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While first accounts of food allergy date back to antiquity, only in recent years has food allergy become recognized as one of the major allergic diseases. During the last decade the output of research papers on food allergy increased tremendously, and today, issues related to food allergies still attract a lot of attention among academics and the general public. Featuring contributions by world-renowned experts, this book presents the current concept, practice and recent advances in the field of food allergy. A comprehensive background section provides a historical retrospective and information on the immunological basis and epidemiology of food allergies. Main topics discussed include clinical aspects, diagnosis and management, allergen-based food allergies, and disease-based food allergies. Furthermore, nutritional aspects and diets, public policy and educational programs are covered as well as recent hot topics such as molecular-based allergen diagnosis, eosinophilic gastrointestinal food allergies and oral immunotherapy. Allergists, pediatricians, internists, dermatologists and general practitioners will find this publication an essential source of information as it provides in-depth insights into food allergies from childhood to adulthood.

Few other fields in human biology have experienced such a tremendous progress as celiac disease has during the past few years. The contributors to'Frontiers in Celiac Disease'are world-renowned opinion leaders who made these advances possible. Their expertise has been assembled here to provide a comprehensive overview of the current knowledge of the epidemiology, pathogenesis, clinical presentations, diagnosis and treatment of celiac disease. In addition, the stage is set for innovative strategies for preventive interventions and treatment alternatives to a gluten-free diet. A valuable reference for basic and translational scientists, this book also serves as a practical resource to healthcare professionals, including general practitioners, subspecialists, dieticians, nutritionists, and nurses and nurse practitioners. Students from different disciplines will find this book a helpful guide to expand and deepen their knowledge of celiac disease.

The study and care of gastrointestinal disorders in the elderly have become priority topics for both clinicians and researchers as the aged constitute an ever-increasing part of the overall population. This publication presents the results of recent studies in geriatric gastroenterology, reviewing both basic research and clinical aspects. A significant part is devoted to the physician's clinical approach to the elderly suffering from specific gastroenterological problems. Another focal point is diagnostic testing, which becomes very important in old age because clinical features such as history and physical signs are often very difficult to interpret: clinical manifestations and the response to therapy may seem to differ because the older patient has several concomitant disorders that may distort the classic features of the primary gastrointestinal disease. Also discussed are the effects of aging on the physiology of the gastrointestinal tract and liver functions, as well as the management of disorders of the small intestine, colon, and liver. This publication will be useful for general physicians, specialists in geriatrics and gastroenterology, and all healthcare providers who are involved in planning care management of elderly people with gastrointestinal disorders.

Transglutaminases are a family of structurally and functionally related enzymes that are widely distributed and have been identified in a variety of organisms ranging from bacteria to mammals and plants. The reactions (isopeptide bonds) catalyzed by these enzymes are of great physiologic significance; they are highly stable and resistant to proteolytic degradation. Isopeptide bonds are commonly found in hair and skin, and they accumulate during wound healing, apoptosis, and blood clotting. Dysregulation of transglutaminase functions results in a number of pathologic conditions, such as neurodegeneration, autoimmune diseases, infectious diseases, progressive tissue fibrosis and diseases related to the assembly of the stratum corneum of the epidermis of the skin. The ability of transglutaminases to catalyze highly stable isopeptide bonds is also being exploited by the food processing and textile industries. Moreover, there has been a recent surge in findings indicating that transglutaminases are involved in various biological processes such as normal and neoplastic cell growth, reproduction, and cell death. As newer members of the transglutaminase family are being discovered and new functions for existing members are being described, it becomes imperative to collect all the findings in a book. This volume provides the most comprehensive single source of information and will appeal to both new investigators just entering the field and established researchers aiming to elucidate the biological relevance of these enzymes in cancer, inflammation, autoimmune diseases and related areas of research.

There are few areas in medical science where the information explosion exceeds the capacity for a busy clinician to keep up to date. One such area is Helicobacter pylori. Since the first paper identifying H. pylori was published in 1983, great progress has occurred concerning H. pylori and its causal relationship to gastritis, duodenal ulcer, gastric ulcer and gastric cancer. In a field which is moving so fast, a lot of new information is continuously reported at medical meetings, often published only in abstract form, without further appearing in peer-reviewed journals. Even gastroenterologists, unless actively involved in the field of H. pylori research themselves, find it difficult to keep abreast of the field. Although several volumes and monographs have appeared on H. pylori, this book is the only one entirely devoted to the clinical pharmacology and therapy of the Helicobacter infection. It is clear that the real-world indications for H. pylori treatment are being broadened, and it is impossible to turn back the tide of prescribing by primary care physicians or gastroenterologists. Some effective and safe eradication regimens are available today but several new ones, often simple variations of an old scheme, are being proposed as equally effective and safe. This volume, which covers the treatment of all the H. pylori-related digestive diseases as well as the management of treatment failure and reinfection, will be a valuable reference text for all those physicians who pursue the cure of this common human infection.