The general organization of the text has been modified to provide a more logical flow of topics and give greater emphasis to microbial ecology. Treatment of nucleic acid and protein synthesis has been moved to the genetics chapters in order to integrate the discussion of gene structure, replication, expression, and regulation. Recombinant DNA technology has been moved to a separate section, which also contains a new chapter on microbial genomics. The three-chapter introduction to microbial ecology now follows the survey of microbial diversity. This places it earlier in the text where basic principles of microbiology are introduced. Part Nine now contains a description of nonspecific host resistance as well as an introduction to the fundamentals of immunology. Symbiotic associations are discussed in the context of microbial ecology. The treatment of microbial pathogenesis has been expanded into a full chapter
and placed with other medical topics in Part Ten. Pedagogical aids have
been expanded. A new Critical Thinking section with two or more questions follows the
Questions for Thought and Review. Section numbers have been given to all major chapter sections in order
to make cross references more precise. The summary now contains bold faced references
to tables and figures that will be useful in reviewing the chapter. All reference sections have been revised and updated. New illustrations have been added to almost every chapter. In addition,
all figures have been carefully been reviewed by our art editor, and many have
been revised to improve their appearance and usefulness. Besides these broader
changes in the text, every chapter has been updated and often substantially
revised. Some of the more important improvements are the following: Chapter 1--A box on molecular Koch's postulates and new section on the
future of microbiology have been added. Chapter 2--Differential interference contrast microscopy and confocal
microscopy are described. Chapter 3--More details on the mechanism of flagellar motion are provided. Chapter 5--Phosphate uptake and ABC transporters are described. Chapter 6--The chapter has new material on starvation proteins, growth
limitation by environmental factors, viable but nonculturable procaryotes, and
quorum sensing. Chapter 8--The discussions of metabolic regulation and control of enzyme
activity have been combined with the introduction to energy and enzymes. Chapter 9--The metabolic overview has been rewritten to aid in understanding.
The sections on electron transport, oxidative phosphorylation, and anaerobic
respiration have been updated and expanded. Chapter 11--The chapter now focuses on nucleic acid and gene structure,
mutations, and DNA repair. New material on DNA methylation has been added. Chapter 12--Material on gene expression (transcription and protein synthesis)
has been moved here and combined with an extensive discussion of the regulation
of gene expression. New sections on global regulatory systems and two-component
phosphorelay systems have been added. Chapter 15--This new chapter provides a brief introduction to microbial
genomics, including genome sequencing, bioinformatics, general characteristics
of microbial genomes, and functional genomics. Chapter 18--Virus taxonomy has been updated and new life cycle diagrams
added. Chapter 19--Material on polyphasic taxonomy and the effects of horizontal
gene transfer on phylogenetic trees has been added. The introduction to the
second edition of Bergey's Manual has been revised and updated. Chapters 20-24--The procaryotic survey chapters have been further revised
to conform to the new edition of Bergey's Manual. Chapter 28--This chapter, formerly chapter 40, has been substantially rewritten and now includes a treatment of symbiosis and microbial interactions (e.g., mutualism, protocooperation, commensalism, predation, amensalism, competition, and so forth).
A discussion of microbial movement between ecosystems has been added, and the
treatment of biofilms and microbial mats has been expanded. Chapter 29--The chapter on microorganisms in aquatic environments has
new material on such topics as microbial loops, Thiomargarita namibiensis, microorganisms
in freshwater ice, and current drinking water standards. Chapter 30--Microorganisms in cold moist area soils, desert soils, and
geologically heated hyperthermal soils are discussed. The effects of nitrogen,
phosphorus, and atmospheric gases on plants and soils are described more extensively.
There is a new section on the subsurface biosphere. Chapter 31--This reorganized chapter discusses normal microbiota and nonspecific
resistance. An overview of host resistance; a discussion of the cells, tissues,
and organs of the immune system; an introduction to the alternative and lectin
complement pathways; and a summary of cytokine properties and functions have
been included. Chapter 32--All aspects of specific immunity have been moved to this chapter
in order to provide a more clear and coherent discussion. The chapter contains
an overview of specific immunity, a discussion of antigens and antibodies, T-cell
and B-cell biology, a discussion of the action of antibodies, the classical
complement pathway, and a section on acquired immune tolerance. It ends with
a summary of the role of antibodies and lymphocytes in resistance. Chapter 33--The new chapter on medical immunology contains topics more
directly related to the practical aspects of health and clinical microbiology:
vaccines and immunizations, immune disorders, and in vitro antigen-antibody
interactions. Previously these were scattered over three chapters. The treatment
of vaccines has been greatly expanded. Chapter 34--The treatment of microbial pathogenicity has been greatly
enlarged and made into a separate chapter. Several topics have been expanded
or added: regulation of bacterial virulence factors and pathogenicity islands,
the mechanisms of exotoxin action, and microbial mechanisms for escaping host
defenses. Chapter 37--In the epidemiology chapter, the treatment of emerging diseases
has been expanded. New sections on bioterrorism and the effect of global travel
on health have been added. Chapters 38-40--The disease survey chapters have been brought up-to-date,
and bacterial diseases are now covered in one chapter rather than two. New material
has been added on genital herpes, listeriosis, the use of clostridial toxins
in therapy, and other topics. A new table describing common sexually transmitted
diseases and their treatment is provided. Chapter 41--New aspects of food microbiology include discussions of modified
atmosphere packaging, algal toxins, bacteriocins as preservatives, variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob
disease, food poisoning by uncooked foods, new techniques in tracing outbreaks
of food-related diseases, and the use of probiotics in the diet. Chapter 42--The chapter on industrial microbiology and biotechnology has
been revised to include current advances due to new molecular techniques. A
section on developing and choosing microorganisms for use in industry has been
added. Other topics that have been added or substantially revised include the
synthesis of products for medical use, biodegradation of pesticides and other
pollutants, the addition of microorganisms to the environment, and the use of
microarrays technology. | 
2002 McGraw-Hill Higher Education