Human Virology: A Text for Students of Medicine, Dentistry, and Microbiology

In almost every area of biomedical research the making of new discoveries and their subsequent application to the relief of suffering proceeds at the ever-increasing pace. Virology, perhaps more than any other discipline, is playing a key role in these advances, not only in the study of infections and their treatment and prevention, but also in the unravelling of the most fundamental aspects of biology. This is because viruses have an intimate relationship with the basic machinery of their host cells. Thus, research on how viruses reproduce themselves and spread has provided insights into the ways in which the cells of our bodies function, leading in turn to a better understanding of the whole organism and of how infective diseases may be prevented or cured.