This text examines in detail mathematical and physical modeling, computational methods and systems for obtaining and analyzing biological structures, using pioneering research cases as examples. As such, it emphasizes programming and problem-solving skills. It provides information on structure bioinformatics at various levels, with individual chapters covering introductory to advanced aspects, from fundamental methods and guidelines on acquiring and analyzing genomics and proteomics sequences, the structures of protein, DNA and RNA, to the basics of physical simulations and methods for conformation searches. This book will be of immense value to researchers and students in the fields of bioinformatics, computational biology and chemistry. Dr. Dongqing Wei is a Professor at the Department of Bioinformatics and Biostatistics, College of Life Science and Biotechnology, Shanghai Jiaotong University, Shanghai, China. His research interest is in the general area of structural bioinformatics.

The complexity of biological systems has intrigued scientists from many disciplines and has given birth to the highly influential field of systems biology wherein a wide array of mathematical techniques, such as flux balance analysis, and technology platforms, such as next generation sequencing, is used to understand, elucidate, and predict the functions of complex biological systems. More recently, the field of synthetic biology, i.e., de novo engineering of biological systems, has emerged. Scientists from various fields are focusing on how to render this engineering process more predictable, reliable, scalable, affordable, and easy. Systems and control theory is a branch of engineering and applied sciences that rigorously deals with the complexities and uncertainties of interconnected systems with the objective of characterising fundamental systemic properties such as stability, robustness, communication capacity, and other performance metrics. Systems and control theory also strives to offer concepts and methods that facilitate the design of systems with rigorous guarantees on these properties. Over the last 100 years, it has made stellar theoretical and technological contributions in diverse fields such as aerospace, telecommunication, storage, automotive, power systems, and others. Can it have, or evolve to have, a similar impact in biology? The chapters in this book demonstrate that, indeed, systems and control theoretic concepts and techniques can have a significant impact in systems and synthetic biology. Volume II contains chapters contributed by leading researchers in the field of systems and synthetic biology that concern modeling physiological processes and bottom-up constructions of scalable biological systems. The modeling problems include characterisation and synthesis of memory, understanding how homoeostasis is maintained in the face of shocks and relatively gradual perturbations, understanding the functioning and robustness of biological clocks such as those at the core of circadian rhythms, and understanding how the cell cycles can be regulated, among others. Some of the bottom-up construction problems investigated in Volume II are as follows: How should biomacromolecules, platforms, and scalable architectures be chosen and synthesised in order to build programmable de novo biological systems? What are the types of constrained optimisation problems encountered in this process and how can these be solved efficiently? As the eminent computer scientist Donald Knuth put it, "biology easily has 500 years of exciting problems to work on". This edited book presents but a small fraction of those for the benefit of (1) systems and control theorists interested in molecular and cellular biology and (2) biologists interested in rigorous modelling, analysis and control of biological systems.

Survival analysis arises in many fields of study including medicine, biology, engineering, public health, epidemiology, and economics. This book provides a comprehensive treatment of Bayesian survival analysis. Several topics are addressed, including parametric models, semiparametric models based on prior processes, proportional and non-proportional hazards models, frailty models, cure rate models, model selection and comparison, joint models for longitudinal and survival data, models with time varying covariates, missing covariate data, design and monitoring of clinical trials, accelerated failure time models, models for multivariate survival data, and special types of hierarchical survival models. Also various censoring schemes are examined including right and interval censored data. Several additional topics are discussed, including noninformative and informative prior specificiations, computing posterior qualities of interest, Bayesian hypothesis testing, variable selection, model selection with nonnested models, model checking techniques using Bayesian diagnostic methods, and Markov chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) algorithms for sampling from the posteiror and predictive distributions. The book presents a balance between theory and applications, and for each class of models discussed, detailed examples and analyses from case studies are presented whenever possible. The applications are all essentially from the health sciences, including cancer, AIDS, and the environment. The book is intended as a graduate textbook or a reference book for a one semester course at the advanced masters or Ph.D. level. This book would be most suitable for second or third year graduate students in statistics or biostatistics. It would also serve as a useful reference book for applied or theoretical researchers as well as practitioners. Joseph G. Ibrahim is Associate Professor of Biostatistics at the Harvard School of Public Health and Dana-Farber Cancer Institute; Ming-Hui Chen is Associate Professor of Mathematical Science at Worcester Polytechnic Institute; Debajyoti Sinha is Associate Professor of Biostatistics at the Medical University of South Carolina.

