Beyond Biofatalism is a lively and penetrating response to the idea that evolutionary psychology reveals human beings to be incapable of building a more inclusive, cooperative, and egalitarian society. Considering the pressures of climate change, unsustainable population growth, increasing income inequality, and religious extremism, this attitude promises to stifle the creative action we require before we even try to meet these threats. Beyond Biofatalism provides the perspective we need to understand that better societies are not only possible but actively enabled by human nature. Gillian Barker appreciates the methods and findings of evolutionary psychologists, but she considers their work against a broader background to show human nature is surprisingly open to social change. Like other organisms, we possess an active plasticity that allows us to respond dramatically to certain kinds of environmental variation, and we engage in niche construction, modifying our environment to affect others and ourselves. Barker uses related research in social psychology, developmental biology, ecology, and economics to reinforce this view of evolved human nature, and philosophical exploration to reveal its broader implications. The result is an encouraging foundation on which to build better approaches to social, political, and other institutional changes that could enhance our well-being and chances for survival.

Natural resources and associated biological diversity provide the basis of livelihood for human population, particularly in the rural areas and mountain regions across the globe. Asia is home to the world's highest mountain regions including the Himalayas, Karakorum and Hindukush. These regions are renowned around the globe because of their unique beauty, climate, and biocultural diversity. Because of geoclimatic conditions, the mountains of Asia are medicinal and food plant diversity hot spots. The indigenous communities residing in the valleys of these mountains have their own culture and traditions, and have a long history of interaction with the surrounding plant diversity. Local inhabitants of these mountains areas possess significant traditional knowledge of plant species used as food, medicine, and for cultural purposes. So far, many workers have reported traditional uses of plant species from different regions of Asia including some mountain areas; however, there is not one inclusive document on the ethnobotany of mountains in Asia. This book provides a comprehensive overview on ethno-ecological knowledge and cross cultural variation in the application of plant species among various communities residing in the mountains of Asia; cross cultural variation in traditional uses of plant species by the mountain communities; high value medicinal and food plant species; and threats and conservation status of plant species and traditional knowledge. This book should be useful to researchers of biodiversity and conservation, ethnobiologists, ethnoecologists, naturalists, phytochemists, pharmacists, policy makers, and all who have a devotion to nature.

This book summarizes various tools and techniques used to provide insights into the cellular and molecular pathophysiology of stroke. It also presents rodent animal models to help shed light on the pathophysiology of ischemic stroke. Presenting the latest information on the different types of stroke, including embolic, filament, photothrombotic, and bilateral common carotid artery, the book also describes techniques that are used for confirmation of stroke surgery, such as laser speckle imaging (LSI) and laser Doppler flowmetry (LDF), and discusses the non-human primates that are used in stroke surgery, cerebral venous sinuous thrombosis, and neurobehavioral assessment. Lastly, it analyzes various neuroprotective agents to treat and prevent ischemic stroke, and examines the challenges and advances in treating and preventing acute ischemic stroke.

This book provides a state-of-the-art compendium on the role of proteoglycans and glycosaminoglycans during development and in cancer. It also suggests directions for novel therapeutic and biotechnological applications in stem cell biology. Proteoglycans and glycosaminoglycans, as part of the extracellular matrix, are multifunctional modulators of growth factor, cytokine, integrin and morphogen signaling, which determine both self-renewal, senescence and/or differentiation of stem cells during development. Since proteoglycans modulate cell adhesion and migration they are important organizers of the extracellular matrix within the proper stem cell niche. A malfunctioning of proteoglycans and glycosaminoglycans contributes to the cancer stem cell phenotype, which is linked to therapeutic resistance and recurrence in malignant disease. This book is essential reading for anyone interested in the extracellular matrix and its role in development. The series Biology of Extracellular Matrix is published in collaboration with the American Society for Matrix Biology.

This book provides detailed protocols for research in plant photomorphogenesis. The collection includes a broad range of topics including assays for shade avoidance responses, assays for light-dependent protein-protein interactions, photobody detection with immunofluorescence and the super-resolution imaging method, protein complex isolation from plants, detection of homodimer and monomer of photoreceptor UVR8 with immunoblotting analysis, assays for seedling greening, procedures for studying skotomorphogenesis, phenotypic study of photomorphogenesis at the seedling stage, expression of Cryptochrome in insect cells, and more. Written for the highly successful Methods in Molecular Biology series, 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 practical, Plant Photomorphogenesis: Methods and Protocols serves as an ideal guide for researchers and students who are new to the field, as well as a stepping stone for experienced researchers to further their skills in this fast-developing field.

