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Viruses, Pandemics, and Immunity
How viruses emerge to cause pandemics, how our immune system combats them, and how diagnostic tests, vaccines, and antiviral therapies work.
Throughout history, humans have contended with pandemics. History is replete with references to plagues, pestilence, and contagion, but the devastation wrought by pandemics had been largely forgotten by the twenty-first century. Now, the enormous human and economic toll of the rapidly spreading COVID-19 disease offers a vivid reminder that infectious disease pandemics are one of the greatest existential threats to humanity. This book provides an accessible explanation of how viruses emerge to cause pandemics, how our immune system combats them, and how diagnostic tests, vaccines, and antiviral therapies work-- concepts that are a foundation for our public health policies.
Throughout history, humans have contended with pandemics. History is replete with references to plagues, pestilence, and contagion, but the devastation wrought by pandemics had been largely forgotten by the twenty-first century. Now, the enormous human and economic toll of the rapidly spreading COVID-19 disease offers a vivid reminder that infectious disease pandemics are one of the greatest existential threats to humanity. This book provides an accessible explanation of how viruses emerge to cause pandemics, how our immune system combats them, and how diagnostic tests, vaccines, and antiviral therapies work-- concepts that are a foundation for our public health policies.
206 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2021
33 people are currently reading
227 people want to read
About the author
Arup Chakraborty
8 books4 followersArup K. Chakraborty is an American engineer, focusing in biophysics, computational modeling and infectious disease, currently the Robert T. Haslam Professor at Massachusetts Institute of Technology and formerly the Warren and Katherine Schlinger Distinguished Professor at University of California, Berkeley.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 35 reviews
December 13, 2020
I had high hopes for this book but it wasn't ultimately very helpful for me. I was hoping for an informational book more about how to survive pandemics, while this is more the history of pandemics and vaccines. While it was rushed to publication and talks about covid throughout, it wasn't very helpful or up-to-date about it other than projected vaccine technology.
My family was exposed to Covid very early in the pandemic and my then 16 year-old son and I became very ill. He got over the illness itself relatively quickly but then developed a sort of CFS afterwards that weakened him for months. I became very sick and it was still in the times when they would not test you unless you were hospitalized and told you not to see your doctor or go to the hospital unless you were literally about to die. As a result, I ended up needing to take charge of my own survival, which I was able to do by following an online group of people around the world who posted the most helpful studies and articles, reading loads of books about viruses and immunity, relying on all of the advice from my most trusted herbal experts, etc. It was a time when you couldn't even order a thermometer or most medicines (herbal or OTC) online without weeks of waiting and the stores in every town near us where empty of things I would ordinarily rely on. I got sick in early March and was still very ill in August (the past two months I have been eating a ketogenic diet to manage some of the aftereffects of my illness and that's had an incredible effect on finally healing completely). Most of the effects during the summer were from the after-effects of the virus -- I developed incredibly high blood pressure where it had been very low, had blood in my urine and constant pain from kidney damage, had to relearn how to breathe enough, had nerve damage throughout my limbs (and still numbness in two toes), had blood vessels that burst in my legs for months including one that left a dark blue patch the size of a baseball that faded to a permanent pink scar on my calf, twice stopped breathing completely when I was starting to fall asleep, had extreme pain in my legs, had heart palpitations and terrible chest pain... So I am very interested in anything related to covid or viruses.
Unfortunately, this book is mostly about the history of viral pandemics and vaccines. The information about covid is very sparse and it was written early in the summer, so it's not really even very accurate. I've read news articles that give a much more thorough explanation of how covid works in the body. The latter half of the book is all about vaccine history and how the new vaccines for covid will likely to be made with new technology like RNA vaccines. They cover a little bit about how we ultimately killed and sickened people sometimes with bad vaccine technology, but these are given a sentence or half of one at best and then move on to how they will save us, especially since these ones use brand new technology that's never been used before so it will be much safer(?). The last pages tell of their 6 steps that they say we need to prepare for all the pandemics to come, which include things like monitoring everybody (acknowledging that it will be difficult to protect personal freedoms), investing massive amounts of money in tests, vaccines and technology (they propose that we could save the economy by the government and businesses spending billions and employing people here), and philanthropic donations of massive sums by organizations and the rich. We'll see how well anybody really follows that.
