Mechanical stress is vital to the functioning of the body, especially for tissues such as bone, muscle, heart, and vessels. It is well known that astronauts and bedridden patients suffer muscle and bone loss from lack of use. Even the heart, in pumping blood, causes mechanical stress to itself and to vascular tissue. With the loss of mechanical stress, homeostasis becomes impaired and leads to pathological conditions such as osteopenia, muscle atrophy, and vascular tissue dysfunction. In elderly populations, such mechanical pathophysiology, as well as the mechanical activities of locomotor and cardiovascular systems, is important because skeletal and heart functions decline and cause diseases in other organs. In this monograph, mechanical stress is discussed by experts in the field with respect to molecular, cellular, and tissue aspects in relation to medicine. Covering topics such as gravity and tissues and disuse osteoporosis, the book provides the most up-to-date information on cutting-edge advancements in the field of mechanobiology and is a timely contribution to research into locomotor and circulatory diseases that are major problems in contemporary society.

This book encapsulates over three decades of the author's work on comparative functional respiratory morphology. It provides insights into the mechanism(s) by which respiratory means and processes originated and advanced to their modern states. Pertinent cross-disciplinary details and facts have been integrated and reexamined in order to arrive at more robust answers to questions regarding the basis of the functional designs of gas exchangers. The utilization of oxygen for energy production is an ancient process, the development and progression of which were underpinned by dynamic events in the biological, physical, and chemical worlds. Many books that have broached the subject of comparative functional respiratory biology have only described the form and function of the 'end-product,' the gas exchanger; they have scarcely delved into the factors and the conditions that motivated and steered the development from primeval to modern respiratory means and processes. This book addresses and answers broad questions concerning the critical synthesis of multidisciplinary data, and clarifies previously cryptic aspects of comparative respiratory biology.

Although birds have a rather uniform body plan and physiology, they exhibit marked variation in development type, parental care, and rate of growth. This makes them ideal for studying and understanding evolutionary adaptation. Presenting an integrative perspective of organism biology, ecology, and evolution, this book is a case study in evolutionary diversification of life histories.

Given the importance of livestock to the global economy, there is a substantial need for world-class reference material on the sustainable management of livestock in diverse eco-regions. With uncertain climates involving unpredictable extreme events (e.g., heat, drought, infectious disease), environmental stresses are becoming the most crucial factors affecting livestock productivity. By systematically and comprehensively addressing all aspects of environmental stresses and livestock productivity, this volume is a useful tool for understanding the various intricacies of stress physiology. With information and case studies collected and analyzed by professionals working in diversified ecological zones, this book explores the influence of the environment on livestock production across global biomes. The challenges the livestock industry faces in maintaining the delicate balance between animal welfare and production are also highlighted.

One of the most interesting aspects of thermogenesis research is that it quite naturally attracts workers from an extremely wide spectrum of interests, ranging from the mechanism of cellular respiratory control at the molecular level and neuro-hormonal control of energy dissipation both at the cellular level and that of the whole organisms to the mechanism of temperature control during the hibernating cycle and that of cold acclimatation. Thus, the Satellite Symposium on "The Effectors of Thermogenesis" brought together not only physiologists, but also biochemists, pharmacologists, zoologists and clinicians, and provided a forum for the airing of new ideas as well as for the confrontation of different points of view. These are now reproduced in this book in exactly the same form and order in which they were presented at the Symposium, in the hope of providing a bird's-eye view of the various facets of thermogenesis research. A "mini-review", summarizing the current knowledge in each domain, therefore precedes the corresponding papers. The editors are deeply indebted to the contributors of these introductory lectures for so competently selecting from the mass of available information in each field, only the most essential elements. This book is dedicated to Dr. Robert Emrie Smith, a pioneer and path-finder in this field, who organized the first meeting on thermogenesis as a satellite of the XXI International Congress of Physiological Sciences and took an active part in the four subsequent meetings. L. Girardier DEDICATION Dr.

This collection of reviews will be of considerable interests to biologists and MDs working on any aspect of cardiovascular function. With state-of-the-art reviews written by competent experts in the field, the content is also of interest for MSc and PhD students in most fields of cardiovascular physiology.

