Product Description: The recent identification of susceptibility genes for schizophrenia, depression and learning and memory dysfunction suggest that psychiatric disorders may be influenced by a small number of genes with multiple actions. This is the first book to investigate the role of growth factors in these disorders, which should provide clues to the underlying biochemical mechanisms...read more

Product Description: This book draws together contributions from cell and developmental biologists, structural biologists, geneticists and clinical scientists aimed at a better understanding of the cellular and molecular basis of these diseases. Topics include: How nuclear structure and location within a nucleus affect gene expression Chromatin organization and cell differentiation The nature of the interactions between the nuclear envelope and the cytoskeleton The extent to which the cytoskeleton mediates communication between the cell membrane and nucleus in regulating gene expression and whether disruption of such communication might underlie the disease processes It is hoped that a better understanding of the mechanisms leading to disease pathogenesis may ultimately lead to more rational and appropriate treatments...read more

Chronic inflammation predisposes to some forms of cancer and the host response to malignant disease shows several parallels with inflammation and wound healing. The cells involved in inflammation are detected in a range of common cancers, together with the inflammatory cytokines and members of the chemokine ligand/receptor systems. Neutralization or deletion of the gene for some inflammatory cytokines confers resistance to tumour induction and experimental metastasis. Over-expression of such cytokines in tumour cells may enhance malignant potential. Certain chemokines are likely to subvert antitumour immunity by favouring development of ineffective Type 2 responses. Tumour cells may even utilize chemokine receptors in homing to lymph nodes and other organs. Thus, the cells, cytokines and chemokines found in tumours are more likely to contribute to tumour growth, progression and immunosuppression than they are to mount an effective host antitumour response. This book draws together contributions from an international group of scientists and clinicians from diverse disciplines, ranging from epidemiology to immunology, cell biology, molecular oncology, molecular medicine and pharmacology to debate these and related issues. Topics covered include the epidemiological links between cancer and inflammation, the parallels between inflammation and cancer, the role of inflammation in cancer, inflammatory genes as risk factors for cancer initiation and progression, inflammation and cancer angiogenesis, and preventative and therapeutic strategies. Related Novartis Foundation symposia: 252 Generation and Effector Functions of Regulatory Lymphocytes Chair: Jean-François Bach 254 Immunoinformatics: Bioinformatic Strategies for Better Understanding of Immune Function Chair: Hans-Georg Rammensee

The ability at the molecular level to keep track of time is a property shared by organisms ranging from the simplest unicells to humans. The primary feature of these biological clocks is their ability to entrain to environmental stimuli. The dominant stimulus comes from environmental light cues, which requires the existence of photopigments sensitive to light. The exact identity of the molecules involved in circadian photoreception has remained elusive. The classical view of the circadian system is of diverse physiological rhythms regulated by a centralized clock structure. This book presents evidence that challenges this view. Experiments in both vertebrate and invertebrate systems demonstrate that the circadian timing system is dispersed throughout the animal and suggest that possibly every cell contains an autonomous clock mechanism. A variety of tissues and cells contain have been shown to maintain an oscillation when placed in vitro and removed from any external cues or signals that originate from the classical clock structures and/or the environment. This book draws together contributions from an international and interdisciplinary group of experts whose work is focused on all aspects of the topic. Coverage includes the mechanisms of light signalling to the vertebrate clock, the connections between central and peripheral clocks, circadian gene expression patterns and output pathways of clock mechanisms.

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Product Description: Telomeres and TelomeraseChairman: Sydney Brenner, 1997 Telomeres are the protective genetic elements located at the ends of chromosomes and are essential for correct chromosomal structure and function. They are not fully replicated by the conventional DNA polymerase system because DNA synthesis occurs only in the 5' to 3' direction and requires an RNA primer for initiation...read more (view table of contents, read Amazon.com's description)

Product Description: The use of oligonucleotides as therapeutic agents rests upon their ability to interfere, in a sequence-specific manner, with the fundamental machinery of protein synthesis either by binding to the mRNAs transcribed from a gene or by binding directly to a target gene...read more (view table of contents, read Amazon.com's description)

Product Description: The molecular mechanisms and protein species associated with the mineralization of mature dental enamel are active areas of research. This book focuses on specific areas of research including the structural chemistry, protein biochemistry and genetics of enamel development. (view table of contents, read Amazon.com's description)

Product Description: Antibiotic Resistance: Origins, Evolution, Selection and Spread Chairman: Stuart B. Levy 1997 Over the last 50 years, the rapid increase in the use of antibiotics, not only in people, but also in animal husbandry and agriculture, has delivered a selection unprecedented in the history of evolution...read more (view table of contents, read Amazon.com's description)

Product Description: This volume examines obesity disorders which can lead to diabetes, hypertension and hyperlipidaemia. It offers an interdisciplinary and international look at all aspects of the origins, consequences and treatment of obesity. (view table of contents, read Amazon.com's description)

Product Description: Many different pathological conditions are currently under investigation as therapeutic targets of purines including cancer, cardiovascular conditions, behavioural disorders, inflammation, immunoregulation, and neuroendocrine function...read more (view table of contents, read Amazon.com's description)

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Product Description: Prestigious contributors describe the genetic, molecular, anatomical and neurochemical mechanisms and pathways that operate to regulate and control circadian rhythmicity and functioning in organisms ranging from unicellular algae to human beings...read more (view table of contents, read Amazon.com's description)

Product Description: A compilation of articles by prominent experts in their respective fields on compensation for and collaboration with indigenous people in regard to their knowledge and provision of rare plants which are used for some of the most potent drugs in Western medicine. (view table of contents, read Amazon.com's description)

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Product Description: Postimplantation Development in the Mouse Chairman: A. McLaren 1992 This book contains an in-depth analysis of the state of knowledge of postimplantation development in the mouse. It concentrates on the mouse as an example of mammalian development, but refers to chick, amphibian and Drosophila embryogenesis where these organisms are more amenable to the study of particular problems...read more (view table of contents, read Amazon.com's description)

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Product Description: Useful throughout history for their medical as well as other benefits, plant-derived compounds have gained particular importance recently, due to environmental factors. The isolation and characterization of plant products, the identification of their role in the plant, and ways of synthesizing identical compounds or more potent analogues are covered...read more (view table of contents, read Amazon.com's description)