This is a fine book if you don't really know anything about vaccine history and the inner workings of viruses and you just want to learn their history, but it is completely devoid of anything about how to best support your body in the time of a pandemic if you don't have a vaccine. I firmly believe that the many things I did every day to pull myself back to health saved me (even my doctor, when I finally got to see her months later, told me "Keep doing exactly what you've been doing"). Whenever I stopped the regimen, I quickly got sicker again, and it was all things that I could find in my home and environment (granted, I am a forager and herbalist so I probably have a bigger stash than most of things like elderberries and had a husband who was able to easily find me things like stinging nettles, but many things like fresh garlic and ginger are pretty easy for anyone to find), and things I could do myself like breathing exercises, drinking tons of water, getting enough sleep every night no matter what, meditation (yes, it really helps, especially things like blood pressure), sleeping prone when my lungs were struggling, etc.
Ultimately, this book was a two for me -- just okay.
Side note: One of the resources that was the most helpful to me when it was finally released was an entire book-length document that respected author and herbalist Stephen Harrod Buhner (author of Herbal Antibiotics: Natural Alternatives for Treating Drug-Resistant Bacteria and Herbal Antivirals: Natural Remedies for Emerging & Resistant Viral Infections) released on his website. It is over 100 pages, references the very latest scientific research on covid, and he released it free for the public. https://www.stephenharrodbuhner.com/w... He specifically talks about how this virus works and how it is different from most viruses, and gives advice for managing every one of the dozens of symptoms that it can manifest.
I received a digital ARC of this book for review.
My family was exposed to Covid very early in the pandemic and my then 16 year-old son and I became very ill. He got over the illness itself relatively quickly but then developed a sort of CFS afterwards that weakened him for months. I became very sick and it was still in the times when they would not test you unless you were hospitalized and told you not to see your doctor or go to the hospital unless you were literally about to die. As a result, I ended up needing to take charge of my own survival, which I was able to do by following an online group of people around the world who posted the most helpful studies and articles, reading loads of books about viruses and immunity, relying on all of the advice from my most trusted herbal experts, etc. It was a time when you couldn't even order a thermometer or most medicines (herbal or OTC) online without weeks of waiting and the stores in every town near us where empty of things I would ordinarily rely on. I got sick in early March and was still very ill in August (the past two months I have been eating a ketogenic diet to manage some of the aftereffects of my illness and that's had an incredible effect on finally healing completely). Most of the effects during the summer were from the after-effects of the virus -- I developed incredibly high blood pressure where it had been very low, had blood in my urine and constant pain from kidney damage, had to relearn how to breathe enough, had nerve damage throughout my limbs (and still numbness in two toes), had blood vessels that burst in my legs for months including one that left a dark blue patch the size of a baseball that faded to a permanent pink scar on my calf, twice stopped breathing completely when I was starting to fall asleep, had extreme pain in my legs, had heart palpitations and terrible chest pain... So I am very interested in anything related to covid or viruses.
Unfortunately, this book is mostly about the history of viral pandemics and vaccines. The information about covid is very sparse and it was written early in the summer, so it's not really even very accurate. I've read news articles that give a much more thorough explanation of how covid works in the body. The latter half of the book is all about vaccine history and how the new vaccines for covid will likely to be made with new technology like RNA vaccines. They cover a little bit about how we ultimately killed and sickened people sometimes with bad vaccine technology, but these are given a sentence or half of one at best and then move on to how they will save us, especially since these ones use brand new technology that's never been used before so it will be much safer(?). The last pages tell of their 6 steps that they say we need to prepare for all the pandemics to come, which include things like monitoring everybody (acknowledging that it will be difficult to protect personal freedoms), investing massive amounts of money in tests, vaccines and technology (they propose that we could save the economy by the government and businesses spending billions and employing people here), and philanthropic donations of massive sums by organizations and the rich. We'll see how well anybody really follows that.
This is a fine book if you don't really know anything about vaccine history and the inner workings of viruses and you just want to learn their history, but it is completely devoid of anything about how to best support your body in the time of a pandemic if you don't have a vaccine. I firmly believe that the many things I did every day to pull myself back to health saved me (even my doctor, when I finally got to see her months later, told me "Keep doing exactly what you've been doing"). Whenever I stopped the regimen, I quickly got sicker again, and it was all things that I could find in my home and environment (granted, I am a forager and herbalist so I probably have a bigger stash than most of things like elderberries and had a husband who was able to easily find me things like stinging nettles, but many things like fresh garlic and ginger are pretty easy for anyone to find), and things I could do myself like breathing exercises, drinking tons of water, getting enough sleep every night no matter what, meditation (yes, it really helps, especially things like blood pressure), sleeping prone when my lungs were struggling, etc.
Ultimately, this book was a two for me -- just okay.
