This book is an attempt to collect a wide range of
molecular information about all aspects of bacterial
pathogens. Its general structure is, therefore, not unlike
that of the classical textbooks; the more fundamental
aspects of microbiology are considered in the early chapters
of the book, before individual pathogens are discussed
in detail. The chapters differ from conventional
texts of medical microbiology in that it is assumed that
information of a more traditional and classical ‘phenotypic
bacteriology’-kind can be found in many wellknown
and excellent texts. This has made it possible to
concentrate on the more recent molecular information that
is increasingly rapidly becoming available.