In Defense of the Brain: Immunopathogenesis of Infection of the CNS

Author: Phillip K. Peterson
Published: June 1997
Publisher: Blackwell Publishers
ISBN: 0865425558
Hardcover Book
Number of Pages: 355

Click to compare book prices for In Defense of the Brain: Immunopathogenesis of Infection of the CNS

In Defense of the Brain provides state of the art summaries of twenty of the most dynamic topics in CNS infections. Integrating pathogenesis with clinical diagnosis and treatment, these essays represent up-to-the-minute snap shots of current thinking on such topics as microglia, cytokines, prior disease, HIV, encephalitis and many others. Co-authored by Jack Remington, author of the successful series, Current Clinical Topics in Infectious Diseases, this book contains chapters written by leaders in the field of infectious disease. Two expert editors have assembled a coterie of equally expert authors (including a 1997 Nobel Prize Winner) who provide new insights and, in turn, debunk many myths concerning the presence and vigor of host defense mechanisms in the central nervous system. In short, this book is a serious assault on the last immunologic frontier -- the brain! It is intended for neurologists, infectious disease specialists, basic and clinical immunologists, and virologists. The first part of the book is devoted to new concepts of CNS pathophysiology and its generation of host defense mechanisms that include effector cells and cytokines and their traffic patterns and signaling characteristics, and then correlation of these findings with the clinical manifestations of bacterial and viral diseases of the brain. The application of new concepts to ameliorate CNS disease is also emphasized. For example, the pioneering use of corticosteroids in treating bacterial meningitis can now be understood. Now, basic immunologists are unraveling the actual cytokines and cell sequences that undergo broad suppression by corticosteroids. The next step will be precise localization of cytokines susceptible for attack and focused suppression of CNS inflammatory diseases. All of the chapters are well written, signaling close oversight by the editors. There are many informative tables and figures to supplement the text. There is an outstanding chapter on microglia and also an important chapter that develops a concept that, for further progress to continue in the treatment of meningitis, infectious disease clinicians must move beyond antibiotics and think about modulation of the induced cytokines, the mysteries ofwhich are now being unraveled. It is difficult to find even a minor quibble with this monograph. I suspect that the second edition may include a chapter on the new insights into signals between the CNS and peripheral lymphoid cells, and perhaps a more extensive discussion of apoptotic mechanisms and how they contribute to misdirected neuronal damage during CNS viral infections. Overall, this is an outstanding effort and is highly recommended. Various specialists synthesize the current understanding of neuroimmunology from the perspective of their disciplines, in particular the strategies at the molecular level a host uses to defend its brain. They discuss such topics as the blood-brain barrier, T-cell trafficking, glial cells, cytokines, and neurodegeneration in context of the most important infections of the brain, including HIV dementia, prion diseases, rabies, bacterial and fungal meningitis, and cerebral malaria. They review the pathogenesis, epidemiology, prevention, mechanisms, clinical management, and other aspects. . Peterson, Phillip K., MD (Univ of Minnesota); Remington, Jack S., MD (Stanford Univ)The contributors represent the specialties of microbiology, pathology, infectious disease, immunology, medicine, and pediatrics. Most are from medical centers, universities, institutes, and foundations in four countries, including the U.S. Institutions prominently represented include Univ of Nebraska, Thomas Jefferson Univ, Univ of Minnesota, Stanford, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, and Minneapolis Medical Research Foundation.

Table of Contents
Preface
Contributors
1 Pathophysiology of Alterations in the Blood-Brain Barrier During Bacterial Meningitis
2 Leukocyte Migration into the Central Nervous System
3 Microglia: A "Double Edged Sword"
4 Cells and Cytokines in Host Defense of the Central Nervous System
5 Glia-Mediated Neurotoxicity
6 Targeting Bacteria to the Central Nervous System
7 Contribution of Cytokines to Meningeal Inflammation in Bacterial Meningitis
8 Neuronal Injury in Meningitis
9 Mechanisms of Cerebral Malaria
10 Toxoplasmosis of the Central Nervous System
11 Neuropathogenesis of African Sleeping Sickness
12 Issues and Controversies in Cysticercosis
13 Cryptococcal Meningitis
14 Coccidioides immitis Meningitis
15 Rabies: Lessons from the Past and a Glimpse into the Future
16 Herpes Simplex Infections of the Central Nervous System
17 Viral Persistence in the Central Nervous System
18 The Neuropathogenesis of HIV-1-Associated Dementia
19 Viral-Induced Demyelination Leading to Progressive Multifocal Leukoencephalopathy: The Involvement of Both Immune and Nervous System Target Cells
20 Molecular Pathogenesis of Genetic and Infectious Prion Diseases
Index

Click to compare book prices for In Defense of the Brain: Immunopathogenesis of Infection of the CNS In Defense of the Brain: Immunopathogenesis of Infection of the CNS

Compare Shop Books - Help - About - Book Links - Book Coupons