Side note: One of the resources that was the most helpful to me when it was finally released was an entire book-length document that respected author and herbalist Stephen Harrod Buhner (author of Herbal Antibiotics: Natural Alternatives for Treating Drug-Resistant Bacteria and Herbal Antivirals: Natural Remedies for Emerging & Resistant Viral Infections) released on his website. It is over 100 pages, references the very latest scientific research on covid, and he released it free for the public. https://www.stephenharrodbuhner.com/w... He specifically talks about how this virus works and how it is different from most viruses, and gives advice for managing every one of the dozens of symptoms that it can manifest.
I received a digital ARC of this book for review.
January 22, 2023
This book covers everything within the title: it examines what a vírus is, how a pandemic comes into being, and how immunity either comes into being automatically, or how this can be created, by scientists.
It is not clear who this book is intended for, and the details on what a virus is, and how they hijack the human cells to create either sickness or death may be a little hard to follow, or somewhat dry, for those who are not medically minded. The diagrams were also, all hand-drawn and handwritten, where possibly computerised designs might have been better deployed. Viruses can scarcely be said to be alive, as they are just free-floating specks of code totally depend on an external host to replicate themselves. Microbiology is true nano-biology.
The history of pandemics and how they spread and come about may be more interesting to the lay person. This history begins as microscopic lenses brought about the revelation of what is was recisely about miasma and humours that did allow both bacteria and viruses to spread and cause the disaster that is any kind of plague to wreak its havoc on human societies (there is also the reminder that had humans not first settled in close city communities on proximity to animals, there would never have been any kind of plague. Plagues are possibly an inevitable consequence of human progress, with the inferred warning that eco systems also need respect, if germs are not to jump species).
With smallpox it was first the question of immunising by using a 'weakened' form of the germ, before the discovery that the much less lethal cowpox could immunise much more safely. Hence the term 'vaccination,' from the latin word for 'cow.'
The history of the rivalry between Pasteur and Koch in the fight against disease makes an amusing aside in the telling here.
The tragedies of losing children to smallpox, diphtheria, TB, tetanus, polio and measles are now forgotten - clearly now, forgotten all-to well. Perhaps thecwriters of this book did not want to infer that, but there is certainly the inferences that Science has already done so much to keep these a scourges at bay, and this will surely what will happen in good time with Covid, as advances in combating the disease are described (that this has also led to overpopulation is not necessarily forgotten here, however).
Finally, the demographics of control of the spread of a virus are looked at.
This is all well worth reading, and there is the underlying optimistic message that science and ingenuity in finding new cures will certainly win in the end (and hopefully over ignorance too), though pandemic awareness does need to be maintained always. I gave this book a 4 because the graphics looked a little amateurish to my eye, but otherwise this is a very sound and eye-opening read.
It is not clear who this book is intended for, and the details on what a virus is, and how they hijack the human cells to create either sickness or death may be a little hard to follow, or somewhat dry, for those who are not medically minded. The diagrams were also, all hand-drawn and handwritten, where possibly computerised designs might have been better deployed. Viruses can scarcely be said to be alive, as they are just free-floating specks of code totally depend on an external host to replicate themselves. Microbiology is true nano-biology.
The history of pandemics and how they spread and come about may be more interesting to the lay person. This history begins as microscopic lenses brought about the revelation of what is was recisely about miasma and humours that did allow both bacteria and viruses to spread and cause the disaster that is any kind of plague to wreak its havoc on human societies (there is also the reminder that had humans not first settled in close city communities on proximity to animals, there would never have been any kind of plague. Plagues are possibly an inevitable consequence of human progress, with the inferred warning that eco systems also need respect, if germs are not to jump species).
With smallpox it was first the question of immunising by using a 'weakened' form of the germ, before the discovery that the much less lethal cowpox could immunise much more safely. Hence the term 'vaccination,' from the latin word for 'cow.'
The history of the rivalry between Pasteur and Koch in the fight against disease makes an amusing aside in the telling here.
The tragedies of losing children to smallpox, diphtheria, TB, tetanus, polio and measles are now forgotten - clearly now, forgotten all-to well. Perhaps thecwriters of this book did not want to infer that, but there is certainly the inferences that Science has already done so much to keep these a scourges at bay, and this will surely what will happen in good time with Covid, as advances in combating the disease are described (that this has also led to overpopulation is not necessarily forgotten here, however).
Finally, the demographics of control of the spread of a virus are looked at.
This is all well worth reading, and there is the underlying optimistic message that science and ingenuity in finding new cures will certainly win in the end (and hopefully over ignorance too), though pandemic awareness does need to be maintained always. I gave this book a 4 because the graphics looked a little amateurish to my eye, but otherwise this is a very sound and eye-opening read.
February 7, 2021
A very informative and interesting read. Explains the historical, present and future trends pertaining to the unprecedented battle between humans and pathogens in a clear and unique way, with a focus on COVID-19.
