Cytokines had been characterized in the early eighties as communication mole- cules between immune cells, and between immunocytes and other peripheral cells, such as fibroblasts and endothelial cells. They play a key role in the regulation of the immune response and the coordination of the host response to infection. Based on these biological properties, nobody would have predicted that one decade later cytokines would burst upon neurosciences and permeate into several avenues of current research. In neurology, the connection between cytokines and inflammation, and the demonstration of a...

From the Introduction to "The Psychosomatic Delusion" "We all believe in the healing power of the mind. The idea seems so simple and appealing that we often cannot resist the temptation of blaming those who become ill and, conversely, applauding those who succeed in fighting such life-threatening illnesses as cancer....After many years of work, I have realized that it is not so simple...There is a profound and legitimate need for a different model of the relationship between stress and disease that cares for the whole patient...This book has been written with the belief that this goal is at...

In mammals, a robust physiologic system acts to maintain relative constancy of weight. A key element of this system is leptin. The nature of this "brain-somatic" cross talk is as yet poorly understood, but it is likely to have important implications for the pathophysiology and treatment of obesity, diabetes and other metabolic disorders.

Cytokines had been characterized in the early eighties as communication mole- cules between immune cells, and between immunocytes and other peripheral cells, such as fibroblasts and endothelial cells. They play a key role in the regulation of the immune response and the coordination of the host response to infection. Based on these biological properties, nobody would have predicted that one decade later cytokines would burst upon neurosciences and permeate into several avenues of current research. In neurology, the connection between cytokines and inflammation, and the demonstration of a...

Knowledge has been gained on depressive symptoms driven by inflammation and the mechanisms of action of cytokines in the brain, providing new targets for drug research and development. This book presents this field of research and its implications for basic and clinical scientists, psychiatrists, physicians and students at the graduate level.