This detailed book collects original protocols aimed at encouraging and stimulating the scientific community to design and produce models for the laboratory that mimic cell guidance conditions as they occur in vivo. The protocols collected describe powerful strategies to exploit chemical cues involved in cell differentiation processes. Special emphasis is given to the use of methods for purification and characterization of exosomes and other secreted vesicles, as well as micro and non-coding RNAs, that have been demonstrated to control the tuning of the in vivo micro and macro environment in order to ensure the optimal soluble environment in vitro. Written for the highly successful Methods in Molecular Biology series, 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 practical, Next Generation Culture Platforms for Reliable In Vitro Models: Methods and Protocols serves as an ideal guide for researchers working toward developing these vital testing models for preclinical studies.

The maximum life span of multicellular organisms varies greatly: for a fruitfly it is about 30 days, for a dog about 20 years, and for a human about 100 years. Despite these differences, all animals show a similar pattern of their life spans - growth, adulthood, and aging, followed by death. The basic cause of aging in multicellular organisms (eukaryotes) lies at the level of the genes, although nutrition and various types of stresses do influence the rate and pattern of aging. This book reviews the molecular biology of the gene in relation to aging. Until about a decade ago it was not possible to probe into the types of changes that occur in eukaryotic genes, due to their enormous complexity. The use of genetic engineering techniques, however, is beginning to unravel the changes that occur in the genes as an organism ages: such as the changing expression of specific genes under normal conditions and under various types of stress, the changes in the regulatory roles of the sequences in the promotor regions of genes, conformational changes that may occur in genes during aging, and the protein factors that are involved in the aging process. The author presents basic information on eukaryotic genes and follows this with details of the changes that occur in their structure and function during aging. He reviews the latest studies being carried out in various laboratories, outlines the gaps and deficiencies in our present knowledge and suggests the most profitable future areas of research. Genes and Aging is for all students and researchers interested in the molecular biology of aging.

Important breakthroughs have recently been made in our understanding of the cognitive and sensory abilities of pollinators: how pollinators perceive, memorise and react to floral signals and rewards; how they work flowers, move among inflorescences and transport pollen. These new findings have obvious implications for the evolution of floral display and diversity, but most existing publications are scattered across a wide range of journals in very different research traditions. This book brings together for the first time outstanding scholars from many different fields of pollination biology, integrating the work of neuroethologists and evolutionary ecologists to present a multi-disciplinary approach. Aimed at graduates and researchers of behavioural and pollination ecology, plant evolutionary biology and neuroethology, it will also be a useful source of information for anyone interested in a modern view of cognitive and sensory ecology, pollination and floral evolution.

'Developmental biology' is widely understood as processes, which mainly concern embryonic animal development and differentiation of cells and tissue. It is also often defined as the timeline for the evolutionary developmental biology of eukaryotic multicellular higher organisms, i.e., plants and animals. The development of prokaryotes and lower eukaryotes in contrary has been neglected for a long time, which was the motivation for publishing this book. This book highlights one of Darwin's most important findings: Evolution is a creative, but not a conscious process. It also illustrates that this concept does not only apply to multicellular higher organisms, but affects every form of life. The reader shall find complex biochemical and genetic pathways of bacteria, yeasts or protozoa, comparable to those exhibited by plants or animals. The molecular mechanisms of dramatic genome rearrangements, recombination and horizontal gene transfer that are responsible for evolutionary adaptations are discussed. Additionally, the book covers bacteria of the genera Myxobacteriales and Caulobacterales, which are able to develop tissue-like cellular organization. The morphogenesis of entomopathogenic fungi and the endosymbiont theory are also addressed. The book is a useful introduction to the field for junior scientists, interested in bacteriology, protistology and fungal development. It is also an interesting read for advanced scientists, giving them a broader view of the field beyond their area of specialization.