April 29, 2021
If you’ve been wondering about some COVID-related questions, such as how our immune system attacks the virus, why was it easier to contain the spread of SARS and MERS, but not COVID, how is the spread of the virus measured, and other questions, then this book is for you. It provides the knowledge necessary to understand issues relevant to the current pandemic, such as how our immune system works, herd immunity, social distancing, viral spread, epidemiological models, vaccine research and development, and more.
This book serves as an informative primer on all topics within its title: viruses, pandemics, and immunity. It is concise and, in less than 200 pages, packed with both historical and scientific information.
The first 2 chapters of the book have a historical focus where the authors explore early ideas regarding the origins of infectious diseases, smallpox and efforts to prevent it (through variolation and vaccination), the germ theory of disease, Koch’s postulates, pasteur’s rabies vaccine, etc. The subsequent 3 chapters have a scientific focus and delve into viruses (their structure, how they replicate, DNA vs RNA viruses), innate and adaptive immunity, epidemiological models, and the emergence, spread, and mitigation of pandemics. The last 2 chapters focus on medical interventions, namely antiviral therapies and vaccines. Throughout the book, the authors highlight the relevance of these topics to SARS-Cov-2 and COVID. Please note that the book was published before the approval of any COVID vaccine, so you won’t find the most updated information about these vaccines.
The book is clearly written and balances between simple explanations and scientific rigour. I highly recommend it to all readers looking for an accessible and introductory book about “viruses, pandemics, and immunity”.
This book serves as an informative primer on all topics within its title: viruses, pandemics, and immunity. It is concise and, in less than 200 pages, packed with both historical and scientific information.
The first 2 chapters of the book have a historical focus where the authors explore early ideas regarding the origins of infectious diseases, smallpox and efforts to prevent it (through variolation and vaccination), the germ theory of disease, Koch’s postulates, pasteur’s rabies vaccine, etc. The subsequent 3 chapters have a scientific focus and delve into viruses (their structure, how they replicate, DNA vs RNA viruses), innate and adaptive immunity, epidemiological models, and the emergence, spread, and mitigation of pandemics. The last 2 chapters focus on medical interventions, namely antiviral therapies and vaccines. Throughout the book, the authors highlight the relevance of these topics to SARS-Cov-2 and COVID. Please note that the book was published before the approval of any COVID vaccine, so you won’t find the most updated information about these vaccines.
The book is clearly written and balances between simple explanations and scientific rigour. I highly recommend it to all readers looking for an accessible and introductory book about “viruses, pandemics, and immunity”.
February 7, 2021
This book delivers exactly what it promises in a forward: condensed, reliable information on an urgent issue. In a clear yet engaging way, the authors, both acknowledged scientists, are describing the history of studying and treating infectious diseases, adding all the basic facts about the biology of viruses and the immune system. Highly recommended as an easy-to-digest beginner's guide to the topic, so necessary in this time of the global pandemic.
Thanks to the publisher, MIT Press, and NetGalley for the advance copy of this book.
Thanks to the publisher, MIT Press, and NetGalley for the advance copy of this book.
March 16, 2021
A useful primer on a number of topics relevant to COVID-19, Viruses, Pandemics, and Immunity cannot escape the fact that the immune system is, well, complicated. See my full review at https://inquisitivebiologist.com/2021...
October 30, 2020
Clear, informative, filled both with fascinating historical detail and the absolutely latest news right up to date of publication. An outstanding summary by highly regarded scientists.
January 11, 2022
For a non-scientist, this book was helpful to understanding immune response, vaccination, and pandemic management; however, it was hard to hear the audiobook over my own primal screams as the author calmly stated that “the virus isn’t mutating too much now.”
August 6, 2022
This book is informative for someone who knows very little about how viruses and immunity work, but if you already have some experience with these topics, I would not recommend it.
The book begins with a brief history of pandemics and infectious disease causing microbes. It focuses quite heavily on smallpox, a disease that is believed to have afflicted humans since 10,000 BC. Around the year 1800, scientists found that cowpox provides immunity to smallpox through a process called variolation. Smallpox was eventually eliminated thanks to the development of a vaccine.
Following the introductory chapters, the book mainly addresses viruses and immunity. Viruses take two forms: DNA (like herpes) and RNA (like influenza and SARS-CoV-2). Viruses have spikes made up of viral proteins. When a virus's spike binds to the receptors on our cells, it is able to cross the cell membrane. Once the virus is inside the cell, it hijacks the cell's machinery in order to replicate itself. The new viral proteins are assembled and released to infect new cells.
