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376 Book Reviews, Notes and Comments tropic drugs intheancientworld] [Pharmacological ecstasy. Ritual-religious usesofpsycho DOI: 10.4415/ANN_14_04_14 vegetative states, AnnIstSuperSanità2014;50(3):207- the recentseries ofarticlesinthisjournalon comaand sciousness andits“normal” “altered”states(seealso survey ofthepresentcontroversial knowledgeoncon- sciousness, theauthordevotes hisfirstchaptertoaclear which theirusewasdeveloped. the sametypeofdrug),butalsodifferentsettingsin of differentdrugtypes(ratherthanforms beverages. This depends on the wide variety not only er anddiversifiedthanthoseofopiatesalcoholic psychodisleptic orhallucinogenicdrugs–ismuchwid- geneous nomenclature–psychedelic,psychotomimetic, evidence. In fact this field, characterized byahetero- monumental amountofhighlyheterogeneousliterature symbolism, andsoonforth. practices, betweenJewishprophetismandChristian mantic (pythonic)practicesandRomandivinatory tween shamanism,magicandwizardry, betweenGreek helps understandingtheconsiderabledifferencesbe- the possibleroleofdrugsanditsfrequentdiscounting formance ofoneortheotherritual.Thediscussion hesion inreligiouspracticesand/orfacilitatedtheper practices. At most, drugs may have favoured group co- distinct, role ofdrugsinthedevelopmentvariousreligionsas often againstthefrequentattributionofasignificant uses. Amongotherthings,theevidencediscussedis therapeutical ornon-therapeuticalpsychotropicdrug realms ofpsychology, psychopathology, andeither the understanding of a variety of phenomena in the opium startedalongtimebeforeitshedonicuses. example, that ritual/religious and therapeutical uses of bunks severaltime-honourednarrativesshowing,for prehistoric timestothepresent.Muchofthisworkde- aspects ofthedevelopmentdifferentdrugusesfrom the historical, sociological, cultural and anthropological um [1]andalcohol[2],completesatrilogydevotedto Federica NapolitaniCheyne Edited by B Ann IstSuperSanità2014 Having todealwithvarious statesofalteredcon- In thisdifficultexercisetheauthorhadtonegotiatea This thirdinstalmentisasignificantcontributionto This book,followingthosebythesameauthoronopi- ook e.g., from shamanic, magic, or today’s NewAge R eviews € 26,00. ISBN: 978-88-95930-96.1. 2014. 238p. GiovanniRoma: Fioriti Editore; Paolo Nencini nel mondoantico Uso magico-religioso delledroghe L’ESTASI FARMACOLOGICA
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Vol. 50,No.4:376-380 , N , otes
a n - d - C evidence onprevious more “primitive”attempts: the ently rapidflowering isnotanartifactdue tomissing quality artisticcapability, assumingthatsuch anappar on thesuddenappearancein thePaleolythicofahigh esis andan“autistic”hypothesis. Thelatterisbased pathological questionsarea “neuro-aesthetic” hypoth- of presentdebatesonneuropsychological andpsycho- volving theuseofdrugs.Ofspecialinterestinface how each has its pros and contras, including those in- hypotheses have been supported and Nencini shows Vierzehnheiligen pilgrimagechurchinBavaria. Fourteen IntercessorSaintsatthespectacularbaroque and non-religious,tillrecenttimes,likethecultof ticipate innumerablesimilarphenomenabothreligious off the spectre of famine. Incidentally this seems to an- ing defencefromdangerousneighbours,andtostave of animalspiritstofavoursuccessinhunting,includ- an instrumental(“intercession”)model–theinvocation by others.Earlierinterpretationswereoftenbasedon etc.) isstronglysupportedbysomebutfirmlydenied of Franco-Cantabrianpaintings(Altamira,Lascaux, such as