Instructional Immunology: A Textbook for Beginners

Description

The immune system plays a central role in the mounting of defense for the body. It comprises molecules, cells, tissues, and organs besides the processes that fight off antigenic particles in the body. The defense response provided can either be innate or adaptive. Due to the complexity of the system, often a mixed type of both immunities is elicited in the body. A dysfunctional immune system can lead to the development of disease. These diseases can be acquired or congenitally transferred through genes. Broadly, the diseases can be hypersensitiveness, immunodeficiencies, autoimmunity, and chronic infections in which case the pathogens have not been fully eradicated by the immune system. By extension, the immune system has a bearing in graft rejection as well as repression of tumors. The system can also be a target for therapeutic purposes such as immunotherapy and vaccinology. Vaccines are key therapeutic modalities for infection prevention especially in children and immunocompromised individuals helping to scale down mortality and morbidity. This book provides easy to understood and comprehensive information on the immune system. It elaborates systematically on the various aspects of the system and how it works in a web-like fashion to clear antigens from the body. The book aims to provide an easy understanding of the immune system especially for beginners

Dr. Michael Nyongesa Walekhwa is a Lecturer of Immunology at the School of Medicine & Health Sciences, Kabarak University (KABU). He holds a PhD in Medical Immunology, MSc. Infectious Diseases-Immunology option and a BSc. Medical Laboratory Sciences. Dr Walekhwa has also taught Immunology at the University of Embu (UoE) and the University of Eastern Africa, Baraton (UEAB). His research interests are in the area of microbial immunology with a special focus on vaccine development and evaluation. He is especially interested in the revelation of specific immunological events during infection with Streptococcus pneumoniae among pediatrics in Kenya. His scholarly outputs are widely published and reasonably cited.

Filex Otieno is an alumnus of St Joseph Nyabondo Boys High School. Currently, he is a finalist student at Kabarak University School of Pharmacy where he is undertaking Bachelor of Pharmacy (B. Pharm) degree. One of the pharmacy-course units he took was immunology during which he developed an interest in the structure and functioning of the immune system. Filex is an upcoming passionate researcher in the field of immunotherapy. Specifically, his research interests focus on the integration of molecular pharmacology and molecular immunology. He has published scholarly papers in both fields. His research agenda are geared towards mitigation of metabolic diseases through molecular immunotherapy.