Vascular Adhesion Molecules and Inflammation

It is now clear that the expression or activity of most of these molecules is tightly and selectively controlled, and that they are vital for the physiological processes of leukocyte trafficking and also critically involved in the enhanced leukocyte emigration that is a key feature of all inflammatory and immune diseases. This in turn has led to a new phase in inflammation research, designed to produce novel therapeutic tools that can control the expression or action of these adhesion molecules. The book will provide an overview of the roles of vascular adhesion molecules in health and disease, with chapters on their cell biology, followed by chapters reviewing their importance in specific disease processes.