Introductory Immunology

Introductory Immunology quickly acquaints readers with natural immune responses manifesting in diseases and disorders. The book presents a complete picture of natural defenses to infectious agents, as well as the mechanisms that lead to autoimmune dysfunction. In addition, it examines immunologically based diseases, giving the reader sufficient knowledge to make sound clinical decisions leading to better treatment outcomes. Introductory Immunology is aimed at researchers, postgraduates, or any scientifically inclined reader interested in immunology. No prior expertise in medical, biochemical, or cellular science is needed to benefit from the clear presentation of immunology concepts in this book. Quick, concise introduction to immunological concepts Breaks down all of immunology into manageable, logically digestible building blocks Geared toward readers without medical, biochemical, or cellular expertise

Introductory Immunology: Basic Concepts for Interdisciplinary Applications, 3rd Edition, is a completely updated, revised, and expanded concise, conceptual approach to understanding the immune systems as a primary defense to maintain health and homeostasis. This expanded version includes the aspects of microbiology and related immune defense mechanisms important in combating disease, as well critical components related to the field of vaccine development. Immunology as a subject is no longer confined to the realms of "immunology" or "microbiology" studies. Indeed, the subject matter has become increasingly important to understand complex mechanisms found within a wider range of biological systems. This book aims specifically at educated audiences who do not have a deep understanding of medical, biochemical, or cellular knowledge. The overall text will present concepts that portray a comprehensive picture of the natural defenses to infectious agents as well as provide an introduction to mechanisms that lead to autoimmune dysfunction. In addition, immunological diseases will be detailed, with the goal of allowing the readers to gain sufficient knowledge to make sound choices for clinical decisions to affect treatment outcomes. This new edition expands on the existing chapters, focusing on updating the previous text. It has been expanded to include knowledge on effector mechanisms addressing components inherent within cellular responses that are either newly discovered, or missing from the previous edition. It has an extra emphasis on aspects related to mechanisms important in combating microbial agents and critical sections on how vaccines protect against pathogenic invaders to limit associated pathology. The goal is that Introductory Immunology will become the preferred provider of core knowledge in immunology to build a foundation to explore components of the human immune system that work together to confer and understand dysregulation that causes clinical diseases. This book serves as a basic platform to define therapeutic interventions by: creating appreciation for components of the human immune system to work together to confer lifelong protection; providing a core knowledge in immunology to build a foundation to explore mechanisms involved in clinical disease, and defining functional aspects of immunological terms to permit the reader easy access to comprehend specific topics; presenting introduction to complex immunological concepts in a concise and easy manner that relates to clinical disease; breaking down all of immunology into manageable, logically digestible building blocks, and providing a map to explore overlapping mechanisms of immune protective responses; providing a platform to readers without medical, biochemical, or cellular expertise to understand and appreciate how immunology controls homeostasis and protects against pathogens.

Introductory Immunology: Basic Concepts for Interdisciplinary Applications, Second Edition is a completely updated, revised and expanded resource on the immune system as a primary defense for the maintenance of health and homeostasis. The book highlights the components of the human immune system and how they work together to confer protection against pathogenic invaders. It also creates an understanding of the basis for clinical tests and immune therapeutics and their importance in identifying and treating disease states. This updated edition will strengthen the foundation required to understand the placement of immune function within clinical practice, thus allowing a basic platform to define therapeutic treatments. Creates appreciation for the components of the human immune system that work together to confer lifelong protection Provides core knowledge in immunology to build a foundation to explore mechanisms involved in clinical disease Breaks down all immunology concepts into manageable, logically digestible building blocks Geared toward readers without medical, biochemical or cellular expertise Includes a glossary that provides functional definitions of complex terms

Immunology has emerged as a key component of the curricula of graduate and postgraduate courses in biotechnology, microbiology, biochemistry, bioinformatics, and other interdisciplinary fields of biology, including zoology, veterinary science, and medicine. As a basic introductory textbook on one of the fastest-moving and most challenging areas of immunological science, this book contains the most recent information about immunologic mechanisms and their importance, along with various molecular techniques employed in immunology. The short and concise text helps make the structures, processes, and interactions of the immune system easily comprehensible. The book includes chapters on immunoinformatics as well as the immune system of the brain, rarely found in any of the immunology books published so far. Many diverse and interesting aspects of the advances in immunology have also been covered, including tumor immunology and immunodeficiency disorders. The easy-to-understand concepts presented in the textbook make it an ideal companion for learners preparing for competitive and other examinations. Undergraduate, postgraduate, and PhD students, people from the industry and academia, and research scholars will immensely benefit from it.