This volume contains the papers presented in the NATO Advanced Research Workshop "Activation of Hormone and Growth Factor Receptors: Molecular Mechanisms and Consequences" held in Nafplion, Greece on September 25-30, 1988. The objective of NATO ARW is to assess the state of-the-art in a given scientific area and to formulate recommendations for future research in emerging areas of science by promoting international scientific contacts. In the Nafplion meeting this objective was reached by an international group of speakers, senior Greek scientists and graduates involved in relevant research areas. The Workshop was made possible by the generous support of the Scientific Council of NATO. We thank Drs. G. Sinclair and L.V. daCunha, Directors of the NATO ARW's and ASI's (Advanced Study Institutes) respectively, for their wholehearted support and advice. The International Union of Biochemistry awarded additional travel grants leading to increased international participation. Furthermore, the Secretariat of Science and Technology, the Ministry of Culture and Sciences and the National Hellenic Research Foundation contributed financially and by supporting personnel. We sincerely thank all these organizations for their support. Our heartful thanks are also extended to the Mayor of the Municipality of Nafplion, Mr.

Our highly seasonal world restricts insect activity to brief portions of the year. This feature necessitates a sophisticated interpretation of seasonal changes and enactment of mechanisms for bringing development to a halt and then reinitiating it when the inimical season is past. The dormant state of diapause serves to bridge the unfavourable seasons, and its timing provides a powerful mechanism for synchronizing insect development. This book explores how seasonal signals are monitored and used by insects to enact specific molecular pathways that generate the diapause phenotype. The broad perspective offered here scales from the ecological to the molecular and thus provides a comprehensive view of this exciting and vibrant research field, offering insights on topics ranging from pest management, evolution, speciation, climate change and disease transmission, to human health, as well as analogies with other forms of invertebrate dormancy and mammalian hibernation.

This book describes in detail various aspects of fluoride toxicity in animals. Animals, like human beings, suffer from the toxic effects of excess fluoride intake. They show pathological changes in their teeth and bone, together with a marked reduction in appetite, productive and reproductive potentials, which can result in severe economic losses in the dairy industry. Laboratory and wild animals also suffer from this ailment. Animal suffering and economic losses alike can be minimized through early diagnosis of the problem and by adopting suitable preventive and therapeutic measures. The book details the susceptibility of different animal species, important sources of toxicity, clinical signs and symptoms, pathophysiology, diagnostic methods, preventive and therapeutic approaches. It offers a valuable resource for scientists working in the fields of toxicology, veterinary science, animal nutrition, and environmental science, as well as for public health workers, animal welfare activists, public health veterinarians, field veterinarians, medical professionals and all others interested in the subject.

Volume I highlights the association of the cellular prion protein (PrPC) with copper and zinc, the potential roles of PrPC in Alzheimer's disease and cancers, insoluble PrPC, PMCA, molecular and cellular mechanisms of PrPSc formation and clearance, possible co-factors involved in the conversion of PrPC into PrPSc, infectious and pathogenic forms of PrP, cell biology of prions, prion strains and their interference, as well as yeast prions and their inheritable and structural traits. This unique volume will take you through the fascinating chronicle of prions in mammals, yeast, and fungi.

Biomechanics has a distinguished history extending at least to the 16th Century. However the later half oftbis century has seen an explosion ofthe field with it being viewed as affering exciting challenges for physical scientists and engineers interested in the life sciences, and wonderful opportunities for life scientists eager to collaborate with physical scientists and engineers and to render their scientific work more fundamental. That the field is now weil established and expanding is demonstrated by the formation of a World Committee for Biomechanics and the success and large participation in the 1st and 2nd World Congresses of Biomechanics, held respectively in San Diego in 1990 and in Amsterdam in 1994. With more than 1350 scientific papers delivered at the 2nd World Congress, either within symposia or oral or poster sessions, it would have been out of the question to try to produce comprehensive edited proceedings. Moreover, we are confident that most of the papers have been or will be published in one ofthe excellentjoumals covering the field. But of effort contributed by the plenary lecturers and the tutorial we thought that the large amount and keynote speakers of various symposia deserved tobe recognised in the form of a specific publication, thus also allowing those unable to attend the presentatiops . . tC\ sh?r~ in the findings. Furthermore, we feel that there is now a need to review aspects 'oftlie freld.

Originally published in 1948, this book covers the main papers published on animal colour changes between 1910 and 1943. It is a continuation of the work of van Rynberk and Fuchs, who produced important reviews of the topic in 1906 and 1914 respectively. During the period covered, the topic underwent a considerable growth in interest. This is reflected in a bibliographical list of over 1200 items at the end of the text, over twice the number given by Fuchs for the whole period up to 1914. Containing rigorous analysis and illustrations throughout, this book will be of value to anyone with an interest in chromatophores and the history of science.

