In this book, renowned scientists describe the role of steroid chirality and modification of lipid membrane physical properties in the modulation of G protein-coupled receptors and ion channels. The application of commonly-used technical approaches such as mass spectrometry and nucleic magnetic resonance transfer spectroscopy for studies on cholesterol distribution and alteration of lipid bilayer characteristics is also discussed. This book offers comprehensive insights into the current understanding of cholesterol-driven modulation of protein function via mechanisms that extend beyond lipid-protein direct interactions. In the first part, the chapters introduce the reader to the use of the chemical derivatives of cholesterol as a valuable laboratory tool in the studies of cholesterol-driven modulation of protein function. In the second part, examples of cholesterol-induced changes in membrane physical characteristics are presented and discussed in light of their multifaceted contribution to the effect of cholesterol on protein function. The book will be of interest to undergraduate and graduate students as well as basic science and medical researchers with a keen interest in the biophysical properties of cholesterol and physiological consequences of cholesterol presence in biological systems.

This book focuses on emerging themes in the molecular mechanisms of calcium signal transduction through calmodulin-regulated pathways. It provides the reader with selected examples and experimental precedents that underlie current models of cell regulation through calmodulin-regulated pathways and their linkage with other regulatory pathways.
Highlights:
* Molecular mechanisms of calcium signal transduction through calmodulin-regulated enzymes
* Selected case studies and precedents related to molecular mechanisms
* Protein-protein recognition between calmodulin and the enzymes it regulates
* Cross-talk and interdigitation with other signal transduction pathways

This book describes human hereditary ion channel diseases of voltage- and ligand-gated ion channels covering the diverse fields of medicine myology, neurology, cardiology, and nephrology requiring a wide and interdisciplinary readership. Interesting parallels in pathogenetic mechanisms of disease are especially emphasized to interest even highly specialized readers in entities outside of their fields. Each author has written an objective overview of his or her particular subject in a way that should allow the reader within a short period of time to obtain a comprehensive picture of the present state of art.

This book highlights the role of the Translationally Controlled Tumor Protein (TCTP) in cell signaling, cell fate and the resulting connection to disease development. It begins by discussing the structure/function of TCTP, before exploring its role in different species ranging from plants to Drosophila and covering fields such as development, the cytoskeleton, cell division, DNA fragility and apoptosis. In turn, the book's final section is devoted to the role of TCTP in disease, namely asthma and diverse cancers, and ultimately as a target for the treatment of malignancies. What is the common denominator between all these processes and why is TCTP necessary in order for them to occur, even in the worst case such as cancer? The book seeks to provide meaningful answers to this and other key questions. Presenting a broad and revealing view on the topic, it offers an informative guide for scientists and students alike.

Natural Variances and Clocks, Volume 99 in the Advances in Genetics series provides the latest information on the rapidly evolving field of genetics, presenting new medical breakthroughs and advances. This updated release includes chapters on a variety of new research, including the Natural variation of the circadian clock in Neurospora, Natural variation and genetics of the photoperiodic timer in the pitcher-plant mosquito, Natural variation in human clocks, and Natural variation in the circadian clock genes in Drosophila and other insects. This series continually publishes important reviews that are ideal for geneticists and their colleagues in affiliated disciplines, critically analyzing future directions.

This new series, based on a bi-annual conference and its topics, represents a major contribution to the emerging science of cancer research and regenerative medicine. Each volume brings together some of the most pre-eminent scientists working on cancer biology, cancer treatment, cancer diagnosis, cancer prevention and regenerative medicine to share information on currently ongoing work which will help shape future therapies. These volumes are invaluable resources not only for already active researchers or clinicians but also for those entering these fields, plus those in industry. Stem Cells: Biology and Engineering is a proceedings volume which reflects papers presented at the Innovations in Regenerative Medicine and Cancer Research conference; taken with its companion volume Tissue Engineering and Regenerative Medicine it provides a complete overview of the papers from that meeting of international experts.

This second edition integrates the more technical and mathematical aspects of bioinformatics with concrete examples of their application to current research problems in molecular, cellular and evolutionary biology. This broad, unified approach is made possible, in large part, by the very wide scope of Dr. Xia's own research experience. The integration of genomics, proteomics and transcriptomics into a single volume makes this book required reading for anyone entering the new and emerging fields of Systems Biology and Evolutionary Bioinformatics.