Meiosis, the antithesis of fertilization, is the unique genetically programmed mode of nuclear division associated with a halving of the chromosome number in sexually reproducing eukaryotes. It thus represents a key cellular and developmental pathway in the life of an organism. In this book, Bernard John presents the first complete, and the most authoritative, review of the events and mechanisms of meiosis including their scheduling, their mechanics and their biochemistry as well as their genetic control and the variations to be found in them in both sexual and subsexual systems. The text is superbly illustrated with 131 figures and 73 tables. Meiosis must be regarded as essential reading for all students, teachers and research workers with an interest in eukaryotic cell biology and genetics.

Meristematic cells in plants (as with stem cells in animals) become the many different types of cells found in a mature plant. This is achieved by a selective response to chemical signals both from neighbouring cells and distant tissues. It is these responses that shape the plant, its time of flowering, the sex of its flowers, its length of survival or progress to senescence and death. How do plants achieve this? This up-to-date treatise addresses this question using well-chosen examples to illustrate the concept of target cells. The authors discuss how each cell has the ability to discriminate between different chemical signals, determining which it will respond to and which it will ignore. The regulation of gene expression through signal perception and signal transduction is at the core of this selectivity and the Target Cell concept. This volume will serve as a valuable reference for all researchers working in the field of plant developmental biology.

Unicellular organisms use gravity as an environmental guide to reach and stay in regions optimal for their growth and reproduction. These single cells play a significant role in food webs and these factors together make the effects of gravity on unicellular organisms a fascinating and important subject for scientific study. In addition, they present valuable model systems for studying the mechanisms of gravity perception, a topic of increasing interest in these days of experimentation in space. This book reveals how single cells achieve the same sensoric capacity as multicellular organisms like plants or animals. It reviews the field, discussing the historical background, ecological significance and related physiology of unicellular organisms, as well as various experimental techniques and models with which to study them. Those working on the biology of unicellular organisms, as well as in related areas of gravitational and space science will find this book of value.

This detailed book explores techniques for understanding and engineering programs that naturally control and drive formation of tissues and organs in order to open powerful opportunities to produce physiologically relevant tissues of interest, generate models to study human disease, and set the path for the manufacturing of advanced tissue and organs. Beginning with chapters to help understand signaling events and patterns in morphogenetic systems, the volume continues by covering programming signaling events and patterns to drive morphogenesis, techniques for engineering organoids, tissue barriers, and disease models, as well as in vivo therapeutic applications. Written for the highly successful Methods in Molecular Biology series, 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, Programmed Morphogenesis: Methods and Protocols aims not only to communicate knowledge but also to inspire approaches to new challenges and to empower readers with the capability to approach those challenges.

This volume explores scientific methodologies currently employed to integrate observational developmental biology, tissue explant and cell-based approaches and genetic/molecular technologies to develop a holistic understanding of craniofacial development. Chapters guide readers through the use of disparate models to study formation of the head and face (c. elegans, zebrafish, mouse, alongside human imaging approaches), together with cell culture, tissue explant and in vivo cell imaging and analysis techniques. At the molecular level, chapters include analysing gene expression using in-situ hybridisation and single-cell RNA-Sequencing (scRNA-SEQ), as well as genetic modification techniques such as CRISPR/Cas9-mediated deletion. Written in the format of the highly successful Methods in Molecular Biology series, each chapter includes an introduction to the topic, lists necessary materials and reagents, includes tips on troubleshooting and known pitfalls, and step-by-step, readily reproducible protocols. Authoritative and cutting-edge, Craniofacial Development: Methods and Protocols aims to be a guide in the field of craniofacial development for senior and new researchers looking to expand their existing research programs to encompass novel techniques.

The concept of programmed cell death, or apoptosis, has exploded into a major scientific field of interest for cell biologists, oncologists, and many other biomedical researchers. Apoptosis occurs throughout the lifetime of most multicellular organisms. During development, for example, the selective death of cells is vital to remove tissue between the digits to produce fingers and toes. Apoptosis is also necessary to destroy cells that represent a threat to the integrity of the organism, for example cells infected by a virus. In many cancers the genes regulating apoptosis are defective, producing immortal, continuously proliferating cells. This book, first published in 2004, discusses the philosophical and technical difficulties in defining the moment of death for a cell, as well as the biological implications and significance of programmed cell death. Recent developments in the genetic control and interacting gene networks associated with apoptosis are presented. The book is written for advanced undergraduate and postgraduate students, and is highly illustrated to aid understanding.

