How Pathogenic Viruses Work

by Lauren M. Sompayrac

A clever, accessible overview that uses a survey of 12 of the most common viral infections, to teach the fundamental principles of human virology.

Genres: Medical, Science, Biology

115 pages, Paperback

First published March 18, 2002

Reviews

[Monica Willyard Moen · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a fascinating book written in language that's easy to understand. I wish more textbook authors would write like this. I think more students would actually read their homework assignments. :)

I have gained a new understanding and respect for my immune system as well as the viruses it combats. Now I know why my body runs a fever when I have a cold and understand why I shouldn't stop the fever unless it gets into the moderate or high range. I used to take a fever reducer at the slightest sign of a fever.

Vaccinations make sense to me now, how they really work and how scientists learn to make them. I feel able to make better decisions about vaccines and when they would be helpful to me.

This is a short book, and I'd recommend it for anyone who is curious about how the body works and why we still don't have a vaccine for the common cold.

[Sheila · Rating 5 out of 5]

this is a bit of a reference book, but is amazing at that. it takes the perspective of the virus, doing what it needs to do to make it -- replicate in a host, spread to a new host, and evade host defense systems. in this framework, I learned to respect and admire the simple virus for the myriad ways they have learned to solve these three problems. I'll never be done reading this book, I just finally decided to mark it read and give it it's due credit. Sompayrac has others in this series. I have the ones on cancer and the immune system. they're also great. All are condensed, simplified, entry level but with enough depth to feel solid. Everyone could get something out of these, even without a scientific background, just by letting the esoteric language and acronyms go overhead when necessary while staying with the overarching framework of the book.