Sterol Regulation of Ion Channels, Volume 80, the latest in the Current Topics in Membranes series provides outstanding content to the scientific community on relevant topics that relate to the broad field of membranes. Topics of note in this new release include Membrane structure and general mechanisms of sterol regulation of ion channels, the Regulation of ion channels by sterols as boundary lipids, the Differential effects of sterols on ion channels: specific vs. non-specific interactions, the Structural determinants of cholesterol-ion channels interactions, and the Regulation of Ca2+-sensitive K+ channels by cholesterol and bile acids via distinct channel subunits and sites, amongst other specialized chapters. The serial is targeted towards scientists and researchers in biochemistry and molecular and cellular biology, providing the necessary membrane research to assist them in discovering the current state of a particular field. The authors and editors associated with the Current Topics in Membranes series are recognized as world-renowned scientists in their respective fields, making CTM one of the premier serials on membranes

This informative publication brings together knowledge of various aspects of cellular regulation. Current Topics in Cellular Regulation reviews the progress being made in those specialized areas of study that have undergone substantial development. It also publishes provocative new theories and concepts and serves as a forum for the discussion of general principles. Researchers in cellular regulation as well as biochemists, molecular and cell biologists, microbiologists, and biophysicists will find Current Topics in Cellular Regulation a useful source of up-to-date information.
Key Features
* Regulation of Iron Metabolism in Eukaryotes
* Regulation of Fas-Mediated Apoptosis
* Aging and Regulation of Apoptosis
* Regulation of Bacterial Responses of Oxidaditive Stress
* Regulation of NF-(B and Disease Control
* Mechanism and Regulation of Bone Resorption
* Gene Regulation by Reactive Oxygen Species
* Structure, Mechanism, and Specificity of Protein-Tyrosine Phosphatases

Tumor-Induced Immune Suppression - Prospects and Progress in Mechanisms and Therapeutic Reversal presents a comprehensive overview of large number of different mechanisms of immune dysfunction in cancer and therapeutic approaches to their correction. This includes the number of novel mechanisms that has never before been discussed in previous monographs. The last decades were characterized by substantial progress in the understanding of the role of the immune system in tumor progression. Researchers have learned how to manipulate the immune system to generate tumor specific immune response, which raises high expectations for immunotherapy to provide breakthroughs in cancer treatment. It is increasingly clear that tumor-induced abnormalities in the immune system not only hampers natural tumor immune surveillance, but also limits the effect of cancer immunotherapy. Therefore, it is critically important to understand the mechanisms of tumor-induced immune suppression to make any progress in the field and this monograph provides these important insights.

All living cells are surrounded by a lipidic membrane that isolates them from the often harsh environment. However, to take up nutrients, to excrete waste, and to communicate among each other, Nature has invented an incredibly diverse set of transmembrane transport proteins. Specialized transporters exist to shuttle electrically charged ions, positive cations like sodium or negative anions like chloride, across the membrane. In the recent years, tremendous progress has been made in the field of chloride transport. The present book presents the state of the art of this rapidly expanding and interest-gaining field of membrane transport. It is addressed at a broad medically, physiologically, biologically, and biophysically interested readership.
* Describes the state-of-the-art in anion transport research
* Written by leaders in the field
* Presents a timely discussion of this rapidly emerging and expanding field

Novel molecular motifs named Immunoreceptor Tyrosine-based Inhibition Motifs (ITIMs) have recently been recognized in the intracytoplasmic domains of a still-increasing number of receptors which control cell activation and proliferation. Research on ITIM-bearing molecules has developed exponentially during the last three years, generating new concepts with important consequences in basic research and with exciting potential clinical applications. The present volume contains 15 reviews written by authors who all made significant contributions to the identification of ITIM-bearing molecules and the study of their biological properties. It constitutes the first synthesis ever published that is specifically devoted to this emerging topic.

Revealing essential roles of the tumor microenvironment in cancer progression, this volume focuses on the extracellular matrix components of the tumor microenvironment during cancer development. Furthermore, it teaches readers about the roles of distinct constituents of the tumor microenvironment and how they affect cancer development. Topics include elastin, decorin, syndecan-1, versican, lipoproteins, brevican, thrombospondin, and much more. Taken alongside its companion volumes, Tumor Microenvironment: Extracellular Matrix Components - Part B updates us on what we know about the different aspects of the tumor microenvironment, as well as apprises us on the future advances in the field. For the newest generation of researchers, this volume serves as a useful introduction to the history of scientists' focus on the tumor microenvironment, and explores how this knowledge is currently applied in cancer treatments. The book is an essential text for advanced cell biology and cancer biology students, as well as for scientists seeking an update on the developments in tumor microenvironment research. All of the chapters authors are renowned international experts in the field of cancer biology, and in the specific subfields that are the focus of their chapters.