What determines the direction of evolutionary change? This book provides a revolutionary answer to this question. Many biologists, from Darwin's day to our own, have been satisfied with the answer 'natural selection'. Professor Wallace Arthur is not. He takes the controversial view that biases in the ways that embryos can be altered are just as important as natural selection in determining the directions that evolution has taken, including the one that led to the origin of humans. This argument forms the core of the book. However, in addition, the book summarizes other important issues relating to how embryonic (and post-embryonic) development evolves. Written in an easy, conversational style, this is the first book for students and the general reader that provides an account of the exciting new field of Evolutionary Developmental Biology ('Evo-Devo' to its proponents).

This detailed second edition presents a wide variety of marine invertebrate model systems, from cephalochordata to holothurians, along with novel experimental protocols for taking advantage of their unique properties. The techniques range from culturing the organisms to modifying their DNA. Written for the highly successful Methods in Molecular Biology series, 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 up-to-date, Developmental Biology of the Sea Urchin and Other Marine Invertebrates: Methods and Protocols, Second Edition is an ideal guide for researchers working with these versatile organisms and for furthering our understanding of fundamental biological questions.

Franklin M. Harold's On Life reveals what science can tell us about the living world. All creatures, from bacteria and redwoods to garden snails and humans, belong to a single biochemical family. We all operate by the same principles and are all made up of cells, either one or many. We flaunt capacities that far exceed those of inanimate matter, yet we stand squarely within the material world. So what is life, anyway? How do living things function, and how did they come into existence? Questions like these have baffled philosophers and scientists since antiquity, but over the past half-century answers have begun to emerge. Offering an inside look, Franklin M. Harold makes life accessible to readers interested in the biological big picture. The book traces how living things operate, focusing on the interplay of biology with physics and chemistry. He asserts that biology stands apart from the physical sciences because life revolves around organization- that is, purposeful order. On Life aims to make life intelligible by giving readers an understanding of the biological landscape; it sketches the principles as biologists presently understand them and highlights major unresolved issues. What emerges is a biology bracketed by two stubborn mysteries: the nature of the mind and the origin of life. This portrait of biology is comprehensible but inescapably complex, internally consistent, and buttressed by a wealth of factual knowledge.

Fungal Morphogenesis brings together in one book, for the first time, the full scope of fungal developmental biology. The book provides a coherent account of the subject and puts forward ideas that can provide a basis for future research. Throughout, the author blends together physiological, biochemical, structural and molecular descriptions within an evolutionary framework. Sufficient information is provided about fungal biology to give the reader a rounded view of the mycological context within which fungal morphogenesis is played out, without obscuring the broader biological significance. The author is careful to avoid jargon and demystifies technical terms. Written by one of the few people with the necessary breadth of research expertise to deal authoritatively with the wide range of topics presented, this book will appeal to developmental and cell biologists, microbiologists, and geneticists.

This book highlights the results from over a year of ethnobotanical research in a rural and an urban community in Jamaica, where we interviewed more than 100 people who use medicinal plants for healthcare. The goal of this research was to better understand patterns of medicinal plant knowledge, and to find out which plants are used in consensus by local people for a variety of illnesses. For this book, we selected 25 popular medicinal plant species mentioned during fieldwork. Through individual interviews, we were able to rank plants according to their frequency of mention, and categorized the medicinal uses for each species as "major" (mentioned by more than 20% of people in a community) or "minor" (mentioned by more than 5%, but less than 20% of people). Botanical identification of plant specimens collected in the wild allowed for cross-linking of common and scientific plant names. To supplement field research, we undertook a comprehensive search and review of the ethnobotanical and biomedical literature. Our book summarizes all this information in detail under specific sub-headings.

