Parasitism – The Ecology and Evolution of Intimate Interactions. By C. Combes, pp. 552 (English Translation by de Buron, I. & Connors, V. A.). The University of Chicago Press, Chicago, Illinois, USA, 2004. ISBN 0 226 11446 5. US$ 30.00 (paperback).

A new paperback edition of this well-established text.

Global Handbook on Food and Water Safety. By S. Y. De Leon, S. L. Meacham & V. S. Claudio. Charles C. Thompson Publisher Ltd, Springfield, Illinois, USA, 2003. ISBN 0 398 07402 X. US$ 85.95 (hardback). ISBN 0 398 07403 8. US$ 55.95 (paperback).

A wide-ranging coverage of issues for food handlers, food industry managers and consumers. Chapters of interest to parasitologists include diseases associated with food and water, albeit at a relatively low level, and with an emphasis on microorganisms.

Biotechnology – An Introduction (2nd Edn). S. R. Barnum. Thomson Brooks/Cole, Belmond, CA, USA, 2005. ISBN 0 534 49296 7. £34.99.

The second edition includes new chapters on immunology, genomics, proteomics and bioinformatics. Ethical considerations have been included as well as comments on ‘new developments’. The level is, in my view, final year undergraduate and there is an associated web site that includes quizzes, a glossary and links.

Risk Analysis of Prion Diseases in Animals (ed. Lasmezas, C. I. & Adams, D. B.). OIE Scientific and Technical Review, Vol. 22 (1). OIE, Paris, France. ISBN 92 9044 573 4.

Contains a general update on prion diseases and reviews of current knowledge about BSE, scrapie and chronic wasting disease. Special topics include whether BSE has entered the sheep population, the potential for TSEs in monogastric livestock and fish, diagnostic tests and rendering methods that inactivate prions.

Combination Therapy of AIDS (ed. De Clercq, E. D. A. & Vandamme, A-M. I.) Birkhäuser Verlag AG, Basel, Switzerland, 2003. ISBN 3 7643 6600 1. CHF 198.

Combination therapy of AIDS is examined from a variety of perspectives including historical, economic and theoretical considerations. Virological, immunological, clinical and practical reasons for therapy failures are discussed as well as strategies for preventing or overcoming therapy failures.