together biochemistry, biophysics, molecular biology, microscopy, genetics, physiology, computer science, and developmental biology. Each of these fields has its own emphasis and style of experimentation. In the following chapters, we will describe insights and experimental approaches drawn from all of these fields, gradually weaving the multifaceted story of the birth, life, and death of cells. We

start in this prologue chapter by introducing the diversity of cells, their basic constituents and critical functions, and what we can learn from the various ways of studying cells.

Read more »

biomolekuler ,

{[['']]}