This volume presents the latest techniques used to study germ cell tumors (GCTs), including histopathology; in vitro and in vivo techniques for investigating GCT biology; novel methods for detecting minimal residual diseases; and sequencing considerations as they apply to GCTs. Chapters cover topics such as clinical applications of immunohistochemistry in GCTs in men; fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) detection of chromosomal 12p anomalies in testicular GCTs; evaluation of chemotherapeutic drugs for treatment of (cisplatin-resistant) germ cell cancer cell lines; targeted methylation analyses; and circulating microRNA panel for malignant GCT diagnosis and monitoring. 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. Cutting-edge and comprehensive, Testicular Germ Cell Tumors: Methods and Protocols provides valuable information that is useful for both novice and expert GCT researchers interested in learning more about this field.

Microbes are ubiquitous in nature. Among microbes, fungal communities play an important role in agriculture, the environment, and medicine. Vast fungal diversity has been associated with plant systems, namely epiphytic fungi, endophytic fungi, and rhizospheric fungi. These fungi associated with plant systems play an important role in plant growth, crop yield, and soil health. Rhizospheric fungi, present in rhizospheric zones, get their nutrients from root exudates released by plant root systems, which help with their growth, development, and microbe activity. Endophytic fungi typically enter plant hosts through naturally occurring wounds that are the result of plant growth, through root hairs, or at epidermal conjunctions. Phyllospheric fungi may survive or proliferate on leaves depending on material influences in leaf diffuseness or exudates. The diverse nature of these fungal communities is a key component of soil-plant systems, where they are engaged in a network of interactions endophytically, phyllospherically, as well as in the rhizosphere, and thus have emerged as a promising tool for sustainable agriculture. These fungal communities promote plant growth directly and indirectly by using plant growth promoting (PGP) attributes. These PGP fungi can be used as biofertilizers and biocontrol agents in place of chemical fertilizers and pesticides for a more eco-friendly method of promoting sustainable agriculture and environments. This first volume of a two-volume set covers the biodiversity of plant-associated fungal communities and their role in plant growth promotion, the mitigation of abiotic stress, and soil fertility for sustainable agriculture. This book should be useful to those working in the biological sciences, especially for microbiologists, microbial biotechnologists, biochemists, and researchers and scientists of fungal biotechnology.

This volume explores scientific methodologies currently employed to integrate observational developmental biology, tissue explant and cell-based approaches and genetic/molecular technologies to develop a holistic understanding of craniofacial development. Chapters guide readers through the use of disparate models to study formation of the head and face (c. elegans, zebrafish, mouse, alongside human imaging approaches), together with cell culture, tissue explant and in vivo cell imaging and analysis techniques. At the molecular level, chapters include analysing gene expression using in-situ hybridisation and single-cell RNA-Sequencing (scRNA-SEQ), as well as genetic modification techniques such as CRISPR/Cas9-mediated deletion. Written in the format of the highly successful Methods in Molecular Biology series, each chapter includes an introduction to the topic, lists necessary materials and reagents, includes tips on troubleshooting and known pitfalls, and step-by-step, readily reproducible protocols. Authoritative and cutting-edge, Craniofacial Development: Methods and Protocols aims to be a guide in the field of craniofacial development for senior and new researchers looking to expand their existing research programs to encompass novel techniques.

While neo-Darwinism has considerable explanatory power, it is widely recognized as lacking a component dealing with individual development, or ontogeny. This lack is particularly conspicuous when attempting to explain the evolutionary origin of the thirty-five or so animal body plans, and of the developmental trajectories that generate them. This significant work examines both the origin of body plans in particular and the evolution of animal development in general. Wallace Arthur ranges widely in his treatment, covering topics as diverse as comparative developmental genetics, selection theory, and Vendian/Cambrian fossils. He places particular emphasis on gene duplication, changes in spatio-temporal gene-expression patterns, internal selection, coevolution of interacting genes, and coadaptation. The book will be of particular interest to students and researchers in evolutionary biology, genetics, paleontology, and developmental biology.

This fully revised edition of The Neural Crest contains the most current information about this unique structure that has a transient existence in early embryonic life. The ontogeny of the neural crest embodies the most important issues in developmental biology, as the neural crest is considered to have played a crucial role in evolution of the vertebrate phylum. This revised edition includes new data that analyze neural crest ontogeny in murine and zebrafish embryos. Additional features include coverage of advances in our understanding of neural crest cell subpopulation markers, cell lineage analysis, and the introduction of molecular biology to neural crest research. Like its predecessor, this volume is essential reading for students and researchers in developmental biology, cell biology, and neuroscience.