Description |
1 online resource (192 pages) : illustrations, maps |
Bibliography |
Includes bibliographical references (pages 180-189) and index. |
Contents |
Toxins are everywhere : how toxins affected history -- The germ of an idea : a gradual acceleration up to the mid-1850s -- The golden age of microbiology : Pasteur, Koch, and the birth of the toxin concept -- The anatomy of diphtheria : taming the deadly scourge of childhood -- Understanding : all toxins fit into three basic mechanisms -- Why are plague and typhoid so deadly? : a further layer of cunning -- Deviant biology : weapons, espionage, and man's innate inhumanity -- A more optimistic outcome : from poison to cure and the cell biologist's toolkit -- Where is toxinology going now? : is there anything new out there? |
Note |
Print version record. |
Summary |
Alistair Lax takes a fascinating look at these most devious molecules, explaining the many ingenious mechanisms they use to penetrate our cell's defences, and the deadly pandemics that result. A story not only of disease but also of human rivalry and persistence in our struggle to understand, combat, and harness these powerful toxins. - ;What do the following have in common: the promise of Botox as the key to everlasting youthful looks; E. coli O157 hamburger disease; a mysterious illness which killed 35 heroin users in 2000; and the assassination by poisoned umbrella-tip of a Bulgarian dissid. |
Subject |
Bacterial toxins -- Popular works.
|
|
Bacterial Toxins -- history.
|
|
Bacterial Toxins -- poisoning.
|
|
Bacterial toxins.
|
|
MEDICAL -- Toxicology.
|
|
Bacterial toxins. (OCoLC)fst00825240
|
Genre/Form |
Popular works. (OCoLC)fst01423846
|
Other Form: |
Print version: Lax, Alistair J., 1953- Toxin. Oxford ; New York : Oxford University Press, 2005 0198605587 (DLC) 2005019702 (OCoLC)60856170 |
ISBN |
9780191513909 (electronic bk.) |
|
0191513903 (electronic bk.) |
|