atropineandscopolamine–in the production drugs –particularlyplantscontainingantimuscarinics in contrasttwitheachother. Forexample,theroleof (or almostequally)credibleaccountsandhypotheses and missingevidencecanunleashahostofequally is agoodexampleofhowtheadmixtureavailable amerindian communitiesfromexternalthreats[5]. such asthetakingonofapoliticalroleindefence functions isfurther confirmed byrecentdevelopments With orwithoutdrugs,theimportanceofshaman’s later on,drugsmayhavebeenintroducedasfacilitators. tion (obsessively rhythmic music or drum beating); only exertion (danceetc.)and/orstunningsensorystimula- of drugs,i.e.,bysteadyintrospection,intensephysical riences mayhaveoriginallydevelopedwithouttheuse example, euroasiaticorindoamericanshamanicexpe- reliability ofprehistoricalandhistoricalevidence.For (and willremainunavailable),duetotheabsenceorun- egg questions for which answers are mostly unavailable field isstrewn withastartling numberofchicken-and- provide scientificexplanationsofsuchexperiences[4]. later chapter, p. 177), resulting in several attempts to death experiences[3](thesearebrieflydiscussedina fanciful accounts of Out-of-bodyexperiences and Near- have witnessedanexponentialincreaseofmoreorless In thiscontextitshouldalsobenotedthatrecenttimes exist, beingextremesinacontinuumof“normal”states. ion that“altered”statesofconsciousnesssimply do not author hasfelttheneedtodiscuss(andreject)opin- ferent approachesandtheories:tothepointthat 266). Quotesarejustifiedbytheinfinitevarietyofdif- Subsequently, moresophisticated,often“cognitive”, The secondchapter, devotedtothePalaeolithicAge, Additional complicationsstemfromthefactthatthis omme n ts - Pluto (intheRoman version Proserpinaand Dis, re- Persephone’s abductionbytheKingofUnderworld metempsychosis). Asshownalso bytheGreekmythof (the influentPlato,incidentally, wasafirmbeliever in nected as a reflection of the annual agricultural cycle tility, death,andregeneration/rebirthare strictlycon- cult in the Eleusinian mysteries; i.e., rites in which fer combined withcornears,inrelationtotheDemetra vided by the manyrepresentations of the opiumpoppy, again controversial, except for the firm evidence pro- The specificfunctionsofoneortheotherdrugare in theproductionofalteredstatesconsciousness. and philosophicalfactors(e.g.,Plato’s “enthousiasm”) interact withasettingofsocial,cultural,psychological a fascinating analysis of the way in which drug factors counted inthefaceofharderdata). author showshowmostofthis“evidence”hastobedis- (in thecaseofDelphi’s Pythia)oftoxicfumes(butthe often disagree concerning the role of various drugs and apeutical practices(iatromantic);andagain,theexperts (mantic) practicesoftenintertwinedwithmedical-ther and classical Greece, with its wide range of divinatory medicine). Thefollowingchapterisfocusedonarchaic ance ofthetermpharmakon,butmeaningpoison,not propriate antidotes(andhere we havethefirst appear territory toCirce’s wizardryanditsneutralizationbyap- graphic representationsoftheopiumpoppyinMinoic ance, attheendofsecondmillenniumBC,icono- Homeric poems;i.e.,rangingfromthesuddenappear up toandincludingtheperiodcorresponding legendary accountsconcerningMediterraneanareas with quitedifferentpsychotropicproperties. tors have “identified” some 20 different plants and fungi the earlyIndo-Iranians,forwhichdifferentinvestiga- mythical Vedic ritual drink Soma, of importance among more orlessfanciful attempts toguesswhat was the Quite interestinginthischapterisadiscussionofthe Amanita muscariainthenortheasterneuroasiaticarea. na