Health is maintained by the coordinated operation of all the biological systems that make up the individual. The Introduction to Psychoneuroimmunology, Second Edition, presents an overview of what has been discovered by scientists regarding how bodily systems respond to environmental challenges and intercommunicate to sustain health. The book touches on the main findings from the current literature without being overly technical and complex. The result is a comprehensive overview of psychoneuroimmunology, which avoids oversimplification, but does not overwhelm the reader. Single authored for consistency of breadth and depth, with no redundancy of coverage between chapters Covers endocrine-immune modulation, neuro-immune modulation, and the enhancing or inhibiting processes of one or more systems on the others Expanded use of figures, tables, and text boxes

The immune system is central to human health and the focus of much medical research. Growing understanding of the immune system, and especially the creation of immune memory (long lasting protection), which can be harnessed in the design of vaccines, have been major breakthroughs in medicine. In this Very Short Introduction, Paul Klenerman describes the immune system, and how it works in health and disease. In particular he focuses on the human immune system, considering how it evolved, the basic rules that govern its behavior, and the major health threats where it is important. The immune system comprises a series of organs, cells and chemical messengers which work together as a team to provide defence against infection. Klenerman discusses these components, the critical signals that trigger them and how they exert their protective effects, including so-called innate immune responses, which react very fast to infection, and adaptive immune responses, which have huge diversity and a capacity to recognize and defend against a massive array of micro-organisms. Klenerman also considers what happens when our immune systems fail to be activated effectively, leading to serious infections, problems with inherited diseases, and also HIV/AIDS. At the opposite extreme, as Klenerman shows, an over-exaggerated immune response leads to inflammatory diseases such as Multiple Sclerosis and Rheumatoid Arthritis, as well as allergy and asthma. Finally he looks at the Immune system v2.o - how immune therapies and vaccines can be advanced to protect us against the major diseases of the 21st century. ABOUT THE SERIES: The Very Short Introductions series from Oxford University Press contains hundreds of titles in almost every subject area. These pocket-sized books are the perfect way to get ahead in a new subject quickly. Our expert authors combine facts, analysis, perspective, new ideas, and enthusiasm to make interesting and challenging topics highly readable.

In this updated edition of Basic Immunology, the authors continue to deliver a clear, modern introduction to immunology, making this the obvious choice for today's busy students. Their experience as teachers, course directors, and lecturers helps them to distill the core information required to understand this complex field. Through the use of high-quality illustrations, relevant clinical cases, and concise, focused text, it's a perfectly accessible introduction to the workings of the human immune system, with an emphasis on clinical relevance. Concise, clinically focused content is logically organized by mechanism for efficient mastery of the material. Features an appendix of clinical cases and CD molecules. Includes numerous full-color illustrations, useful tables, and chapter outlines. Focus questions within each chapter are ideal for self-assessment and review. Key points bolded throughout the text make it easy to locate important information. Presents information in a format and style that maximizes usefulness to students and teachers studying medicine, allied health fields, and biology. Fully updated content equips you with the latest relevant advances in immunology. Revised and updated artwork enhances your visual learning of important principles and reduces the excessive factual details found in larger textbooks. Twelve brand-new animations available on Student Consult help further explain complex concepts. Student Consult eBook version included with purchase. This enhanced eBook experience gives you access to the text, figures, images, glossary of immunology terms, self-assessment questions, and references on a variety of devices.

Basic Immunology focuses on substances that take part in serological reactions, including antigens, antibodies, and the physicochemical nature of immunological reactions. The selection first elaborates on the basic notions of immunity, antigens, immunoglobulins, and the production of antibody. Discussions focus on factors which increase the immune response, production of antibody, biological properties of immunoglobulins, evolution and control of immunoglobulin structure, antigenicity, specific immunity, and resistance. The text then takes a look at the complement system, antigen-antibody reactions, and immediate hypersensitivity. The book ponders on cell-mediated immunity and delayed hypersensitivity, transplantation immunology, and tumor immunology. Topics include production of immunity to neoplasms, immunological aspects of carcinogenesis and growth of established tumors, immunotherapy for experimental neoplasms, donor selection in human-organ transplantation, elicitation of delayed hypersensitivity, and the role of humoral factors in the transfer of delayed hypersensitivity. The selection is a valuable reference for medicine students and researchers interested in basic immunology.