BOOK REVIEW Gary P. Wormser, Section Editor
The Immune Response to Infection Edited by Stefan H. E. Kaufmann, Barry T. Rouse, and David L. Sacks
The Immune Response to Infection is a very comprehensive textbook divided into 10 sections and 51 chapters and authored by 109 experts from the United States, Canada, and Europe; it is published by ASM Press. An important principle endorsed by this text is that one cannot be a complete infectious disease specialist without developing some knowledge and expertise in immunology. The 10 sections cover general host defense; an overview of viral, parasitic, bacterial, fungal, and prion pathogens; innate immunity; acquired immunity; the pathology and pathogenesis of bacterial, parasitic, and viral agents; evasion; and the genetics of the host immune response. The last 3 sections cover autoimmunity and cancer related to viruses, bacteria, and parasites; immune intervention; and the epidemiology and immunology of 4 diseases that account for .33% of deaths worldwide due to infectious diseases: human immunodeficiency virus infection, tuberculosis, malaria, and influenza. The text is written at a very sophisticated level of immunological knowledge and is well referenced. Some of the animal model detail does not seem to add much to an understanding of the topic. Some of the chapters have good tables and figures that improve understanding of the material. Sections of
Clinical Infectious Diseases 2012;54(8):1218–9 Ó The Author 2012. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Infectious Diseases Society of America. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please e-mail: journals.
[email protected]. DOI: 10.1093/cid/cis124
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the book are difficult to read because of the small print, double columns, and interruption of the word flow by multiple citations. Because there are so many abbreviations of cytokines and pathway nomenclature, a table of abbreviations should have been provided at the start of each chapter. The first section covers the ontogeny of host immune defenses, with a detailed description of the importance and central role of innate immunity. The final chapter (9) of that section, regarding memory and infection, was particularly interesting, well written, and informative. Chapter 10, entitled ‘‘Overview of Viral Pathogens,’’ the first chapter in section II, was also well written and informative. The third section covers innate immunity and might be particularly challenging to nonexperts in experimental immunology. However, the chapters on innate immunity to bacteria and parasites (17 and 18, respectively) pull things together. Section IV covers acquired immunity and seems also to be aimed at readers with a sophisticated knowledge of immunology. The understanding of the material in this section is facilitated by the fact that some of the information has been introduced in previous chapters and because the material is logically divided into chapters covering immunity against viruses; persistent viruses; acute and chronic bacterial infections; and fungal, protozoal, and helminthic infections. Chapter 26 (the first chapter of section V) is one of the most readable and interesting in this textbook. It is comprehensive and well organized and describes inflammatory responses, cytokine effects, neutrophils, antibody responses, and cellmediated immune responses to extracellular and intracellular bacterial infections. The following chapter (27) presents an interesting focus on the immune response
BOOK REVIEW
in the pathogenesis of Helicobacter pylori. The last 3 chapters in this section discuss the pathogenesis of helminth infections, malaria, and viral infections. The latter chapter is a bit wordy and repetitive. Section VI, ‘‘Evasion and Suppression of the Immune Response,’’ has 6 chapters. The first covers viruses and would be well served by a few tables. The second chapter reviews aging and viral immunity; the next (chapter 33) focuses on aging and immunity to bacteria. The following chapter about bacterial strategies for survival in the host is very detailed, as are chapters 35 and 36, which cover immune suppression to protozoa and immune evasion by parasites. The latter 2 are elegant, interesting, and informative but could be overwhelming and difficult for the nonmolecular immunologist. The first of 3 chapters in section VII, entitled ‘‘Genetics of Antibacterial Host Defenses,’’ is one of the best written and easiest to follow in the book. The other 2 chapters cover the genetics of the host response to parasites and viruses. Section VIII is devoted to autoimmunity and cancer and also contains 3 chapters. The first is devoted to viruses, the second to chronic bacterial and parasitic agents, and the third is devoted to a discussion of the cattle parasite, Theileria-induced leukocyte transformation. There are 5 chapters in the immune intervention section (IX). Chapters 43, 45, and 47, which discuss vaccine design, strategies against tuberculosis, and targeting components in vector saliva, are unusual, applicable, easy to follow, and interesting. The last section (X) has 4 chapters devoted to the epidemiology and various clinical aspects of tuberculosis, malaria, and influenza and to AIDS vaccines. These chapters seem to be added and do not improve the textbook.
This tome may become an important reference on your bookshelf, but it will not be a popular book on your night table for recreational reading.
Lawrence D. Frenkel1,2,3
Note Potential conflicts of interest. Author certifies no potential conflicts of interest. The author has submitted the ICMJE Form for Disclosure of Potential Conflicts of Interest. Conflicts that the editors consider relevant to the content of the manuscript have been disclosed.
Departments of and 2Microbiology, University of Illinois College of Medicine, Rockford; and 3Division of Allergy, Immunology and Infectious Diseases, The Children's Hospital, St Peter's University Hospital, Somerset, New Jersey
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1Pediatrics,
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