alreadyaround4,500BC)andofshamanicuses tion anduses(thereisevidenceofitspresenceinChi- the East,includingspreadofcannabisdomestica- fourth chapterdealswithsubsequentdevelopmentsin therapeutic purposes,notforhedonicpurposes.The extensive useofopium;however, forritualandperhaps pean areas,whereampleevidencehasbeenfoundofan properties), and those of the central and western euro- sumed moreforitsfoodvaluethaninebriating murky andwithalowalcoholcontents,thereforecon- whose useofdrugswaslikelylimitedtobeer(quite the experiencesofMiddle-eastneolithicpopulations, concludes in favourofmarkeddifferences between chapters cannotbediscussedindetail.Thethirdone ens aretoocomplextobediscussedhere. language andothercognitivecapabilitiesbyHomosapi- tions fortherelationshipsbetweendevelopmentof any previousadhoctraining.Thesubstantialimplica- drawing capabilityinsomeautisticchildren,without compared tothesuddenemergenceofahigh-quality franco-cantabrian suddenperfectioncouldthereforebe Chapter VII,onmysteryritesandreligions,offers The fifthchapterconfrontsscientificevidenceand For obviousreasons,thecontentsoffollowingsix - - - - 2. 1. References Louis Mencken). is ananswerthatclear, simple,andwrong” (Henry please remember, “For every complexproblemthere that theperusal of thisbook is nogratis lunch; but small publisher. viously beyondthemeansofanotherwisemeritorious must dulynotetheabsenceofanindex,a“luxury”ob- – endowedwithpsychotropicproperties.Thereviewer and fungi–fromAmanitamuscariatoWithania tion onthecharacteristicsandpropertiesof24plants to ausefulsyntheticillustratedatlasprovidinginforma- for hisbiographyandbibliography). gave lucidaccountsoftheeffectsdrugs(see[6] “religious” freaklikethoseofLearyandothers), younger colleaguesintrainingwithhim(withoutany experimented LSDandpsilocybinonhimself Italian psychoanalistEmilioServadio(1904-1995),who tion theworkbyoneofpioneersinthisfield, psychiatric conditions.Heretheauthorforgetstomen- ing investigationsontheirtherapeuticpotentialinsome psychological andpsychopathological research, includ- tor McCarthy–ofanyusehallucinogenicdrugsin with witchhunting,shortlyafterthedownfallofSena- sixties, anotherexampleofthe20thcenturyfixation thy LearyHarvard“scandal”andLeary’s jailinginthe ment onthedrasticprohibition–followingTimo- for an(imaginary)pastGoldenAge. the Hermetic tradition – both signs of a strong nostalgia which appeartocomemuchclosertheGnosticthan ed totheuseofhallucinogensandtheirphilosophies “New age”trendswiththeirreligiousdogmasconnect- between modernscientificpsychopharmacology and a hybridation.Thislongstoryendswithconfrontation cology and therapeutics is the classical example of such new paradigmsofmodernscience:Paracelsus’pharma- in theRenaissanceofcurrentslikeesotericismand lowing stepdealswiththeapparentlybizarreadmixture 90% ofalltrialsinsomeplacesandperiods).Thefol- submissive women(overall,about100,000trials,upto and itslonghistoryofpersecutionnot-sufficiently- (particularly thosewithcentralantimuscariniceffects) and lastbutnotleast,wizardrywithitsuseofdrugs propriating Aristotle’s wisdom,astrologyandalchemy, tic heritages,Scholasticphilosophyandtheologyap- ferent trends–theNeoplatonic,HermeticandGnos- the complexrelationsinMiddleAgesbetweendif- velopments from ancient times tothe present, showing type ofdruguse. cults, be they associated or not with one or the other turn from,theUnderworldisacrucialaspectsofthese one resultinginOrphicmysteries),descentto,andre- spectively) andby“competing” myths (particularly the At this