We are able to combat viruses through our immune system. Our innate immune system unleashes a general response against viruses, keeping us alive until the adaptive immune system kicks in. It is our innate immune system that makes us feel sick by ramping up the production of molecules like cytokines that cause fever. Although we may feel miserable, increased body temperatures can actually help to kill viruses. It takes our adaptive immune system about a week to become fully active. At this point, we may already be on the verge of recovery, but we could also be getting worse. Within our adaptive immune system, antibodies bind to the specific antigen of a pathogen (e.g. virus), facilitating its destruction by processes like phagocytosis. Antibodies are produced by B cells. The specificity of antibodies is due to the fact that each B cell encodes a distinct B cell receptor (BCR), which acts like an antibody once in a soluble form. When a B cell's receptor binds sufficiently strongly to the spike protein of a particular virus, the B cell is able to multiply. The other significant arm of adaptive immunity is T cells. Instead of targeting the virus itself (like B cells), T cells help to kill infected cells. Most T cells have a distinct T cell receptor (TCR). When the TCR binds sufficiently strongly to the HLA-bound viral protein fragment on an infected cell, the T cell becomes activated and multiplies.
Our immune system also helps us fight off a virus more quickly the second time around (secondary immune response). After we are infected with a virus the first time, most of the B cells and T cells die off, but some remain. These cells, known as memory B cells and memory T cells, remember the virus we already encountered, swiftly eliminating it from our system. Antibody levels are often a good test for immunity because their presence suggests that our body has a way of fighting the virus. Antibody levels tend to diminish overtime, but they can be amplified by vaccination or reinfection.
I found Chapter 5 (pg. 103) on the "Spread and Mitigation of Pandemics" to be especially interesting. In epidemiology, there is something called the basic reproductive number, denoted as R0. R0 is defined as the average number of people an infected person infects during the infectious period when the entire population is susceptible to the virus. If R0 < 1, this means that the virus will die off soon. If R0 = 1, the virus is in a stable state known as endemic infection. If R0 > 1, the number of infected people is growing over time, which is the case during a pandemic. Of course, the value of R0 depends on multiple factors like immunity and social distancing measures, so epidemiologists often use an effective R0 that accounts for time and local conditions. Interestingly, the higher the basic reproductive number, the greater the proportion of the population that must be immune in order to achieve herd immunity (useful mathematical equation on pg. 126). This helps to explain why it is difficult to achieve herd immunity for COVID-19, which has an R0 between 1.4-2.5.
Overall, I think I learned a decent amount from this book, and I may return to it in the future. It certainly takes a basic approach to viruses and immunity, but the text is clear and the illustrations are helpful.
The book begins with a brief history of pandemics and infectious disease causing microbes. It focuses quite heavily on smallpox, a disease that is believed to have afflicted humans since 10,000 BC. Around the year 1800, scientists found that cowpox provides immunity to smallpox through a process called variolation. Smallpox was eventually eliminated thanks to the development of a vaccine.
Following the introductory chapters, the book mainly addresses viruses and immunity. Viruses take two forms: DNA (like herpes) and RNA (like influenza and SARS-CoV-2). Viruses have spikes made up of viral proteins. When a virus's spike binds to the receptors on our cells, it is able to cross the cell membrane. Once the virus is inside the cell, it hijacks the cell's machinery in order to replicate itself. The new viral proteins are assembled and released to infect new cells.
We are able to combat viruses through our immune system. Our innate immune system unleashes a general response against viruses, keeping us alive until the adaptive immune system kicks in. It is our innate immune system that makes us feel sick by ramping up the production of molecules like cytokines that cause fever. Although we may feel miserable, increased body temperatures can actually help to kill viruses. It takes our adaptive immune system about a week to become fully active. At this point, we may already be on the verge of recovery, but we could also be getting worse. Within our adaptive immune system, antibodies bind to the specific antigen of a pathogen (e.g. virus), facilitating its destruction by processes like phagocytosis. Antibodies are produced by B cells. The specificity of antibodies is due to the fact that each B cell encodes a distinct B cell receptor (BCR), which acts like an antibody once in a soluble form. When a B cell's receptor binds sufficiently strongly to the spike protein of a particular virus, the B cell is able to multiply. The other significant arm of adaptive immunity is T cells. Instead of targeting the virus itself (like B cells), T cells help to kill infected cells. Most T cells have a distinct T cell receptor (TCR). When the TCR binds sufficiently strongly to the HLA-bound viral protein fragment on an infected cell, the T cell becomes activated and multiplies.
Our immune system also helps us fight off a virus more quickly the second time around (secondary immune response). After we are infected with a virus the first time, most of the B cells and T cells die off, but some remain. These cells, known as memory B cells and memory T cells, remember the virus we already encountered, swiftly eliminating it from our system. Antibody levels are often a good test for immunity because their presence suggests that our body has a way of fighting the virus. Antibody levels tend to diminish overtime, but they can be amplified by vaccination or reinfection.