Over the last twenty years there has been an explosive growth in our understanding of the molecular, cellular, and anatomical changes that occur in the days and weeks following brain injury. It is now clear that training and exposure to certain environments can modify and shape neuronal plasticity in lower animals and humans. In humans, in particular, there are new ways of charting neuronal plasticity at the ensemble or regional level using functional neuroimaging techniques such as positron emission tomography and functional magnetic resonance imaging. Thus, the time seems right for transporting the laboratory results to the clinic so that experimental findings can be tested in the "field." This volume provides some impetus to moving the field of cognitive neuroscience a little further in its efforts to improve the lives of patients who have suffered a debilitating brain injury.

Once Nietzsche said that human beings may be divided into two categories: Apollonians and Dionysians*. By this the philosopher meant that there are human beings a) who know what they are going to do in the long-term future (what we now call the grant application for the next 5 years), i. e. , Apollonians, and b) who barely know what they are going to do tomorrow morning before breakfast, i. e. , Dionysians. ** To organize a symposium, this symposium in particular, a committee had to be formed either of individuals sharing both Nietzschean characteristics or of individuals possessing either characteristic. Considering the rarity of the former type of subject, this organizing committee was spontaneously formed by a typical sample of both types of individuals. We first met in Perugia in 1988. Those of us who were Apollonians had thus a chance to organize a programme. The Dionysians knew what was going to happen to them, but, of course, did not know yet how to cope with it. They duly did so every day of the meeting, after breakfast. The organizers decided that it would be a useful exercise to assemble experts having different perspectives but all pursuing a very rapidly developing aspect of cell biology. They also hoped that these selected Apollonians and Dionysians would not merely recount their results but try to project the future through active interchanges of ideas and opinions with other attendees.

In the last two decades, our knowledge on regulatory peptides and their cognate receptors, most of which are members of the seven transmembrane receptor families, has increased enormously. Regulatory peptides are small proteins which, besides their hormonal functions in regulating cellular metabolism in various tissues, may also act as neurotransmitters, and thus they often carry the prefix "neuro." Many of the cognate receptors involved in transducing the peptidergic signal across the cell membrane via a family of G proteins exist in multiple forms, the number of which frequently exceeds that of the corresponding peptide ligands. In this book, various peptide-receptor systems are discussed, e.g. CRF, somatostatin, TRH, opioid peptides, vasopressin, and oxytocin. It also discusses new strategies such as "reverse physiology" to uncover new peptides and orphan receptors.

This book deals with information processing in the primate temporal visual cortex, one of the higher visual association areas, which is believed to be important for the representation of complex stimuli and may also play a role in visual memory. Here, the need for rapid information processing shapes the functional architecture of all sensory systems, acting to reduce, where possible, wiring length and the number of synapses, to allow faster processing.

This book presents the latest in mammary gland transgenesis, the exploitation of transgenic technology for the production of therapeutic proteins by routine or conventional methods. Following a section with an overview of all relevant methodologies, readers will find relevant information on the regulation of milk gene expression and bioreactor species such as cattle, rabbits and pigs.

The annual Congress of the Italian Biochemical and Molecular Biology Society (SIB) was held in September 1999 in Alghero, Sardegna, Italy. The programme envisaged a symposium on molecular adaptations of haemoglobin function in ver- tebrates. Haemoglobin specialists from several countries were invited to speak at the symposium and paved the way for wide-ranging and stimulating discussions. The symposium contributions have been collected together in this volume. The structure/function relationship in haemoglobins from vertebrates (fishes populat- ing temperate and polar environments, diving birds, marine and terrestrial mam- mals) has been tackled from many angles, focusing on the adaptation of the oxy- gen-transport system to the constraints dictated by the environment. Eleven arti- cles review some of the most recent developments of the studies on this ancient oxygen-transport protein, characterized by high conservation during evolution. The volume offers the reader an updated, state-of-the-art summary of a field that is enjoying a true renaissance. Covering the topic from several viewpoints, the volume includes protein chemistry (amino acid sequence, secondary, tertiary and quaternary structures, thermodynamics of oxygen-binding features), molecular biology (globin gene structure, sequence, organization, expression and regulation) and evolution. In this representation of effective multidisciplinary and multina- tional collaborative efforts, reference is available to a wide range of disciplines and biological systems. The tools of the investigators comprise advanced and powerful methodologies developed in recent years, e. g.