point, our few readers must have understood Finally, thelast fewpagesofthevolumearedevoted The authorconcludeshisanalysiswithaharshjudg- Thelastchapterisaneffectiveoverviewofthede- co. Alleradicidel beremoderno.MonteSanPietro: Nencini P. Ubriachezzaesobrietànelmondo- anti mondo antico.Roma:FrancoMuzioEditore; 2004. Nencini P. Ilfioredegliinferi.Papavero da oppioe sonnifera 377 Book Reviews, Notes and Comments 378 Book Reviews, Notes and Comments behavioral and genetic neuroscience. behavioral and genetic neuroscience. sanna Pietropaolo,scientistswith asolidbackgroundin by Wim ECrusio,Frans Sluyter, RobertGerlaiandSu- “Cambridge HandbooksinBehavioral Genetics”,edited of thisinterestingbook. and thislastpointseemstobe thecoreandstrength also needasoundknowledgeofanysingleanimalmodel, not onlyrequireappropriateethologicalobservations,but GA, 2004;PierceJL,2004). for genetichumanneuropsychiatricdiseases(Churchill “knockout” micemadetheseanimalstheprimarymodel the possibility to easily create different mutant strains and sufficient tobetranslatedhumanbehavioralcontexts), Together withtheirelaboratebehavioralrepertoire(often for behavioralstudiesarewell-known(BucanM,2002). nipulation onbehavior. Theadvantagesoftheuse ofmice in wholeanimalsandtoobservetheeffectsofsuchma- lowing scientiststodirectlymanipulategeneticmaterial cilitated bytherecentadvancesingeneticengineering,al- role of genetics in animal behavior, has been strongly fa- 6. 5. 4. 3. is the first volume of the Behavioral GeneticsoftheMouse isthefirstvolumeof The studiesfocusedonmousebehavioralphenotyping, Behavioral genetics,asafieldofstudyexaminingthe le&id=47&Itemid=53 joomla/index.phpoption=com_content&view=artic Emilio Servadio.http://www.emilioservadio.it/ Bellknapp Press/HarvardUniversityPress;2013. of aYamomami Shaman.Cambridge(MA,USA): of KopenawaD,AlbertB.TheFallingSky:Words York ReviewofBooks2014;61(17):50-2.Bookreview Shepard Jr. G.H.Thevoiceoftheshaman.New New York ReviewofBooks2014(17):36,38. Gottlieb R.BackfromHeaven–Thescience. view ofBooks2014;61(16):75-77. Gottlieb R.To Heavenandback!TheNewYork Re - Bignami in:AnnIstSuperSanità2010;46(1):101-3. Gruppo EditorialeMuzio;2009.ReviewedbyG. già IstitutoSuperiorediSanità,Rome,Italy Genetics). oks inBehavioral (Cambridge Handbo $ 155.00. ISBN: 9781107034815. Press; 2013.376p. Cambridge University (Eds). Cambridge, UK: Susanna Pietropaolo Sluyter, Robert T Gerlai, Wim ECrusio, Frans Phenotypes. Volume1. ofBehavioralGenetics TICS OF THE MOUSE BEHAVIORAL GENE- [email protected] Giorgio Bignami - netics, and the need of this interplay to understand the key netics, andtheneed ofthisinterplaytounderstand thekey Gerlai, describestheinteraction betweenethologyandge- and wherearewegoing?”byWim ECrusioandRobertT first chapter“Behaviorgenetics: Wheredowecomefrom an historical overview to the reader. At this purpose, the each chapter is introduced by a short paragraph offering tasks. er towardsthemostimportantstudiesconcerningthese inhibition to object recognition, usefullyguiding the read- knowledge aboutseveraltestsandparadigms,fromlatent those ancestors”. behavior mayornotrepresentthecharacteristicsof degree towhichspecificaspectsoftheirphysiologyand ratory mice have evolved from their wild ancestors and the the necessityforunderstandinghowcontemporarylabo- the authors:“Geneticapproacheshavealsoemphasized purpose ofthesocialbehaviorsectioniswellexplainedby learning andmemoryperformancesindifferentways.The ers tosolvetheirpotentialtroubles. of experimentalproblemsreallyusefulfornaïveresearch- Interestingly