Immunopharmacology in Autoimmune Diseases and Transplantation

This book incorporates the latest advances in immunopharmacological treatment. One objective has been to provide appropriate bridges between the basic sciences of immunology and pharmacology on the one hand and clinical medicine on the other. A further intention has been to emphasize those advances in immunology and pharmacology that are of clinical importance while retaining those facts that, while not new, remain clinically useful. The immunology section provides the necessary background for immunopharmacologi- cal treatment. The chapters on individual cell types include normal surface markers, mode of activation, and activation markers and functions in health and disease. The chapters on pharmacology give comprehensive information on immunosuppressive drugs in regular use today, their biochemical and cellular mechanisms of action, pharmaco- kinetics, dosage regimens, therapeutic responses, adverse reactions, and drug interactions and tolerance. In addition, certain therapeutic principles that are still in an experimental phase are described, for example, immunotoxins, thymic hormones, and interleukins. The book presents comprehensive information on various autoimmune diseases, the etiopathogenetic immune mechanisms where these are known, and the current possibilities for immunopharmacological intervention. The specific disease section also covers rare situations, fluctuations in disease patterns, and subgroups of patients and immunophar- macological treatment in these situations. Altogether, the book represents a practical textbook for clinicians and advanced students who want to be updated on therapeutic principles with regard to autoimmune diseases and transplantation.