Synopsis: |
Fever is one of the most common responses to infection and injury, occurring in mammals, birds, reptiles, fish, and even in many insects. Yet many basic questions about this familiar phenomenon remain unanswered. For example, is fever beneficial or harmful to the infected host? In this book contributors from a wide variety of disciplines present some of the latest findings in fever research. The authors place major emphasis on recent advances using molecular tools such as cytokine knockout mice, cloned cytokines, descriptions of molecular pathways for signal transduction, and heat shock proteins. They discuss the interactions between endogenous pyrogens and antipyretics in modulating fever, a highly regulated rise in body temperature. They describe related sickness behaviors such as increased sleep and decreased food appetite. Finally, they place fever in a "Darwinian" context by discussions, both pro and con, of the role of fever in disease. Selected contributors: Charels A. Dinarello, Andrew J. Dorner, Hubertine Heremans, Wieslaw Kozak, Maria Zetterstrom, Quentin J. Pittman, Anna Catania, Lisa R. Leon, Flavio Coceani, Giamal N. Luheshi, Clifford B. Saper, Elmir Sehic, J.A.Boulant, Eugen Zeisberger, Rose-Marie Bluthe, M.J.P. Lenczowski, James M. Krueger, Carlos R. Plata-Salaman, Barbara Cannon, J.R.S. Hales, Pope L. Moseley, Phililp A. Mackowiak, Matthew J. Kluger, Joseph G. Cannon, Jos W.M. Van der Meer, T. Cartmell, Marcia E.S. Ferreira, Richard R. Gonzalez, Alexander V. Gourine, C.M. Handler, Christine E. Loscher, K. Matsumura, Kimberly P. Mayfield, R. Lenhardt, Irene R. Pela, Jerri C. Caldeira, Andrej A. Romanovsky, Karin Rudolph, and J.S. Willis. |