thebookincludesalsonumerousexamples tasks wherethemousehastorespondacousticstimuli. tem couldrepresentaconfounderinlearningandmemory the results.Forinstance,adysfunctionofauditorysys- of thebehavioraltestsandforproperunderstanding tions are fundamental for the correct planning and design sponse astraits).Theconceptsdescribedinthesetwosec- like behavior:stressvulnerabilityandantidepressantre- (Chapter 19:Mousemodelsofstress-induceddepression- els ofstress-induceddepression-likebehavioratadulthood on infantmouseultrasonicvocalizations)tomod- 11: Reflex development, Chapter 17: Genetic influences ogy toassessneurodevelopmentinmousepups(Chapter more heterogeneous, ranging from adequate methodol- Section 3(Autonomousandmotorbehaviors)appears cusing on sight, hearing, touch, olfaction and taste, while all aspectsofperceptual system withspecificchaptersfo- sufficient amountofbasicinformation. scores is enough to provide to the inexperienced fellows a Alleva sex andagedependent)socialbonding(AllevaE,1993; portedly highlysophisticatedintermofintraspecific(and time saving methodology since the mouse species is re- here proposed represent a rather simplify and low-cost expert humanobserver).Ofcourse,theethogramscales easily substitutetheperformancesofawelltrainedand ral biologistsstilldoubtthatfullyautomatedsystemswill automated systemsofanalyses(howevermanybehavio- contexts anddiscussontheimpactofintroduction repertoire ofthemouseindifferentsocialandnon gram, wheretheauthorsdescribecommonbehavioral basic concepts,suchasthedescriptionofmouseetho- summaries somehowsimilartoreviewarticles. containing differentchapterswithshortparagraphsand from perceptiontosocialbehavior, eachsinglesection ranged andstructured.Itisdividedinvarioussections, The book is definitely ahandbookfor the wayitis ar An interesting and original feature of this book is that An interestingandoriginalfeature ofthisbookisthat The learningandmemorysectionreviewscurrent The lasttwosectionsanalyzethesocialbehaviorand The secondSection(Perception)isfullydedicatedto The bookstartsfromtheSection1(General)listing et al.,1995).However, thissubsetofbehavioral - 5. 4. 3. 2. 1. References ropsychiatric disordersandtodifferentbehavioraltests. volumes thatwillbededicatedtomousemodelsforneu- state-of-the-art inbehaviorgeneticswewaitfornexttwo researchers. To havea complete overviewofthecurrent behavior andagoodguideforbothstudentssenior sents a good effort to implement the knowledge of mouse history ofthevariousmethodologies. handbook, revealingperspectiveswhichonereflectinthe cal notesmakesthisbooksomethingmorethanabasic of ExperimentalPsychology(1951).Thepresencehistori- seminal chapteronpsychogeneticsinStevens’Handbook as a separate of scientific fieldis represented by Hall’s the moreexplicitsignsofbirthbehaviorgenetics havioral geneticist.Theycontinuebysayingthatoneof could regard Francis Galton (1822-1911) as the first be- field, while as the authors of the first chapter explain, one many stillconsiderthebehavioralgeneticstobeayoung day, withtheincreasingavailabilityofgeneticmouselines, role ofthegenesinregulationbehavioralresponse.To- a Much morerecently, Iss organized inSeptember 1994, the for over30yearsatIss. genetics ISS byGiorgioBignami(1,2). Recognizedly, behavioural Avoidance rat strains, (RHA\RLA), originally selected at portant contributionsonRoman High-Avoidance and Low- contacts withourInstitution(ISS,Rome).Crusiogaveim- The foureditorsofthistextbookhavehadratherandregular Addendum: Abriefhistoricalnote 6. Nato