Immunological Aspects of Reproduction and Fertility Control

1. Front Matter

   Pages i-ix

   PDF

2. Immunological Aspects of Reproduction

   1. Front Matter

      Pages 1-1

      PDF

   2. Immunological Relationships between Mother and Fetus during Pregnancy

      • M. Kaye

      Pages 3-31

   3. Immunological Relationships between Mother and Conceptus In Man

      • D. W. Cooper

      Pages 33-61

   4. Immunological Diagnosis of Early Pregnancy

      • J. K. Findlay

      Pages 63-81

   5. Immunological Aspects of Eclampsia and Pre-eclampsia

      • C. W. G. Redman

      Pages 83-103

   6. Immunological Factors in Male and Female Infertility

      • W. R. Jones

      Pages 105-140

3. Immunological Aspects of Fertility Control

   1. Front Matter

      Pages 141-141

      PDF

   2. Inhibition of Reproductive Function by Antibodies to Luteinizing Hormone Releasing Hormone

      • H. M. Fraser

      Pages 143-171

   3. Immunization against Zona Pellucida Antigens

      • R. J. Aitken, D. W. Richardson

      Pages 173-201

   4. The Current Status of Anti-pregnancy Vaccines Based on Synthetic Fractions of HCG

      • V. C. Stevens

      Pages 203-216

   5. Vaccines Based on the Beta-subunit of HCG

      • G. P. Talwar

      Pages 217-227

   6. The Immunobiology of Chorionic Gonadotrophin

      • J. P. Hearn

      Pages 229-244

4. Back Matter

   Pages 245-253

   PDF

The no-man's-land between reproductive physiology and immunology is becoming crowded. The last 10 years have seen a revolution in our under­ standing of many reproductive processes, brought about by the application of ever more sophisticated immunological methods. The increasing precision of these techniques has given us specific ways of assaying, enhancing or blocking hormonal mechanisms to yield more critical and interpretable information. In this volume eleven authors have presented the current status and future prospects of some immunological aspects of reproduction and fertility con­ trol. These include the relationships between mother and fetus, the diagnosis of pregnancy, the immunological complications seen in clinical management of human reproduction and some novel approaches for immunological control of fertility. We hope that in these chapters we have achieved an up-to-date account of a fast-moving field that calls on several disciplines. We intend the book to provide an adequate background and a current review for research workers and clinicians who wish both to understand the complex mechanisms involved and to develop improved scientific and clinical methods. We hope too that the student and newcomer will find this a useful reference book.

• fertility
• reproduction

• The Wellcome Laboratories of Comparative Physiology, The Zoological Society of London, London, UK

  J. P. Hearn

Policies and ethics