In 1901 Emil von Behring received the first Nobel Prize in med. for serum therapy against diphtheria, a disease that killed thousands of infants annually. Diphtheria serum was the first major cure of the bacteriological era and its develop. generated procedures for testing, standardizing, and regulating drugs. Emphasizes Behring's contrib. to the study of infectious disease, the formation of modern immunology, and research on remedies and vaccines against microbial infections. Explores his relations to the rival bacteriological schools of Robert Koch and Louis Pasteur, the emergent German pharmaceutical industry, and the institutionalization of experimental therapeutic research. Also contains translations of 13 key articles by Behring and his assoc.

We are swamped with information and each day seems to bring new discoveries that must be considered. Never before in the history of science have so many scientists been as active as today. It has become a major problem for the expert just to keep up with the literature in his or her own field of research. Why, then, should experts and their poor students worry about the pioneers of microbiology, those half-forgotten scientists who a century ago devoted their lives to a new science that was on its way to revolutionizing medicine?With so many new facts and problems screaming for our attention, it is easy to lose sight of the long road that we have travelled in order to get to the point where we are now. Tracing the path of those who have gone before us will help us to see our own scientific goals and efforts in a more revealing perspective.The great figures who are at the center of interest in this book — Robert Koch, Emil von Behring, Paul Ehrlich and Elie Metchnikoff — were far from uncontroversial during their lifetimes. It is interesting to see how they were judged by their peers at the Karolinska Institutet when they were considered for the Nobel Prize.Pioneers of Microbiology and the Nobel Prize has been written in such a way that it can be enjoyed even without an extensive knowledge of microbiology and medicine. In fact, a considerable part of the book portrays the state of medicine during the middle of the 19th century, when bacteriology can be said to have made its debut on the medical scene.

Animals and Medicine: The Contribution of Animal Experiments to the Control of Disease offers a detailed, scholarly historical review of the critical role animal experiments have played in advancing medical knowledge. Laboratory animals have been essential to this progress, and the knowledge gained has saved countless lives—both human and animal. Unfortunately, those opposed to using animals in research have often employed doctored evidence to suggest that the practice has impeded medical progress. This volume presents the articles Jack Botting wrote for the Research Defence Society News from 1991 to 1996, papers which provided scientists with the information needed to rebut such claims. Collected, they can now reach a wider readership interested in understanding the part of animal experiments in the history of medicine—from the discovery of key vaccines to the advancement of research on a range of diseases, among them hypertension, kidney failure and cancer.This book is essential reading for anyone curious about the role of animal experimentation in the history of science from the nineteenth century to the present.

This interdisciplinary atlas is the fruit of cooperation among radiologists, orthopedic surgeons, traumatologists, and neurosurgeons. Clinically oriented, it covers all important diseases and injuries of the spine. Numerous illustrations are supplemented by concise descriptions of anatomy and pathophysiology, normal and abnormal MRI appearance, diagnostic pitfalls, and the clinical significance of MRI. The didactic style establishes the fundamentals of spinal anatomy and disease as a basis for understanding diagnostic strategies and surgical management. By combining descriptions of the clinical manifestation of spinal disorders with the corresponding MRI findings, the book develops a meaningful approach to the interpretation of MRI of the spine.

The Immune Response is a unique reference work covering the basic and clinical principles of immunology in a modern and comprehensive fashion. Written in an engaging conversational style, the book conveys the broad scope and fascinating appeal of immunology. The book is beautifully illustrated with superb figures as well as many full color plates. This extraordinary work will be an invaluable resource for lecturers and graduate students in immunology, as well as a vital reference for research scientists and clinicians studying related areas in the life and medical sciences. - Current and thorough 30 chapter reference reviewed by luminaries in the field - Unique 'single voice' ensures consistency of definitions and concepts - Comprehensive and elegant illustrations bring key concepts to life - Provides historical context to allow fuller understanding of key issues - Introductory chapters 1-4 serve as an 'Immunology Primer' before topics are discussed in more detail

This electronic version has been made available under a Creative Commons (BY-NC-ND) open access license. Mass vaccination campaigns are political projects that presume to protect individuals, communities, and societies. Like other pervasive expressions of state power - taxing, policing, conscripting - mass vaccination arouses anxiety in some people but sentiments of civic duty and shared solidarity in others. This collection of essays gives a comparative overview of vaccination at different times, in widely different places and under different types of political regime. Core themes in the chapters include immunisation as an element of state formation; citizens' articulation of seeing (or not seeing) their needs incorporated into public health practice; allegations that donors of development aid have too much influence on third-world health policies; and an ideological shift that regards vaccines more as profitable commodities than as essential tools of public health.

This book presents the 24 discoveries in infectious diseases that have merited Nobel Prize recognition since the inception of the awards in 1901. Grouped according to biological groups rather than chronology, each discovery includes a biographical sketch of the laureate(s), a description of the research, and a summary of the current status of the field. In addition, consideration is given to the relevance of the research on the general field of biology and medicine.

Follows the advance of western medicine from ancient Greece, through the contributions of the great Islamic physicians, to modern day miracles such as antibiotics, CAT scans and organ transplants. Highlighting the great medical discoveries, contributors cover such topics as the relationship in the Renaissance between medicine and art, the tension between the church and an increasingly secularized medical professional class, epidemics and the geography of disease, and changing attitudes towards childbirth, mental disease, and the doctor-patient relationship. c. Book News Inc.