Environmental conditions change considerably in the course of 24 h with respect to abiotic factors and intra- and interspecific interactions. These changes result in limited time windows of opportunity for animal activities and, hence, the question of when to do what is subject to fitness maximisation. This volume gives a current overview of theoretical considerations and empirical findings of activity patterns in small mammals, a group in which the energetic and ecological constraints are particularly severe and the diversity of activity patterns is particularly high. Following a comparative ecological approach, for the first time activity timing is consequently treated in terms of behavioural and evolutionary ecology, providing the conceptual framework for chronoecology as a new subdiscipline within behavioural ecology. An extensive Appendix gives an introduction to methods of activity modelling and to tools for statistical pattern analysis.

Adult and immature nervous system are capable of considerable "plasticity" and unravelling the underlying mechanisms is one of the principal and most fascinating goals of Neurobiology. A major contribution to our understanding of neural plasticity has come from recent studies in excitato- ry amino acids - which are thought to mediate a large part of the excitatory synaptic transmission on the brain. Important steps in this explosive field are: 1) the synthesis of relatively specific antagonists of the N-methyl-D aspartate (NMDA) and non-NMDA receptors subtypes, 2) the characterization of the unique features of the NMDA receptor channel complex notably its voltage dependent Mg++ blockade, its permeability to calcium and its allosteric modulation by glycine, 3) the demonstration that by virtue of their Ca++ permeability NMDA receptors are involved in many -but not all -synapses in the initiation but not the maintennce of long term potentiation (L TP) an experimented model of learning and memory processes. More recent studies also indicate tha excitatory amino acids also play an important role in developmental plasticity in vivo; in cell cultures low levels of excitatory amino acids have trophic roles and can inhibit or promote neurite growth. Excitatory amino acids also play an important role also in other forms of neural plasticity such as the use dependent permanent changes in neural circuit produced by brief seizures (epileptogenesis) as well as the reactive sprouting and neosynapse formation which take place in epilepsy models and after deafferentiation or lesions.

This book represents the proceedings of a NATO Advanced Research Workshop of the same name, held at St. Andrews University, Scotland in July of 1989. It was the first meeting of its kind and was convened as a forum to review and discuss the phylogeny of some of the cell biological functions that underlie nervous system function, such matters as intercellular communication in diverse, lower organisms, and the electrical excitability of protozoans and cnidarians, to mention but two. The rationale behind such work has not necessarily been to understand how the first nervous systems evolved; many of the animals in question provide excellent opportunities for examining general questions that are unapproachable in the more complex nervous systems of higher animals. Nevertheless, a curiosity about nervous system evolution has invariably pervaded much of the work. The return on this effort has been mixed, depending to a large extent on the usefulness of the preparation under examination. For example, work on cnidarians, to many the keystone phylum in nervous system evolution simply because they possess the "first" nervous systems, lagged behind that carried out on protozoans, because the latter are large, single cells and, thus, far more amenable to microelectrode-based recording techniques. Furthermore, protozoans can be cultured easily and are more amenable to genetic and molecular analyses.

This book is a compilation of the lectures and oral and poster communications presented at the Advanced Study. Institute on "Vascular Endothelium: Physiological Basis of Clinical Problems II," which took place between June 20 and 30, 1992 in Rhodes, Greece. This third in a series of ASIs on vascular endothelium continued on the theme of the first (1988) ASI on "Receptors and Transduction Mechanisms" and particularly expanded that of the 1990 conference on ''Physiological Basis of Clinical Problems. " We continued the successful practice of bringing together clinicians and scientists: this was reflected equally well in the composition of the organizing committee as in the background of the particiJ?ants. Endothelial cell functions and dysfunctions present as many challenges to the mvestigator as they do to the curious clinical practitioner. As these problems are necessarily different, this unique ten-day co-habitation of these individuals continued to offer fresh outlooks to each, stimulated potential collaborative efforts and, most importantly, advanced --ever so slightly--our knowledge of vascular biology. This year's conference was further enriched by the presence of several of our colleagues from Eastern Europe whom we are delighted to welcome as officially sponsored participants to this and future NATO-supported meetings. It is never superfluous to remind readers and participants that those signing at the bottom of this page, while responsible for many of the ASI's and the book's deficiencies, are but three of the many contributors to the successes.

The scientific contribution of Mike Bradbury to the study of the blood-brain barrier is considerable and wide-ranging, starting with his M.D. thesis in 1962 and still continuing today. The varied spectrum of topics relating to the blood-brain barrier presented in this volume and the many geographical locations from which both speakers and participants gathered to attend the symposium are a fitting testament both to Mike's wide-spread influence in the field and to the esteem in which he is held. When we first had the idea of afestschrift to mark Mike's retirement as Professor of Physiology at King's College London and the beginning of a new vie libre as scientist and yachtsman the plan was initially for a gathering of all of the many colleagues, collaborators and students who had worked with him over the years. However what we had not taken into account was the closeness of the international community of workers in the field, the widespread influence that Mike had wielded and the speed with which word would spread. We should have anticipated all three. The final outcome was an excellent symposium with the majority of the world's key workers either contributing or attending. We hope that this volume presents an adequate record of the meeting.

