Lung Biology in Health & Disease Volume 174 The Immunological Basis of Asthma

This text assesses the role of dendritic cells, T and B lymphocytes, epithelial and mast cells, eosinophils, neutrophils, macrophages, and their products in the initiation and progression of airway inflammation, regulation, and repair. It unveils advances in immunology and cell biology to generate new therapeutic regimens for inflammatory and allergic diseases,and offers unparalleled research from nearly 60 international contributors. Doody Review Services Reviewer: Alain F. Broccard, MD(University of Minnesota Medical School) Description: This is an ambitious overview of the role of the immune system in the pathogenesis of asthma. Purpose: The goal of the authors is to provide readers with a better understanding of the pathogenesis of asthma, hoping that this might ultimately help change the natural course of the disease. Audience: The target audience includes clinician scientists, pulmonologists, and pharmacologists. Features: The coverage is broad, including basic immunologic mechanisms in general and in asthma in particular. The book overall makes very good use of tables and figures. Not all figures are, however, of the same quality and the index is not as helpful at it could have been. Although the book is a result of an international effort, there is an underrepresentation of leading U.S. authorities and overrepresentation of European researchers. More emphasis could have been put on the relationship between the basic science and its potential clinical relevance. Assessment: This book is a reasonable alternative to other recent publications on the topics. Assessing the role of dendritic cells, T and B lymphocytes, epithelial and mast cells, eosinophils, neutrophils, macrophages, and their byproducts in the initiation and progression of airway inflammation, regulation, and repair, this reference unveils recent advances in immunology and cell biology to generate new therapeutic regimens for inflammatory and allergic diseases. Data from human studies are discussed in light of findings from animal models to provide a balanced view of the immunology of asthma and its management. The Immunological Basis of Asthma examines various agents of pulmonary immune response and their role in airway inflammation, irritation, and hyperreactivity...the impact of genetic and environmental factors on immune development...the immunopathophysiology of asthma...and immunological aspects of current and future therapies The upper and lower airways together represent the largest epithelial surface exposed to the outside environment.