Dormancy and Low Growth States in Microbial Disease
Dormancy and Low Growth States in Microbial Disease

Author: Anthony R. M. Coates

Publisher: Cambridge University Press

Published: 2003-06-02

Total Pages: 294

ISBN-13: 9781139437844

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All cellular life-forms can exist in replicating and non-replicating states. Organisms replicate only when the conditions are beneficial, and when not replicating they concentrate on survival of these environmental stresses. Many bacteria, harmful to humans, survive the period of infection in a low growth state. This 2003 book addresses the basic science of microbial dormancy and low growth states, putting this in the context of human medicine. Such fundamental topics as bacterial growth and non-growth, culturability and viability are covered, as well as survival of the host's immune response, and inter-bacterial signalling. Following this introduction, more medically focused topics are discussed, namely antibiotic resistance arising during stationary phase, biofilms, the bacteria which cause gastric ulcers and tuberculosis as the classic persistent bacterial infection. This book will interest graduate students and researchers in medical microbiology, immunology and infectious disease medicine who are interested in bacterial dormancy in relation to disease.

Microbial Threats to Health
Microbial Threats to Health

Author: Institute of Medicine

Publisher: National Academies Press

Published: 2003-08-25

Total Pages: 397

ISBN-13: 0309185548

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Infectious diseases are a global hazard that puts every nation and every person at risk. The recent SARS outbreak is a prime example. Knowing neither geographic nor political borders, often arriving silently and lethally, microbial pathogens constitute a grave threat to the health of humans. Indeed, a majority of countries recently identified the spread of infectious disease as the greatest global problem they confront. Throughout history, humans have struggled to control both the causes and consequences of infectious diseases and we will continue to do so into the foreseeable future. Following up on a high-profile 1992 report from the Institute of Medicine, Microbial Threats to Health examines the current state of knowledge and policy pertaining to emerging and re-emerging infectious diseases from around the globe. It examines the spectrum of microbial threats, factors in disease emergence, and the ultimate capacity of the United States to meet the challenges posed by microbial threats to human health. From the impact of war or technology on disease emergence to the development of enhanced disease surveillance and vaccine strategies, Microbial Threats to Health contains valuable information for researchers, students, health care providers, policymakers, public health officials. and the interested public.

The Dynamic Bacterial Genome
The Dynamic Bacterial Genome

Author: Peter Mullany

Publisher: Cambridge University Press

Published: 2010-02-04

Total Pages: 454

ISBN-13: 1139445502

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The genetic information contained in DNA is not static, especially in bacterial DNA. It is capable of recombining with other DNA sequences and transferring to other bacteria. These processes allow bacteria to rapidly respond to their environment and are also important in production of disease and the spread of antibiotic resistance. This book is concerned with the mechanisms underlying these dynamic processes in bacterial DNA.

Bacterial Invasion of Host Cells
Bacterial Invasion of Host Cells

Author: Richard J. Lamont

Publisher: Cambridge University Press

Published: 2004-03-29

Total Pages: 360

ISBN-13: 9781139451550

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This book concerns the intimate association between bacteria and host cells. Many bacterial pathogens are able to invade and survive within cells at mucosal membranes. Remarkably, the bacteria themselves orchestrate this process through the exploitation of host cellular signal transduction pathways. Intracellular invasion can lead to disruption of host tissue integrity and perturbation of the immune system. An understanding of the molecular basis of bacterial invasion and of host cell adaptation to intracellular bacteria will provide fundamental insights into the pathophysiology of bacteria and the cell biology of the host. The book details specific examples of bacteria that are masters of manipulation of eukaryotic cell signaling and relates these events to the broader context of host-pathogen interaction. Written by experts in the field, this book will be of interest to researchers and graduate students in microbiology, immunology, biochemistry, as well as molecular medicine and dentistry.

Salmonella Infections
Salmonella Infections

Author: Duncan Maskell

Publisher: Cambridge University Press

Published: 2006-02-23

Total Pages: 410

ISBN-13: 1107320623

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Salmonella enterica encompasses a diverse range of bacteria that cause a spectrum of diseases in many hosts. Advancements in prevention and treatment of S. enterica infections have at times been hampered by compartmentalization of research efforts and lack of multidisciplinary approaches. This book attempts to cover a diverse range of topics related to the biology of S. enterica infections, including epidemiological and clinical aspects, molecular pathogenesis, immunity to disease and vaccines. S. enterica infections are important zoonoses and therefore material on infections of animals and public health issues have also been considered. Each chapter can be read independently, but the full contents of the book will provide the reader with up-to-date knowledge on all the key aspects of salmonellosis in humans and animals. It will therefore be of interest to graduate students and researchers, as well as to clinicians, whose research focuses on this important pathogen.

