A Historical Perspective on Evidence-Based Immunology

A Historical Perspective on Evidence-Based Immunology focuses on the results of hypothesis-driven, controlled scientific experiments that have led to the current understanding of immunological principles. The text helps beginning students in biomedical disciplines understand the basis of immunologic knowledge, while also helping more advanced students gain further insights.

The book serves as a crucial reference for researchers studying the evolution of ideas and scientific methods, including fundamental insights on immunologic tolerance, interactions of lymphocytes with antigen TCR and BCR, the generation of diversity and mechanism of tolerance of T cells and B cells, the first cytokines, the concept of autoimmunity, the identification of NK cells as a unique cell type, the structure of antibody molecules and identification of Fab and Fc regions, and dendritic cells.

Provides a complete review of the hypothesis-driven, controlled scientific experiments that have led to our current understanding of immunological principlesExplains the types of experiments that were performed and how the interpretation of the experiments altered the understanding of immunologyPresents concepts such as the division of lymphocytes into functionally different populations in their historical contextIncludes fundamental insights on immunologic tolerance, interactions of lymphocytes with antigen TCR and BCR, and the generation of diversity and mechanism of tolerance of T and B cells

1. Innate Host Defense Mechanisms and Adaptive 2. Hallmarks of the Adaptive Immune Responses 3. Two Effector Mechanisms of the Adaptive Immune Response 4. The Small Lymphocyte Is the Antigen Reactive Cell 5. Lymphocytes Transform into Plasma Cells and Produce Antibodies 6. The Clonal Selection Theory of Antibody Formation 7. Plasma Cells Produce Antibody of a Single Specificity 8. Self–Non-self Discrimination: How the Immune System Avoids Self-Destruction 9. The Thymus in Lymphocyte Maturation 10. The Bursa of Fabricius in Lymphocyte Maturation 11. Revealing the Structure of the Immunoglobulin Molecule 12. Complement 13. Antibody Production Requires Thymus-Derived and Bone Marrow (Bursa)-Derived Lymphocyte Interactions 14. Cell Collaboration in the Antibody Response: Role of Adherent Cells 15. Recognition Structures on Cells of the Innate Host Defense Mechanisms 16. The Adaptive Immune Response and Histocompatibility Genes 17. Interaction of Lymphocytes with Antigen: Identification of Antigen-Specific Receptors 18. Generation of Diversity in the Adaptive Immune Response 19. B Lymphocyte Activation 20. Activation of T Lymphocytes and MHC Restriction 21. Development of Tolerance to Self in B Lymphocytes 22. Development of Tolerance to Self in T Lymphocytes 23. T Lymphocyte Subpopulations 24. T Lymphocyte Control of the Immune Response:From T_S to T_REG 25. Intercellular Communication in the Immune System 26. Antibody-Mediated Effector Mechanisms 27. T-Lymphocyte-Mediated Effector Mechanisms 28. Lymphocytes that Kill: Natural Killer (NK) and Natural Killer T (NKT) Lymphocytes 29. Role of Dendritic Cells in the Adaptive Immune Response 30. The Mucosal Immune System and  Secretory IgA 31. Disorders of the Innate Host Defenses 32. Defects in the Adaptive Immune Response Leading to Recurrent Infections 33. Pathologies Resulting from Aberrant Immune Responses 34. Immune Responses Directed Against Self 35. Lymphoproliferative Diseases 36. Transplantation Immunology 37. Tumor Immunology 38. Therapies that Manipulate Host Defense Mechanisms 39. Techniques to Detect and Quantify Host Defenses 40. The Future of Immunology