Recent years have seen the realization that macroautophagy (which we will call autophagy) is not only important in yeast but is necessary for diverse functions in plants and animals. Importantly, autophagy can have an impact on human pathologies including infectious diseases, cancers, and neurodegenerative conditions.1 Thus, we need to be able to measure autophagy accurately in order to understand how it can be regulated physiologically and with exogenous agents.

Jose Luis Pedraz, Gorka Orive

The main objective of this book has been to analyze in depth and discuss the different aspects related to the design and elaboration of cell-enclosing microcapsules, even the regulatory features and clinical trials under development. These improvements will lead to progression in this therapeutic approach which may become one day closer to a realistic proposal for clinical application. The advances in drug delivery technology have enabled a new era of drug discovery and development. In this regard, cell microencapsulation is a technology that opens new venues and possibilities to the administration of new active principles and may be the key to solve several issues related to the correct... continue reading

Journal names are important because they often define the scope of the publication. A journal’s name must be sufficiently specific to define the major interest of the publication but not too narrow to prevent its rapid obsolescence as fields evolve. In naming this journal ‘Virulence’ the creators of this scientific publishing venue have staked a remarkably broad scope and it is worthwhile to reflect on the choice of the word and what this could mean for the future of the journal. No other major journal in the broad disciplines of microbiology, microbial pathogenesis or immunology has used the word ‘Virulence’ in the journal name. Perhaps the reticence to use this word has to... continue reading

Antonio A. de Freitas

The history of this text started years ago after reading Wittgenstein’s “Tratactus Logico-Philosophicus”. At some time later, it seemed to me a good idea to follow the “tratactus” structure to attempt to write a minimal description of the immune system. I finally did it for fun and hopefully to be useful to whomever reads it. The text reflects my own personal view of the vertebrate’s immune system (IS). It is centered on concepts and ideas that were developed since 1986 based on work from my own lab1 and from Benedita Rocha’s lab2 and I’m greatly indebted to her for this. I have kept it short and focused on what I believe are the essential features of the IS. I’ve tried... continue reading

Residue and degree-specific methylation of histone lysines along with other epigenetic modifications organizes chromatin into distinct domains and regulates almost every aspect of DNA metabolism. Identification of histone methyltransferases and demethylases, as well as proteins that recognize methylated lysines, has clarified the role of each methylation event in regulating different biological pathways. Methylation of histone H4 lysine 20 (H4K20me) plays critical roles in diverse cellular processes such as gene expression, cell cycle progression and DNA damage repair, with each of the three degrees of methylation (mono- di- and tri-methylation) making a unique contribution. Here we... continue reading

Paola A. Gehrig, Angeles Alvarez Secord

Gynecologic Oncology was not meant to be a comprehensive guide to the rapidly changing practice of gynecologic oncology, but a reference from which one can be guided in the right direction in the quest for information. Gynecologic Oncology may assist health care professionals to care for the women with gynecologic malignancies or at least help them to make a more timely diagnosis and referral and it may also serve as a guide as they strive to learn more about their disease. This handbook has information, which covers the full spectrum of gynecologic oncology, from diagnosis to palliative care; from basic science to cancer genetics; and from surgery to chemotherapy and radiotherapy. In... continue reading

Katalin Balogh, Attila Patocs

The vast expansion in research on tumorigenesis has greatly increased our understanding of tumor development in patients with inherited endocrine tumor syndromes. SuperMEN1, Pituitary, Parathyroid and Pancreas provides an up-to-date summary from clinical basics and latest follow-up guidelines to the most recent molecular findings in multiple endocrine neoplasia Type 1 syndrome. Articles have been assembled by acknowledged experts in their respective fields to provide current perspectives on the clinical and genetic backgrounds of this syndrome and to review carefully the latest discoveries concerning the possible functions and interactions of menin, the protein encoded by the MEN1 gene,... continue reading

Abhay R. Satoskar, Gary Simon, Peter J. Hotez, Moriya Tsuji

Infections caused by parasites are still a major global health problem. Although parasitic infections are responsible for a significant morbidity and mortality in the developing countries, they are also prevalent in the developed countries. Early diagnosis and treatment of a parasitic infection is not only critical for preventing morbidity and mortality individually but also for reducing the risk of spread of infection in the community. This concise book gives an overview of critical facts for clinical and laboratory diagnosis, treatment and prevention of parasitic diseases which are common in humans and which are most likely to be encountered in a clinical practice. This book is a... continue reading

Objective: In this study we examined the effect of rapamycin (RAPA), a key component of the immunosuppressive regimen in clinical islet transplantation, on islet engraftment and function in vivo. Methods and results: Diabetic C57BL/6 or BALB/C recipient mice were transplanted with 350 syngeneic islets through the portal vein (PV-Tx; C57BL/6 n = 60; BALB/C n = 22) and treated with once-daily oral RAPA (1 mg/kg) or vehicle. No differences in post-transplant blood glucose concentrations and glucose tolerance were observed between RAPA- and vehicle-treated mice. The impact of RAPA on human islet engraftment was assessed in 10 patients with type 1 diabetes treated with 0.1 mg/kg/day rapamycin... continue reading