ABSTRACT
The content of this volume is a testament to the importance of antimicrobial peptides in the lives of all organisms. Not only do microbial cells themselves produce these small peptides to influence the growth or activity of other microbes in their environments, but an immense body of evidence now points to the essential and diverse roles played by these peptides throughout nature in the innate immunity of plants and invertebrates, and in both innate and adaptive immunity of vertebrates-including humans. The review by Ganz and Lehrer (1) should be consulted for a brief treatment of the biology and applications of antimicrobial peptides from higher eukaryotes. Hancock and Diamond (2) have provided a recent overview of the roles of peptides in innate immunity and relate these to adaptive immunity. Hoffmann et al. (3) provide an in-depth review of innate immunity across species boundaries, and the commentary by Ganz (4) provides a perspective on vertebrate defensins. References in each of these publications should be consulted for further reading. The biological functions of antimicrobial peptides and their utility in practical applications are treated comprehensively in the chapters of this volume, and include lists of references enabling the reader to pursue many interests in depth.