Nuclear Receptors in Development and Disease, Volume 125, the latest volume in the Current Topics in Developmental Biology series, covers nuclear receptors in development and disease, and includes contributions from an international board of authors. New chapters in this release cover the Evolution of Nuclear Receptors and Ligand Signaling: Towards a Soft Key-Lock Model?, The Function and Evolution of Nuclear Receptors in Insect Embryonic Development, Nuclear Receptors in Skeletal Homeostasis, Estrogen Hormone Biology, and the Mechanisms of Glucocorticoid Action During Development. The book's chapters provide a comprehensive set of reviews that cover such topics as nuclear differentiation and remodeling, evolution of receptors, ligand signaling and neural development.

International Review of Cell and Molecular Biology, Volume 332 reviews current advances in cell and molecular biology. This latest release covers Metabolic alterations at the crossroad between aging and oncogenesis, Molecular and cellular mechanisms of auto-immunity, Old and novel functions of caspase-2, Organelle crosstalk in oncogenic metabolic reprogramming, a Molecular Biology Digest of Cellular Mitophagy, the Regulation of cell calcium and role of plasma membrane calcium ATPases, and Mechanisms of cortical differentiation. The IRCMB series has a worldwide readership, maintaining a high standard by publishing invited articles on important and timely topics that are authored by prominent cell and molecular biologists. Users will find that the articles published in IRCMB have a high impact and average cited half-life of nine years. This great resource ranks high amongst scientific journals dealing with cell biology.

Praise for the Series:
"Timely...High standard of Writing...It is to be highly recommended."
--Quarterly Journal of Experimental Physiology
This informative publication brings together knowledge of various aspects of cellular regulation. Current Topics in Cellular Regulation reviews the progress being made in those specialized areas of study that have undergone substantial development. It also publishes provocative new theories and concepts and serves as a forum for the discussion of general principles.
Researchers in cellular regulation as well as biochemists, molecular and cell biologists, microbiologists, biophysicists, physiologists, nutritionists, and pathologists will find Current Topics in Cellular Regulation a useful source of up-to-date information.

* CONTENTS: Regulatory Features of Multicatalytic and 26S Proteases. Calponin. Type III Cyclic Nucelotide Phosphodiesterases and Insulin Action. Mammalian Aminoacyl-tRNA Synthetases. Regulation of Interaction between Signaling Protein CheY and Flagellar Motor during Bacterial Chemotaxis. The Chemical Biology of Nitric Oxide: Regulation and Protective and Toxic Mechanisms. Nutritional and Hormonal Regulation of Glutathione Homeostasis. Protein Folding and Association: In Vitro Studies for Self Organization and Targeting in the Cell.

This valuable resource provides a systematic account of the biochemistry of smooth muscle contraction. As a comprehensive guide to this rapidly growing area of research, it covers the structure and characteristic properties of contractile and regulatory proteins, with special emphasis on their predicted function in the live muscle. Also included in this book are intermediate filament proteins, and desmin and vimentin, whose function in smooth muscle is unknown; and several enzymes involved in the phosphorylation-dephosphorylation of contractile and other proteins.

This book discusses topics related to the topological structure and biological function of gene networks regulated by microRNAs. It focuses on analyzing the relation between topological structure and biological function, applying these theoretical results to gene networks involving microRNA, illustrating their biological mechanisms, and identifying the roles of microRNA in controlling various phenomena emerging from the networks. In addition, the book explains how to control the complex biological phenomena using mathematical tools and offers a new perspective on studying microRNA. It is a useful resource for graduate students and researchers who are working on or interested in microRNAs and gene network.

Breast cancer research has never been in such an exciting and hopeful phase as today. From a clinical perspective, the discovery of genetic markers of risk in a proportion of familial breast cancer cases has opened up new vistas for understanding and ultimately preventing this disease. On the other hand, aggressive - even daring - therapies are being proven to be effective against advanced breast cancer. For the breast cancer experimentalist, this is also a time of great advance. Although animal and cell culture breast cancer models have proven to be of great use, there are now increasing opportunities to test the concepts developed in these models in actual clinical samples and cases. It is gratifying to see how well these concepts "translate" into the clinical setting. A very active area of research that is linking the laboratory to the clinic is the dissection of the biology and elucidation of the significance of proliferate breast disease and the identification of true, "high risk" or "preneoplastic" legions within the previously ill-defined spectrum of fibrocystic or benign breast disease. One anticipates that discoveries made here will also lead to earlier detection, intervention and prevention of life-threatening cancer.
Even, however, as we look with optimism to the eventual eradication of breast cancer, we are once again forced to face the reality that we have not yet achieved our goal. Thus, we are saddened by the much too premature death of Dr. Helene Smith from breast cancer. Helena's work was at the forefront of efforts to understand the biology of human breast cancer at the molecular level. Her insight, open-mindedness, and refusal to sacrifice relevance for convenience will continue to set the standard for all breast cancer researchers. This volume is dedicated to her memory.