Schoolin Maratea (Pz,Italy).Thiswas operation- In conclusion,BehavioralGeneticsoftheMouserepre- (Ed.). Hall CS. Thegenetics of behavior. In:Stevensen SS complex traits.NatGen2004;36:1133-7. a communityresourceforthegeneticanalysisof tie AD,BeattyJ,etal.TheCollaborativeCross, Churchill GA,AireyDC,AllayeeH,AngelJM,At- havior. NatRevGen2002;3:114-23. Bućan M,AbeT. Themouse:geneticsmeetsbe- 359-374. (eds), Kluwer, Dordrecht,TheNetherlands,pp. Hans-Peter Lipp,Lynn NadelandLauraRicceri Naturalistic Settings. Enrico Alleva, Aldo Fasolo, Behavioural BrainResearchinNaturalisticandSemi- semi-naturalistic andnaturalisticapproaches.In: ing thesocialbehaviourofrodents:laboratory, Alleva E, Petruzzi S, Ricceri L. (1995). Evaluat- York: AcademicPress;1993.p.111-137. of behavior. Methods in Neurosciences. dents. In:PMConn (Ed.). Paradigmsforthe study Alleva E.Assessmentofaggressivebehaviorinro- New York: JohnWiley andSons;1951.p.304-29. 2004;5:7. vanced intercross populations inmice.BMCGenet new setofBXDrecombinantinbredlinesfromad- Peirce JL,LuL,GuJ,SilverLM,Williams RW. A was pioneeredinthelaboratoryrun byDanielBovet Handbook ofExperimentalPsychology,1 Istituto SuperiorediSanità,Rome,Italy [email protected] Caterina Michetti vol.14. New st ed. 4. 3. 2. 1. rich ETH(Isatinherthesiscommittee). myself)thenreceivedaPhdattheZu- Branchi and by Igor was bothundergraduatestudentatISS(jointly-supervised tenured staff as Researcher at CNRS in Bordeaux (France), fibers cafè”(3,4).BookeditorSusannaPietropaolo,now this Marateaevent,theformerorganisinganoriginal“mossy Book editors Wim Crusio and Frans Sluyter participated in the latter, seeabove). Resmini andsubsequentlyheadedbyGiorgioBignami(for and SystemPathophysiology, foundedbyAmilcareCarpide er LauraRicceri:bothenrolledintheLaboratoryofOrgan assistant inBovet’s groupandbyISStenured-staffresearch- ally actedbyLuigi“Gino”DeAcetis,aformerISStechnical ades, medical and veterinaryentomologyis assuming which arefrequentlyinterconnected. Inthelastdec- effort tocontrolhumanandanimal infectiousdiseases to supportphysiciansandveterinarians inthecommon It hasbeenstructuredwithin the “Onehealth”concept of Bari,andRichardL.Wall oftheUniversity Bristol. versity of Sydney, Domenico Otranto of the University standing entomologists:RichardC.RusselloftheUni- This The Hague:KluwerAcademicPublishers,1995. uralistic Settings:Possibilitiesandperspectives158-179. Behavioral Brain Research in Naturalistic and Semi-nat- Alleva E,FasoloA,H.-P. LippH-P, NadelL.(Eds). Evol. 1995;10(5):184–186. semi-natural settings(News&comment).Trends Ecol Shenk F. Behaviouralbrainresearchinnaturaland Seances AcadSci.1965;25;260:1239-44. a conditionedavoidancereactionintherat.CRHebd G,BovetD.Selectionexperimentwithrespect Bignami 1965;3(2):221-7. of avoidanceconditioningintherat.AnimBehav. Bignami G.Selectionforhighratesandlow Encyclopedia representstheworkofthreeout- Istituto SuperiorediSanità,Rome,Italy ISBN-13: 9781780640372. 2013.429p. CABI; UK: Wallingford, Oxfordshire, co Otranto, Richard L Wall. Richard CRussell,- Domeni & VETERINARY ENTOMOLOGY OF MEDICAL THE ENCYCLOPEDIA [email protected] Enrico Alleva 379 Book Reviews, Notes and Comments 380 Book Reviews, Notes and Comments chapters isstructuredineightsections(introduction, tsetse flies,tumbuandwarbleflies.Eachofthese ders, stablefiles,stomachbotflies,hardticks,soft bot flies, non-biting midges, sand flies, scorpions, spi- lice, suckingmillipedes,mites,mosquitoes,nasal bot flies,kedsandlousekissingbugs,chewing horse flies,housefliesandothernon-bitinghuman