Parasitology and Vector Biology (2nd edn) by W.C. Marquardt, R.S. Demaree and R.B. Grieve

Academic Press, 2000. £40.00 (xvi + 702 pages)ISBN 0 12 473 2755The authors of this second edition of Parasitology and Vector Biology have successfully brought together information that, as a whole, conveys the breadth of the parasitic way of life in all of its evolutionary dimensions. This fantastic diversity is revealed, page-by-page, life cycle by life cycle, and disease by disease. The inclusion of taxonomic groups that do not affect humans or domestic animals provides an important comparative context. In compiling this text, choices were made as to which audience to target and how best to capture their collective imagination; consequently, this volume reflects a tradeoff and breadth comes at the cost of insight into emerging advances in parasitology and vector biology.Students will appreciate the comprehensive, coherent and visually incisive layout. The text is arranged taxonomically with each section repeating a series of headings including geography and distribution, life cycle, diagnosis, epidemiology and control, and host–parasite interactions, providing a basis for more in-depth consideration of the complexity and diversity of parasite biology. The more advanced student or researcher will find this text useful principally as a one-stop catalogue, as it lacks details of molecular mechanisms operating at the interface of parasites and their hosts, the role of genetic diversity underlying virulence, and the unfolding contributions of genome-wide approaches to understanding parasite biology.Modern texts often neglect parasitological and epidemiological concepts in an attempt to focus on the ‘model’ aspects of host–parasite systems in addressing basic biochemical and immunological questions. However, this text is caught in the opposite dilemma in that, while context abounds, it begs the question: does the ongoing revolution in the biological sciences really have no place in an introductory text? The emergent theme of modern biology is one in which contributions from various disciplines are coalescing to provide a ‘big picture’ that includes molecular interactions, genes and their functional variants, regulatory pathways and evolutionary patterns. One vehicle the authors use to expand beyond their structured framework is boxed descriptions of various concepts and research areas (eg. ‘magic bullet’ and ‘insects in court’). This tool could have been more effectively employed to make this edition more flexible and responsive to research trends, while building a stronger link to resources that could not be practically included.Some sections lack up-to-date references, explanations of current research, and descriptions of modern approaches of investigation. For example, in the past decade, malaria has become a focus of intensive international research initiatives, resulting in many high-profile publications. However, only two citations in the section on malaria are more recent than 1993, and such basic topics as antigenic variation, cytoadherence and cerebral malaria are not discussed. Noting such major efforts as the Plasmodium falciparum Genome Project would have communicated the notion that parasitology is rapidly evolving and fully participating in the modern era of the biological sciences.This is a taxonomically comprehensive, visually appealing text that has firm grounding in the classical perspective. As a textual starting point, it serves its purpose well. The emergent message is clear: parasitism is complex, pervasive and biologically exciting.