Global Infectious Diseases : Prevention, Control, and Eradication

Introducing a book on global infectious diseases is a daunting challenge. Modern developments in molecular research, newly available opportuni­ ties for earth-orbiting, satellite-based surveillance as a means of predicting certain regional epidemics, and the introduction of remarkable new anti­ biotics which can cure some awesome problems such as river-blindness would each have astonished even the most jaded reader only a few decades ago. Just the same, even with these laudable advances, malaria is still with us and both poliomyelitis and tuberculosis are growing worldwide problems. As a holdover from my own medical school days, I must confess to an affection for the older term of "tropical medicine" and its historic context, in preference to the more popular present name which is the title of this book. A century or two ago the motives to study tropical medicine were obvious: nations having enormous amounts of maritime trade with distant lands established colonial empires where health in the colonies was a con­ cern for both the natives and the colonists. It is unsurprising that the great institutes for such studies sprang up in London, Amsterdam, Hamburg, New York and New Orleans, but few of these centers and other similar ones have continued to flourish or even to survive, perhaps because the days of empires have gone. The subject of the book is global infectious diseases and includes 12 entities that were carefully selected for diversity of epidemiology, transmission, pathogenesis, and immune mechanisms. Each topic (schistosomiasis, malaria, filariasis, arboviruses, diarrheal diseases, AIDS, hepatitis, fungal diseases, Chagas' disease, rickettsial diseases, Lyme disease, and cysticercosis) is particularly interesting in its own right. Each entity will be reviewed by an expert who perceives the big picture and will cover the epidemiology, ecology, pathogenesis, immunity, and relevant molecular data pertinent to the etiologic agents and their hosts. Each expert will then express his opinion as to the best approach to eridicate, control, or contain the disease in the near future by attacking the most vulnerable point in the interaction of the etiologic agent and the host or the environment. Molecular approaches will be described which point towards novel methods to stimulate affective immunity, eradicate a vector, render it genetically incompetent, or develop a new therapeutic intervention. The ultimate standard and the reasons for its success and the failure of other eradication campaigns will be posed by Dr. D.A. Henderson, leader of the successful campaign to eradicate smallpox and currently a high level advisor in the White House Front Matter....Pages I-XIII Infectious Diseases in Developing Countries: An Introduction to the Major Problems in Global Medicine....Pages 1-3 The Challenge: Biotechnology Transfer to Public Health. Examples from Arbovirology....Pages 5-30 AIDS: The Uses and Limitations of Science....Pages 31-48 Strategies for Control of Viral Hepatitis in the Age of Molecular Biology....Pages 49-73 Rickettsial Diseases: From Epidemiology to Molecular Biology, The Pathway Toward Disease Control....Pages 75-86 Diarrheal Diseases: New Challenges and Emerging Opportunities....Pages 87-102 Prospects for Control of Malaria in the Twenty-First Century....Pages 103-127 Black Fungi: A Model for Understanding Tropical Mycosis....Pages 129-149 Schistosomiasis — From Genes to Latrines....Pages 151-165 Filariasis: Present Status and Future Challenges....Pages 167-180 Current Issues in Cysticercosis: Proteins, Proglottids, Pigs, and Privies....Pages 181-203 Antigenic Variation in Borrelial Diseases of Humans....Pages 205-217 Perspectives on Chagas Disease in Latin America and the United States....Pages 219-226 Strategies for the Twenty-First Century — Control or Eradication?....Pages 227-234 Back Matter....Pages 235-239 Infectious diseases in developing countries: an introduction to the major problems in global medicine / D.H. Walker, F.A. Murphy The challenge: biotechnology transfer to public health, examples from arbovirology / T.P. Monath AIDS: the uses and limitations of science / J.E. Osborn Strategies for control of viral hepatitis in the age of molecular biology / S.M. Lemon, D.S. Shapiro Rickettsial diseases: from epidemiology to molecular biology. The pathway toward disease control / D.H. Walker Diarrheal diseases: new challenges and emerging opportunities / R.L. Guerrant Prospects for control of malaria in the twenty-first century / C.L. Diggs Black fungi: a model for understanding tropical mycoses / M.R. McGinnis Schistosomiasis: from genes to latrines / F. Lichtenberg Filariasis: present status and future challenges / E.A. Ottesen Current issues in cysticercosis: proteins, proglottids, pigs, and privies / R.T. Bryan Antigenic variation in Borrelial diseases of humans / A.G. Barbour (cont) Perspectives on Chagas' Disease in Latin America and the United States / L.V. Kirchhoff Strategies for the twenty-first century: control or eradication? / D.A. Henderson An investigation of 12 infectious diseases, selected due to their diversity of epidemiology, transmission, pathogenesis and immune mechanisms: schistosomiasis, malaria, filariasis, arboviruses, diarrheal diseases, AIDS, fungal diseases, Chagas Disease, rickets, Lyme Disease and cysticercosis.