pedes, cockroaches,eyeflies,fleas,fleshhorn flies and screw-worm flies, butterflies and moths, centi- bees andwasps,beetles,bitingmidges,blackfiles,blow with differentarthropodgroups,namelyants,bedbugs, pods. Thecoreofthebookare36chaptersdealing forensic entomology, andemergingissuesofarthro- rect damage,entomophobiaanddelusionalparasitosis, focused ondiseasetransmission,allergicreactions,di- and Diptera(two-wingedflies).Thesecondchapteris Lepidoptera (butterfliesmoths),Siphanaptera(fleas), leoptera (beetles),Hymenoptera(ants,bees,wasps), roaches), Phthiraptera(lice),Hemiptera(bugs),Co- 2. theclassInsectawithorderBlattodea(cock- ders), andotherordersofminororincidentalinterest; and ticks), Scorpiones (scorpions), order Araneae (spi- (millipedes), ArachnidawiththesubclassAcari(mites sification: 1.classChilopoda(centipedes),Diplopoda the arthropods(phylum Arthropoda) and their clas- are medicalandveterinaryentomologywhat troductory chapters. The first chapter deals with what 80% of all known species of animals. There aretwo in- and complexwordofarthropods,whichcompriseabout work presentedinaneducationalway. portance ofarthropodsinhumanandanimalmedicine. main factorsthathavecontributedtotheincreasedim- of goodsandanimals,theglobalwarmingare passive introduction of arthropods by travelers, by trade and viraldiseases,someofwhicharepandemic.The and animals,arevectorsofmanybacterial,parasitic, which, apartfromtheirroleaspathogensforhumans caused bytheglobalincreaseandspreadofarthropods, an evergreatimportanceduetothenewchallenges The bookstructureguidesthereaderintowide This Encyclopedia representsascientificandrigorous aged inafutureeditionofthebook. readers couldgathermoreinformation,beenvis- scale barinallfigures,andofalistwebsiteswherethe have beenveryuseful.Furthermore,theinclusionofa least forthearthropodtaxaofmajorimportance,would can be identified, the inclusion of dichotomous tables, at could alsobeinterestedinhowthesevectors/pathogens erinary importance.SincethereaderofthisEncyclopedia want tolearnmoreaboutarthropodsofmedicalandvet- ologists, agronomists,ecologists,farmers,students)who ( among others. orrhagic fever, rickettsiosis,ehrlichiosis,babesiosis, cephalitis, Siberianticktyphus,Crimean-Congohem- Argasidae), thevectorsofLyme disease,tick-borneen- of filariasis) diseases,sandflies(Psychodidae),thevectors tis, West Nile,chikungunya)andparasitic(e.g.,malaria, of viral(e.g.,yellowfever, dengue,Japaneseencephali- agents of allergies, mosquitos (Culicidae), the vectors of the bubonic plague, mites (Acari), the causative cal agents of myasis, fleas (Siphonaptera), the vectors flies andscrew-worm(Calliphoridae),theetiologi- flies (Simuliidae),thevectorsofhumanfilariasis,blow animal medicinearecoveredmoreextensively:black tory conditions. stages of arthropods in their environment or in labora- there are64colorplateswhichshowlarvalandadult their identificationinaneducationalway. Inaddition, (138 intotal)whichshowthearthropodstructurefor chapters areaccompaniedbyblackandwhitefigures betical indexcompletestheEncyclopedia.Mostof and control,aselectedbibliography).Analpha- nomics, medicalandveterinaryimportance,prevention taxonomy, morphology, life cycle,behaviorandbio- e.g. medicalandveterinarydoctors,biologists,epidemi- The Arthropods ofspecialimportanceinhumanand/or Leishmania and arboviruses, and ticks (Ixodidae and is a useful tool for the non-specialists Encyclopedia is a useful tool for the non-specialists Istituto SuperiorediSanità,Rome,Italy [email protected] Edoardo Pozio