Our purposes in this preface are, first, to reiterate our view of Current Ornithology's role; second, to describe briefly the contents of this vol ume; and third, to acknowledge the generous help of our Editorial Board and of the reviewers we have consulted about the contents of Volumes 13 and 14. As far as we know, Current Ornithology is the only English-lan guage publication currently devoted exclusively to extensive reviews and syntheses of topics pertaining to all aspects of the biology of birds. Its chapters deal with subjects falling under such diverse rubrics as ecology, evolution, behavior, phylogeny, behavioral ecology, anatomy and physiology, and conservation biology, but all focus primarily on birds. Its authors, whether members of the National Academy or young investigators just beginning their careers, are leading authorities on their subjects, and its referees are selected for their knowledge and expertise in the topics covered by the chapters they are asked to review.

The body of any animal can be viewed as a society or ecosystem whose individual members are cells, reproducing by cell division and organized into collaborative assemblies or tissues. In this ecosystem, the cells are born, live and die under various forms of selection pressure such as territorial limitation, population size, source of nutrients provided, infectious agents, etc. The body is a highly organized society of cells whose main task is the maintenance of homeostasis of the whole organism. The failure of control mechanisms which make the cell the unit of society, marking the beginning of its asocial behaviour, is most frequently a malignant alteration. This process is not abrupt, nor is it based on a single event. It is, rather, a long-term process characterized mainly by mutation, competition and natural selection operating within the population of cells. The basic mechanisms controlling the cell sociability represent the first defence line against the altered cells, while the second line of defence is supposed to be made up of the immune system cells.Speaking in Darwinian terms, within the ecosystem of an organism, cells of the immune system operate as predators of the altered and mutated cells or cells infected by the intracellular parasites. The biological phenomena whose mechanisms are, at present, explored and largely understood, certainly had their own evolution. Searching for the origin and details of the evolution of advanced solutions as well as selection pressures that might justify their emergence and existence, we often fail to see that many such phenomena are, in fact, co-evolutionary by-products of evolutionary innovations. In other words, the evolutionary emergence of advanced solutions is sometimes, if not always, accompanied by certain by-products and by the co-evolution of compensatory mechanisms acting as a counterbalance to these. An example of the evolution of advanced solutions is the evolution of adoptive immunity, and co-evolution of auto-immunity and alloimmunity. Alongside the diversification of the mechanisms of adoptive immunity, auto-immunity and alloimmunity gain attributes of the evolutionary by-products and become sources of selection pressure.To that effect, alloimmunity could be a source of very strong selection pressure in mammals, simply because it is directly connected with the reproductive efficacy. At the same time, new forms of selection pressure that are connected with adoptive immunity gave rise to new mechanisms controlling killer machinery of the immune system. Finally, the last in a line of by-products in the processes of evolutionary modelling and re-modelling of vertebrate immune systems can be regarded as the failure of anti-tumor immunity. There is now much evidence that tumors can be immunogenic. Tumor cells very often express antigens in a form recognizable by the host immune system, but most frequently without consequences on tumor progression. This has been shown in many experimental models and different experimental conditions. Immediate mechanisms for the escape of tumors from the immune response are very similar to mechanisms for the escape of the fetoplacental unit (as allograft) from the maternal immune response. The similarity between these two mechanisms is so significant that any randomness must be banished.Mechanisms of anti-tumor immunity in mammals are probably substantially different from mechanisms of anti-tumor immunity in other classes of vertebrates. Moreover, the type of most frequent tumors in non-mammalian vertebrates is also significantly different. Finally, the incidence of malignant tumors in non-mammalian vertebrates is significantly lower than the incidence of malignant tumors in mammals. These facts indicate that the mammalian immune system during the anti-tumor immune response is tricked by the similarity between tumor cells and trophoblast or other placental cells. From this aspect, anti-tumor immunity failure in mammals can be defined as an immunoreproductive phenomenon, which is developed under the evolutionary pressure of auto-immunity and alloimmunity/reproductive effectiveness. It may be a specific evolutionary approach in the rendering of anti-tumor immunity failure in mammals, and a new possibility for anti-tumor immunotherapy.