Mammalian Host Defense Peptides
Mammalian Host Defense Peptides

Author: Deirdre A. Devine

Publisher: Cambridge University Press

Published: 2004-09-20

Total Pages: 416

ISBN-13: 9780521822206

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Cationic antimicrobial peptides are multifunctional peptides of the innate immune system, which not only act directly against microorganisms, but also signal between early and late immune responses and modulate inflammatory reposnes. The significance of these host defence peptides in combating infection and in host-microbe homeostasis has become increasingly clear, through advances made by microbiologists, biochemists, biophysicists, immunologists, molecular biologists, and a range of medical and pharmaceutical researchers. This book, drawing together contributions from leading scientists, reviews significant recent advances in our knowledge of mammalian antimicrobial peptides. In addition to providing up-to-date overviews of their structure, expression and biology, their multiple activities and interactions with microbial populations as well as their potential application as novel therapeutic agents are summarized. Chapters describing developments using animal models and investigations of the roles of these host defence peptides in microbial infections are complemented by chapters addressing their mechanisms of action and of microbial resistance.

Stress-Induced Mutagenesis
Stress-Induced Mutagenesis

Author: David Mittelman

Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media

Published: 2013-03-12

Total Pages: 284

ISBN-13: 1461462800

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The discovery of stress-induced mutagenesis has changed ideas about mutation and evolution, and revealed mutagenic programs that differ from standard spontaneous mutagenesis in rapidly proliferating cells. The stress-induced mutations occur during growth-limiting stress, and can include adaptive mutations that allow growth in the otherwise growth-limiting environment. The stress responses increase mutagenesis specifically when cells are maladapted to their environments, i.e. are stressed, potentially accelerating evolution then. The mutation mechanism also includes temporary suspension of post-synthesis mismatch repair, resembling mutagenesis characteristic of some cancers. Stress-induced mutation mechanisms may provide important models for genome instability underlying some cancers and genetic diseases, resistance to chemotherapeutic and antibiotic drugs, pathogenicity of microbes, and many other important evolutionary processes. This book covers pathways of stress-induced mutagenesis in all systems. The principle focus is mammalian systems, but much of what is known of these pathways comes from non-mammalian systems.

Comparative Ecology of Microorganisms and Macroorganisms
Comparative Ecology of Microorganisms and Macroorganisms

Author: John H. Andrews

Publisher: Springer

Published: 2017-06-27

Total Pages: 365

ISBN-13: 1493968971

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This second edition textbook offers an expanded conceptual synthesis of microbial ecology with plant and animal ecology. Drawing on examples from the biology of microorganisms and macroorganisms, this textbook provides a much-needed interdisciplinary approach to ecology. The focus is the individual organism and comparisons are made along six axes: genetic variation, nutritional mode, size, growth, life cycle, and influence of the environment. When it was published in 1991, the first edition of Comparative Ecology of Microorganisms and Macroorganisms was unique in its attempt to clearly compare fundamental ecology across the gamut of size. The explosion of molecular biology and the application of its techniques to microbiology and organismal biology have particularly demonstrated the need for interdisciplinary understanding. This updated and expanded edition remains unique. It treats the same topics at greater depth and includes an exhaustive compilation of both the most recent relevant literature in microbial ecology and plant/animal ecology, as well as the early research papers that shaped the concepts and theories discussed. Among the completely updated topics in the book are phylogenetic systematics, search algorithms and optimal foraging theory, comparative metabolism, the origins of life and evolution of multicellularity, and the evolution of life cycles. From Reviews of the First Edition: "John Andrews has succeeded admirably in building a bridge that is accessible to all ecologists." -Ecology "I recommend this book to all ecologists. It is a thoughtful attempt to integrate ideas from, and develop common themes for, two fields of ecology that should not have become fragmented." -American Scientist "Such a synthesis is long past due, and it is shameful that ecologists (both big and little) have been so parochial." -The Quarterly Review of Biology