Advances in Agronomy, Volume 175, the latest release in this leading reference on agronomy, contains a variety of updates and highlights new advances in the field. Each chapter is written by an international board of authors.

This book is written to help and enable students in how to observe biological specimens in terms of viscosity, mass, elasticity and work producing elements. The observations are related to underlying chemical reactions by means of strain (fractional length change) sensitivity of the reactions, and a theory is developed how to connect these. Their mathematical derivation is complex when three or more states are involved, but a method is presented here to demonstrate how to simplify this complex problem. Basic mathematical solutions that are useful for this book, are presented (Fourier and Laplace transforms, differential equations, matrix operations) together with Fortran programs in the Appendix.

Aquaculture is rapidly becoming a major source of fish protein used to meet the nutritional needs of humans. As the aquaculture industry grows, exposure of farmed fish to environmental contaminants, and the need for chemical therapeutic agents for fish, will increase. This book is designed to bring together authorities worldwide on the regulation of environmental contaminants and food chemicals and researchers investigating the metabolism and disposition of foreign chemicals (xenobiotics) in fish species.

This BASS book Series publishes selected high-quality papers reflecting recent advances in the design and biostatistical analysis of biopharmaceutical experiments - particularly biopharmaceutical clinical trials. The papers were selected from invited presentations at the Biopharmaceutical Applied Statistics Symposium (BASS), which was founded by the first Editor in 1994 and has since become the premier international conference in biopharmaceutical statistics. The primary aims of the BASS are: 1) to raise funding to support graduate students in biostatistics programs, and 2) to provide an opportunity for professionals engaged in pharmaceutical drug research and development to share insights into solving the problems they encounter.The BASS book series is initially divided into three volumes addressing: 1) Design of Clinical Trials; 2) Biostatistical Analysis of Clinical Trials; and 3) Pharmaceutical Applications. This book is the first of the 3-volume book series. The topics covered include: A Statistical Approach to Clinical Trial Simulations, Comparison of Statistical Analysis Methods Using Modeling and Simulation for Optimal Protocol Design, Adaptive Trial Design in Clinical Research, Best Practices and Recommendations for Trial Simulations in the Context of Designing Adaptive Clinical Trials, Designing and Analyzing Recurrent Event Data Trials, Bayesian Methodologies for Response-Adaptive Allocation, Addressing High Placebo Response in Neuroscience Clinical Trials, Phase I Cancer Clinical Trial Design: Single and Combination Agents, Sample Size and Power for the Mixed Linear Model, Crossover Designs in Clinical Trials, Data Monitoring: Structure for Clinical Trials and Sequential Monitoring Procedures, Design and Data Analysis for Multiregional Clinical Trials - Theory and Practice, Adaptive Group-Sequential Multi-regional Outcome Studies in Vaccines, Development and Validation of Patient-reported Outcomes, Interim Analysis of Survival Trials: Group Sequential Analyses, and Conditional Power - A Non-proportional Hazards Perspective.

This book presents the most recent mathematical approaches to the growing research area of networks, oscillations, and collective motions in the context of biological systems. Bringing together the results of multiple studies of different biological systems, this book sheds light on the relations among these research themes. Included in this book are the following topics: feedback systems with time delay and threshold of sensing (dead zone), robustness of biological networks from the point of view of dynamical systems, the hardware-oriented neuron modeling approach, a universal mechanism governing the entrainment limit under weak forcing, the robustness mechanism of open complex systems, situation-dependent switching of the cues primarily relied on by foraging ants, and group chase and escape. Research on different biological systems is presented together, not separated by specializations or by model systems. Therefore, the book provides diverse perspectives at the forefront of current mathematical research on biological systems, especially focused on networks, oscillations, and collective motions. This work is aimed at advanced undergraduate, graduate, and postdoctoral students, as well as scientists and engineers. It will also be of great use for professionals in industries and service sectors owing to the applicability of topics such as networks and synchronizations.