I found Chapter 5 (pg. 103) on the "Spread and Mitigation of Pandemics" to be especially interesting. In epidemiology, there is something called the basic reproductive number, denoted as R0. R0 is defined as the average number of people an infected person infects during the infectious period when the entire population is susceptible to the virus. If R0 < 1, this means that the virus will die off soon. If R0 = 1, the virus is in a stable state known as endemic infection. If R0 > 1, the number of infected people is growing over time, which is the case during a pandemic. Of course, the value of R0 depends on multiple factors like immunity and social distancing measures, so epidemiologists often use an effective R0 that accounts for time and local conditions. Interestingly, the higher the basic reproductive number, the greater the proportion of the population that must be immune in order to achieve herd immunity (useful mathematical equation on pg. 126). This helps to explain why it is difficult to achieve herd immunity for COVID-19, which has an R0 between 1.4-2.5.
Overall, I think I learned a decent amount from this book, and I may return to it in the future. It certainly takes a basic approach to viruses and immunity, but the text is clear and the illustrations are helpful.
March 23, 2021
It's not bad at what it does, but I'm not sure who it's made for. If you want to study microbiology but only the sections on viruses and our immune response to them then maybe this is the book for you.
I was only expecting a layman approachable explanation of concepts and was pleasantly surprised. It's very extensive in a few subjects and required some patience and concentration. One sentence that caught me off guard in particular was: "When the TCR on a T cell binds strongly to an HLA bound viral peptide displayed on a parasitic cell that has eaten the virus, the T cell gets activated." Unfortunately much of the surrounding topics aren't covered leaving you with little context for the information. You can still understand most everything with enough effort (and note-taking) but you are often thrown into a dry lecture with things like ordinary differential equations. This makes it a hard book to recommend.
A couple of things that don't deserve their own section:
-It's somewhat unorganized with distant parts of the book continuing other topics. I can't be too hard on this as there's no way to seamlessly align such diverse topics/fields.
-I think the history portion was fine.
-The audiobook has "Note to proofer, I think that was a typo, so I'm gonna say that sentence over" which is rather unprofessional in an otherwise well done recording.
-This is mostly an American perspective. E.g. the small policy segments and the English town 'Berkeley' [bark-lee] being mispronounced [berk-lee].
I was only expecting a layman approachable explanation of concepts and was pleasantly surprised. It's very extensive in a few subjects and required some patience and concentration. One sentence that caught me off guard in particular was: "When the TCR on a T cell binds strongly to an HLA bound viral peptide displayed on a parasitic cell that has eaten the virus, the T cell gets activated." Unfortunately much of the surrounding topics aren't covered leaving you with little context for the information. You can still understand most everything with enough effort (and note-taking) but you are often thrown into a dry lecture with things like ordinary differential equations. This makes it a hard book to recommend.
A couple of things that don't deserve their own section:
-It's somewhat unorganized with distant parts of the book continuing other topics. I can't be too hard on this as there's no way to seamlessly align such diverse topics/fields.
-I think the history portion was fine.
-The audiobook has "Note to proofer, I think that was a typo, so I'm gonna say that sentence over" which is rather unprofessional in an otherwise well done recording.
-This is mostly an American perspective. E.g. the small policy segments and the English town 'Berkeley' [bark-lee] being mispronounced [berk-lee].
December 7, 2021
The authors set out to provide a primer, and the book's content confirms that they do nothing more and nothing less.
Positively, there is a lot of good information for any reader seeking basic information. In quick snapshots, the chapters cover historic, biological, pathological, medical, and epidemic aspects of various viral diseases with tangential connections to implications for SARS-Cov-2. The tales provide reassuring proof of how much medical science understands viral diseases and numerous paths being taken to resolve the current pandemic. Discussions are straightforward, informative, and apolitical.
That said, the style is as dry as a bone. There is no effort to engage readers. Many complicated subjects could have been made more understandable with more analogies and repetitions. The book also exposes how much we do not know and why scientists - as a group - themselves cannot come up with a broadly agreed set of solutions. Scientists' doubts and uncertainties leave the doors wide ajar for politicians and bureaucrats to keep forming policies more driven by non-scientific factors across the world.
There are particularly good sections on herd immunity, different types of vaccines, and origins of various viral diseases.
Positively, there is a lot of good information for any reader seeking basic information. In quick snapshots, the chapters cover historic, biological, pathological, medical, and epidemic aspects of various viral diseases with tangential connections to implications for SARS-Cov-2. The tales provide reassuring proof of how much medical science understands viral diseases and numerous paths being taken to resolve the current pandemic. Discussions are straightforward, informative, and apolitical.
