Asthma: Physiology, Immunopharmacology, and Treatment is a collection of essays that discusses the clinical signs and symptoms of allergic bronchial asthma and the effects of a number of intricate sequences of biochemical reactions initiated by the combination of antigen and antibody. It presents such topic as the pathobiologic mechanisms of asthma. The book discusses the physiologic changes in the acute asthmatic attack. It focuses on the autonomic regulation of airway smooth muscle and the nervous regulation of respiration. Another topic of interest is the genetic aspects of asthma. The section that follows is a review of the biochemical, pharmacological, and immunological factors in the release of chemical mediators from human lung. The book also presents the characteristics of pharmacologic receptor systems and the role of parasympathetic nervous system in asthma. The text will provide valuable insights for physicians, scientists, students, and researchers in the field of human anatomy.

Immunopharmacology: A New Discipline of Immense Potential Among the looming triumphs of the biologic revolution is the rapidly developing understanding of the mechanisms of bodily defense. In the short span of 35 years, knowledge of immunologic machinery has progressed from crudest description to major understanding in cellular and molecular terms. Antibodies, immunoglobulins, and the complement system have been almost completely defined in detailed molecular terms. Organs, like thymus, spleen and lymph nodes-so long enigmatic black boxes-are beginning to be understood not only in cellular terms but in molecular, physiologic, and endocrinologic terms. With this surging new information about the immune system comes the possi bility of developing a pharmacology which can modulate and control immunologic functions. Immunopharmacology most broadly conceived must address (1) control of development and function of the cellular components of the immunologic appara tus; (2) facilitation and suppression of function of the immunologically competent cells of the several subclasses, like T helpers, suppressors, and effectors, and B effectors and suppressors; (3) manipulation and repair of the major biologic amplifi cation systems, e. g. , the complement system and kinin-kallikrein system, and (4) utilization, modulation, and inhibition of the galaxy of molecules generated by T lymphocytes, the lymphokines. This new pharmacology must deal with the funda mental effector mechanisms of immunity, namely inflammation, phagocytosis, vascular reactivity, and blood coagulation. Furthermore, immunopharmacology must address and manipulate cell-cell communication and interaction, so vital to control of the immunological apparatus.

This book updates the previous coverage of the mechanisms and mediators of asthma and its treatment. It presents articles by the foremost names in the field. - Updates the previous coverage of the mechanisms and mediators of asthma and its treatment - Presents articles by the foremost names in the field - Includes over 92 figures and 12 tables

Contents: definition; epidemiology; risk factors; mechanisms of asthma; diagnosis and classification; prevention; a six-part asthma management program (educate patients to develop a partnership in asthma management; assess and monitor asthma severity; avoid or control asthma triggers; establish medication plans for long-term management; establish plans for managing exacerbations; provide regular follow-up care); socioeconomics; education and the delivery of care; recommendations; glossary. Extensive references. Charts and tables.

Development of Anti-Asthma Drugs reviews existing asthma treatments and novel approaches currently under investigation, in the context of their mode of action and clinical effectiveness, in the hope that this might lead to a greater understanding of the factors involved in the expression of the disease and, therefore, in the design of better drugs. It is planned based on the concept of the causes and treatment of asthma, This book is organized in three main parts. Part I deals with the nature of asthma, its pathological mechanisms, natural history and epidemiology. Part II discusses mediators associated with asthma including platelet-activating factor, leukotrienes and histamine. Part II covers pharmaceutical approaches in the development of anti-asthma drugs and includes sections on inhibitors of mediator release and competitive and functional antagonists. This book will be of interest to persons dealing with studies on anti-asthma drugs and those interested in pharmacological development.

During the past decades, with the introduction of the recombinant DNA, hybridoma and transgenic technologies there has been an exponential evolution in understanding the pathogenesis, diagnosis and treatment of a large number of human diseases. The technologies are evident with the development of cytokines and monoclonal antibodies as therapeutic agents and the techniques used in gene therapy. Immunopharmacology is that area of biomedical sciences where immunology, pharmacology and pathology overlap. It concerns the pharmacological approach to the immune response in physiological as well as pathological events. This goals and objectives of this textbook are to emphasize the developments in immunology and pharmacology as they relate to the modulation of immune response. The information includes the pharmacology of cytokines, monoclonal antibodies, mechanism of action of immune-suppressive agents and their relevance in tissue transplantation, therapeutic strategies for the treatment of AIDS and the techniques employed in gene therapy. The book is intended for health care professional students and graduate students in pharmacology and immunology.

First multi-year cumulation covers six years: 1965-70.

Now available in its Third Edition, Asthma: Basic Mechanisms and Clinical Management has become the reference text in asthma. This highly successful text sheds new light on the basic physiological and molecular mechanisms of asthma, how current treatments work, and how best to apply the latest knowledge to control this important disease. The Third Edition has undergone radical revision and includes several new chapters. It retains the virtues of the previous volumes by bringing together all of the recent research findings by internationally recognized experts on the causative mechanisms of asthma, including in-depth clinical aspects and therapy. The book presents an integrated approach toward the treatment of this disease with new concepts, changes in asthma management, and the development of new therapeutic agents. Asthma provides extensive references for researchers and clinicians who need to keep abreast of recent developments in this rapidly expanding field. - Comprehensive coverage of both basic science and clinical aspects of asthma - Extensively referenced throughout