The paths of immunology and diabetes cross at several levels. First, increasing evidence suggests the importance of immunologic factors in the etiology (and perhaps pathogenesis) of diabetes. Second, certain complications of diabetes, such as insulin allergy and some types of insulin resistance, are immune mediated. Finally, major immunologic problems must be overcome before diabetes can be cured by pancreatic or islet transplantation. The chapters of this book provide comprehensive reviews of all of these areas.
The book is divided into two sections, experimental and clinical; the distinction is evidently based on whether the emphasis is mainly on animal or human studies. However, even the clinical section is primarily devoted to basic investigation, and the volume should not be considered as a reference work for patient care. In fact, the one chapter that is primarily oriented to therapy, that on insulin hypersensitivity, contains no more detail than most clinical textbooks. Furthermore,