The Lung

This unique book provides a concise account, written by world authorities in their fields, of how the mammalian lung grows and matures before birth and how the lungs, and their ability to function well, can be affected by the environment and by genetic factors, both before and after birth. It provides an understanding of the basis of some major lung diseases affecting infants and children. The book also deals with how the lung changes with age, and how the process of lung aging can be affected by the environment.

* Discusses the mechanisms that regulate the initial events of lung morphogenesis * Provides a better understanding of the cellular and biochemical events involved in alveolarization* Development of the pulmonary immune system and how the exposure to allergens during development may lead to diseases such as asthma

Kent Pinkerton, MD, is professor of pediatrics, School of Medicine, and director of the Center for Health and the Environment at the University of California, Davis.

His research focuses on the health effects of inhaled environmental air pollutants to alter respiratory, cardiovascular, and neurological structure and function. Special areas of interest include the interaction of gases and airborne particles to produce cellular and structural changes within site-specific regions and cells of the respiratory tract in both acute and chronic timeframes of exposure. Recent studies have focused on environmental and biological impacts of synthesized nanomaterials as well as the effects of environmental tobacco smoke and combustion particles on lung growth and development.

He is associate director for the San Joaquin Aerosol Health Effects Research Center (SAHERC) to study airborne particles of the San Joaquin Valley. He is also the associate director for the Western Center for Agricultural Health and Safety (WCAHS) to study the health effects of airborne particles in an agricultural setting.

Richard Harding is a NHMRC Senior Principal Research Fellow and an Emeritus Professor with the Department of Anatomy and Developmental Biology at Monash University, Australia. His research focuses on Respiratory Development and Programming. He is now semi-retired.