Immunology, Immunopathology, and Immunity

Book excerpt: The sixth edition of this best-selling textbook presents a systematic account of the effects, both good and bad, of the immune system. Special emphasis is placed on what the immune system actually does in causing and preventing disease. Divided into two parts, the sixth edition discusses inflammation, the fundamentals of the immune system and how it is activated, the seven immune effector mechanisms, and how these effector mechanisms act not only to protect against infection and cancer but also to cause diseases. Valuable reading for physicians, medical students, graduate students, nurse practitioners, physician assistants, teachers of immunology, and advanced courses in immunology.