Krasner and Shors offer the third edition of this microbiology text geared toward students in the health professions, revised and updated with new material on fungal disease, recent developments in infectious disease, newly developed therapies and research methods, and updated statistics and numerical facts. The material is divided into four parts, with the first part introducing the problem of infectious disease and characterizes microbiota. Both beneficial and deleterious contributions of microbes are discussed, and the basic functioning of bacteria, viruses, and prions is covered. Part 2 presents general features of microbial disease course, with more detailed coverage of bacterial, viral, prion, protozoan, helminthic, and fungal diseases. Part 3 discusses how disease can be fought, both at the level of the individual's immune system and as a matter of public health policy. The final part discusses currently unresolved issues including the threat of biological weapons, epidemics that have not yet been brought under control, and directions for future research. Annotation ©2014 Ringgold, Inc., Portland, OR (protoview.com)