This volume details a comprehensive and extensive set of protocols for the study of autophagy in vitro and in vivo. Chapters focus on mammals, various model organisms, and provide protocols for the study of autophagy-related processes outside of the canonical autophagy pathways. Written in the highly successful Methods in Molecular Biology series format, chapters include introductions to their respective topics, lists of the necessary materials and reagents, step-by-step, readily reproducible laboratory protocols, and tips on troubleshooting and avoiding known pitfalls. Authoritative and cutting-edge, Autophagy: Methods and Protocols aims to ensure successful results in the further study of this vital field.

This book provides an overview of the latest experimental work on sex-based differences in lung function and inflammation. Readers will learn how these differences relate to individual predispositions for the development of lung disease in men and women, and in different stages of their reproductive lives. Further, the book focuses on diseases that predominantly affect women or men, with an emphasis on the physiological mechanisms underlying their pathobiology. In turn, these findings are complemented by chapters on recent studies, which investigate how circulating sex hormone levels impact the lung's innate immune response to environmental agents and air pollution. The pathogeneses of asthma and viral respiratory infection are also major focus areas. As an outlook, the book also discusses current and future research directions aimed at developing sex-specific therapies for lung disease. To examine these anatomical and physiological differences in the male and female respiratory systems, the authors employ a broad range of methods from molecular and clinical biology. Accordingly, the book will be a fascinating read for physiologists and clinicians alike.

This book provides an up-to-date overview of the architecture and biosynthesis of bacterial and archaeal cell walls, highlighting the evolution-based similarities in, but also the intriguing differences between the cell walls of Gram-negative bacteria, the Firmicutes and Actinobacteria, and the Archaea. The recent major advances in this field, which have brought to light many new structural and functional details, are presented and discussed. Over the past five years, a number of novel systems, e.g. for lipid, porin and lipopolysaccharide biosynthesis have been described. In addition, new structural achievements with periplasmic chaperones have been made, all of which have revealed amazing details on how bacterial cell walls are synthesized. These findings provide an essential basis for future research, e.g. the development of new antibiotics. The book's content is the logical continuation of Volume 84 of SCBI (on Prokaryotic Cytoskeletons), and sets the stage for upcoming volumes on Protein Complexes.

This book provides a comprehensive overview of topics describing the earliest steps of fertilization, from egg activation and fertilization to the activation of the zygotic genome, in various studied vertebrate model systems. The contribution of maternal and paternal factors and their role in the early embryo as parental DNA becomes modified and embryonic genes become activated is fundamental to the initiation of embryogenesis in all animal systems. It can be argued that this is a unique developmental period, when information from the parents is compressed to direct the development of the body plan of the entire organism, a process of astounding simplicity, elegance and beauty. In addition to their fundamental scientific interest, many frontiers of biomedicine, such as reproductive biology, stem cells and reprogramming, and the understanding of intergenerational diseases, depend on advances in our knowledge of these early processes. Vertebrate Development: Maternal to Zygotic Control brings together chapters from experts in various disciplines describing the latest advances related to this important developmental transition. Each chapter is a synthesis of knowledge relevant to all vertebrates, with details on specific systems as well as comparisons between the various studied vertebrate models. The editorial expertise encompasses the fields of major vertebrate model systems (mammalian, amphibian and teleost) ensuring a balanced approach to various topics. This unique book-with its combination of in-depth and up-to-date basic research, inter-species comprehensiveness and emphasis on the very early stages of animal development-is essential for research scientists studying vertebrate development, as well as being a valuable resource for college educators teaching advanced courses in developmental biology.

PCR Strategies expands and updates the landmark volume PCR Protocols. It is a companion laboratory manual that provides a completely new set of up-to-date strategies and protocols for getting the most from PCR.
The editors have organized the book into four sections, focusing on principles, analyses, research applications, and alternative strategies for a wide variety of basic and clinical needs. If you own PCR Protocols, you will want PCR Strategies. If you don't own PCR Protocols, you will want to buy both!
Key Features
* Concepts explained
* Methods detailed
* Trouble-shooting emphasized
* Novel applications highlighted
* Major sections
* Key concepts for PCR
* Analysis of PCR products
* Research applications
* Alternative amplification strategies