Skip to content

Booksellers & Trade Customers: Sign up for online bulk buying at trade.atlanticbooks.com for wholesale discounts

Booksellers: Create Account on our B2B Portal for wholesale discounts

Limits of the Self: Immunology and Biological Identity

by Thomas Pradeu , Elizabeth Vitanza
Save 17% Save 17%
Current price ₹15,696.00
Original price ₹18,836.00
Original price ₹18,836.00
Original price ₹18,836.00
(-17%)
₹15,696.00
Current price ₹15,696.00

Imported Edition - Ships in 18-21 Days

Free Shipping in India on orders above Rs. 500

Request Bulk Quantity Quote
+91
Book cover type: Hardcover
  • ISBN13: 9780199775286
  • Binding: Hardcover
  • Subject: N/A
  • Publisher: Oxford University Press
  • Publisher Imprint: Oxford University Press
  • Publication Date:
  • Pages: 320
  • Original Price: GBP 110.0
  • Language: English
  • Edition: N/A
  • Item Weight: 459 grams
  • BISAC Subject(s): Philosophy & Social Aspects

What counts as an individual in the living world? What does it mean for a living thing to remain the same through time, while constantly changing? These questions are the province of immunology, one of the most dynamic fields in biology. Immunology answers these questions with its theory of "self" and "nonself" which has dominated the field since the 1940s. Thomas Pradeu argues that this theory is inadequate, because immune responses to self constituents and immune tolerance of foreign entities are the rule, not the exception. Instead Pradeu advances an alternative theory, the continuity theory, which offers a new way to answer the question of what triggers an immune response. It also echoes the recent realization that all organisms, and not only higher vertebrates, have an immune system.
Pradeu's main thesis is that the self-nonself theory should be abandoned, but that immunology still proves to be decisive for delineating the boundaries of the organism. Articulating an evolutionary and an immunological perspective, he offers an original conception of the organism. Tolerance of the fetus by the mother and of countless bacteria on the body's surfaces proves that every organism is heterogeneous, that is, made of entities of different origins. In other words, every organism appears as a chimera, a mixed living thing-the cohesiveness of which is ensured by the constant action of its immune system.
The Limits of the Self, will be essential reading for anyone interested in the definition of biological individuality and the understanding of the immune system.

Thomas Pradeu is Senior Researcher at the CNRS & University of Bordeaux (France). From 2008 to 2014, he was Associate Professor in Philosophy of Science at Paris-Sorbonne University. He is also Associated Researcher at IHPST Paris. His research deals mainly with the definition of the organism, the notion of biological individuality, and the concept of "self" as it appears in today's immunology.

Trusted for over 49 years

Family Owned Company

Secure Payment

All Major Credit Cards/Debit Cards/UPI & More Accepted

New & Authentic Products

India's Largest Distributor

Need Support?

Whatsapp Us