That said, the style is as dry as a bone. There is no effort to engage readers. Many complicated subjects could have been made more understandable with more analogies and repetitions. The book also exposes how much we do not know and why scientists - as a group - themselves cannot come up with a broadly agreed set of solutions. Scientists' doubts and uncertainties leave the doors wide ajar for politicians and bureaucrats to keep forming policies more driven by non-scientific factors across the world.
There are particularly good sections on herd immunity, different types of vaccines, and origins of various viral diseases.
August 10, 2020
This book is a short and concise introduction to immunology, pandemics, and viruses! While only about a hundred and fifty pages long, it is packed with information and concepts.
Arup and Andrey begin the book with a brief history of pandemics, immunology, and pathogens, drawing special attention to viruses. The history is presented as a collection of stories of discovery, that makes it both fun to read and also trace the evolution of ideas with time.
The second half of the book deals with how the immune system works, how pandemics arise and spread, and the state of the art of different therapeutic and vaccination strategies employed against viruses.
This book tries to answer several FAQs that have popped up against the background of the Covid-19 pandemic, such as: What makes SARS-Cov2 so effective? How do we understand the different models for pathogen spread? How do these models inform policymaking? What is herd immunity? Why is a vaccine so important? What are the different therapeutic and vaccination strategies that are being explored? How safe are vaccines? How do clinical trials of vaccines work?
Arup and Andrey begin the book with a brief history of pandemics, immunology, and pathogens, drawing special attention to viruses. The history is presented as a collection of stories of discovery, that makes it both fun to read and also trace the evolution of ideas with time.
The second half of the book deals with how the immune system works, how pandemics arise and spread, and the state of the art of different therapeutic and vaccination strategies employed against viruses.
This book tries to answer several FAQs that have popped up against the background of the Covid-19 pandemic, such as: What makes SARS-Cov2 so effective? How do we understand the different models for pathogen spread? How do these models inform policymaking? What is herd immunity? Why is a vaccine so important? What are the different therapeutic and vaccination strategies that are being explored? How safe are vaccines? How do clinical trials of vaccines work?
December 13, 2020
Must reading for the historical and scientific context
I loved this book. It was a pleasure to read, notwithstanding the grim nature of the subject matter. All the explanations of the science are clear and there is lots of history. The illustrations are excellent. Although the book isn’t long, it covers all the major relevant areas. This book is a must-read in these times as it is great at placing the current COVID-19 pandemic into the larger historical and scientific context. Even if these were not COVID times, the book provides such a great overview that it is a must-read at any time.
Disclosure: I received a complimentary advance reader copy of this book via Netgalley for review purposes.
I loved this book. It was a pleasure to read, notwithstanding the grim nature of the subject matter. All the explanations of the science are clear and there is lots of history. The illustrations are excellent. Although the book isn’t long, it covers all the major relevant areas. This book is a must-read in these times as it is great at placing the current COVID-19 pandemic into the larger historical and scientific context. Even if these were not COVID times, the book provides such a great overview that it is a must-read at any time.
Disclosure: I received a complimentary advance reader copy of this book via Netgalley for review purposes.
November 16, 2020
Thank you #Netgalley for sharing and ARC with me.
A short and very dense informational book on the current corona pandemic written by professionals in the field for the rest of us. It simplifies the current state of science for the most part, that the average reader can easily comprehend and follow. I got lost only once, during the part where the authors did some applied mathematics with pandemic forecasting in the chapter explaining the spread of the virus and R0. Not quite 5 stars because of that and the fact that you can actually detect the fact that different individuals actually wrote the book. Still, a good primer for intelligent conversations on Covid-19 around the water cooler.
A short and very dense informational book on the current corona pandemic written by professionals in the field for the rest of us. It simplifies the current state of science for the most part, that the average reader can easily comprehend and follow. I got lost only once, during the part where the authors did some applied mathematics with pandemic forecasting in the chapter explaining the spread of the virus and R0. Not quite 5 stars because of that and the fact that you can actually detect the fact that different individuals actually wrote the book. Still, a good primer for intelligent conversations on Covid-19 around the water cooler.
October 7, 2021
It is a very informative book, The book explains how our immunity system works, how viruses attack us and how vaccines are developed. I encourage anyone who wants to understand the present debate/controversy on vaccination for the Covid pandemic to read this book. Please be aware that you should have a better than average knowledge of biology, especially the molecular biology of cells. You should be able to search for a good article on the web in order to understand the authors descriptions of how cells function.
March 22, 2025
I found this book did very well, for the most part, in explaining the mechanisms of viruses and also of the immune system. However, even with a medical background, I found some of the explanations not as clearly explained as they could have been. I would say that it would be difficult for someone without a medical background to understand. This would be a good book for those in the medical field who want to brush up on their knowledge of these subjects, medical students, and those in public health.
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February 1, 2021
So many pandemic books are being rushed into print. This book has lots on info, but not exactly what I was looking for. I think the most comprehensive books of this pandemic will need to wait until it's over. I have a gut feeling, though, that much like the Spanish Flu, it will be forgotten about pretty quickly as it gets behind us. Still, if one needs info this book is pretty good.
I received a Kindle arc from Netgalley in exchange for a fair review.
I received a Kindle arc from Netgalley in exchange for a fair review.
June 28, 2021
The authors are trying way too hard to be accessible, while I understand that is the goal, it just feels insulting at times. I am interested in the history of viruses and did not expect much of substance when it comes to Covid-19 but even that was dumbed down. If you know absolutely nothing about viruses, then this could be a good start for future inquiry. If you are reading this and expecting any depth or detail you're going to be disappointed.
December 17, 2021
Pese que fue escrito antes de que las actuales vacunas salieran al mercado, los autores de forma sucinta y pedagógica explican desde cómo funciona el sistema inmunológico, qué son los virus, cómo se propagan, cómo los han contenido en la historia y las lecciones que deberíamos haber aprendido a raíz de la pandemia de Covid-19. Es estupendo éste libro y pena que muchas de las recomendaciones propuestas por los autores en el epílogo no hayan sido puestas en práctica por los países.
May 19, 2021
This book is a solid introduction to the ideas of viruses, pandemics, and immunity for those who have little to no prior knowledge! I found it served as a great refresher for those who do have prior knowledge! It also served as a great reminder for why we need to take the real threat of infectious disease seriously! Good review of basic biological concepts.
October 17, 2021
I thought this was a well written, high level overview of virology as it pertains to the moment we are in right now. Just enough detail about virus mechanics and how the immune system works to straddle the line between being interesting and comprehendible for a lay person.
A great read to recommend to your friendly neighborhood sceptic, it just might change their mind.
A great read to recommend to your friendly neighborhood sceptic, it just might change their mind.
September 28, 2023
While I enjoyed how informative this was concerning the history of pandemics and vaccines, I feel like it missed the mark JUST a tad. It’s not caught up as far as today’s vaccines and today’s vaccine history is and how it all works. I think the book could have also put in there other things to help keep one healthy, not necessarily “immune” to viruses, in every day life.
September 28, 2023
While I enjoyed how informative this was concerning the history of pandemics and vaccines, I feel like it missed the mark JUST a bit.
It’s not caught up as far as today’s vaccines and today’s vaccine history is and how it all works.
I think the book could have also referenced other things to help keep one healthy, not necessarily “immune” to viruses, in every day life.
It’s not caught up as far as today’s vaccines and today’s vaccine history is and how it all works.
I think the book could have also referenced other things to help keep one healthy, not necessarily “immune” to viruses, in every day life.
April 1, 2025
Much more readable than expected based on the title.
Written and published in 2020 during the first year of Covid so has quite a few sections explaining the reasoning behind major decisions like declaring the pandemic, similarity to earlier epidemics (SARS, MERS), and the subsequent lockdowns prior to lockdown fatigue.
Written and published in 2020 during the first year of Covid so has quite a few sections explaining the reasoning behind major decisions like declaring the pandemic, similarity to earlier epidemics (SARS, MERS), and the subsequent lockdowns prior to lockdown fatigue.
June 1, 2021
Wonderfully lucid illustrations on how viruses kill, worh special focus on Coronavirus. Along the way, a brief history of pandemics, evolution of our fights against it and the “central dogma of Molecular Biology” are introduced in a highly accessible form. A mist read for the ages!
September 11, 2021
This is a great book for non-experts on its topic. The writing is very clear - scientific writing at its best.
The authors discuss stategies on how combat future pandemics and how to prepare for them.
The authors discuss stategies on how combat future pandemics and how to prepare for them.
October 25, 2021
Fantastic information, broadly. The minutia gets a bit difficult to understand at times or to remember. The drawings are somewhat helpful but it gets hard to keep track. Overall, a fantastic read and important!
March 6, 2021
chock full of useful crash course science on viruses and immunology
March 18, 2021
Informative on an introductory level. Good choice for anyone who wants to understand viruses, their transmission, and vaccines.
May 23, 2021
Very interesting, but incredibly timely and important. In an endemic of misinformation about science, vaccinations, COVID-19, and more, read this book to get the facts!
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