Reviewers have characterized Paul Naour's A Dialogue Between Sociobiology and Radical Behaviorism, which includes brief introductions by E.O. Wilson and B.F. Skinner's elder daughter, Julie Vargus, as an idea book. The work will undoubtedly have a significant academic market and provide students and scholars in biology, ethology, psychology, anthropology, sociology and economics a strong foundation in twentieth century history and systems.

Praise for A Dialogue Between Sociobiology and Radical Behaviorism:

- E.O. Wilson says of the book: ." . . excellent, an outstanding addition to the history of ideas. It will put Fred Skinner back in the pantheon and, providing context, serve as an excellent introduction to the content and central truths in radical behaviorism. Needless to say, I'm also grateful to have my work following Sociobiology given proper attention."

-David Sloan Wilson, author of Darwin's Cathedral writes: "E.O. Wilson and B.F. Skinner agreed that the human capacity for change is both a product of genetic evolution and an evolutionary process in its own right. Yet, the paradigms of sociobiology and radical behaviorism went in very different directions. Paul Naour's insightful analysis of a taped conversation between Wilson and Skinner goes beyond the historical significance of the conversation and helps to integrate the two paradigms for the future."

-Carl Haywood writes: "The present question is whether evolution by natural selection is a useful set of concepts for the development of psychology. Naour's proposed confluence of radical behaviorism and sociobiology suggests not only that it is, but also that radical behaviorism shares with sociobiology a debt and an allegiance to Darwinism."

This book describes novel algorithms based on interval-valued fuzzy methods that are expected to improve classification and decision-making processes under incomplete or imprecise information. At first, it introduces interval-valued fuzzy sets. It then discusses new methods for aggregation on interval-valued settings, and the most common properties of interval-valued aggregation operators. It then presents applications such as decision making using interval-valued aggregation, and classification in case of missing values. Interesting applications of the developed algorithms to DNA microarray analysis and in medical decision support systems are shown. The book is intended not only as a timely report for the community working on fuzzy sets and their extensions but also for researchers and practitioners dealing with the problems of uncertain or imperfect information.

The COVID-19 Response: The Vital Role of the Public Health Professional explores population health during a pandemic and how is it different than clinical medicine. Other sections cover federal, state and local responses to COVID-19, testing for COVID-19, the implementation of public health control measures, the use of public health emergency powers, health equity, the resignation and firing of public health leaders, vaccination planning, and the future of public health post COVID-19. Leaders and practitioners working in public health practice and academia, as well as students in public health undergraduate and graduate level programs will find this book extremely useful.

This book describes novel microtechnologies and integration strategies for developing a new class of assay systems to retrieve desired health information from patients in real-time. The selection and integration of sensor components and operational parameters for developing point-of-care (POC) are also described in detail. The basics that govern the microfluidic regimen and the techniques and methods currently employed for fabricating microfluidic systems and integrating biosensors are thoroughly covered. This book also describes the application of microfluidics in the field of cell and molecular biology, single cell biology, disease diagnostics, as well as the commercially available systems that have been either introduced or have the potential of being used in research and development. This is an ideal book for aiding biologists in understanding the fundamentals and applications of microfluidics. This book also: Describes the preparatory methods for developing 3-dimensional microfluidic structures and their use for Lab-on-a-Chip design Explains the significance of miniaturization and integration of sensing components to develop wearable sensors for point-of-care (POC) Demonstrates the application of microfluidics to life sciences and analytical chemistry, including disease diagnostics and separations Motivates new ideas related to novel platforms, valving technology, miniaturized transduction methods, and device integration to develop next generation sequencing Discusses future prospects and challenges of the field of microfluidics in the areas of life sciences in general and diagnostics in particular

This volume covers Darwin's reception across Europe and his influence on European science and culture.Charles Darwin is a crucial figure in nineteenth-century science with an extensive and varied reception in different countries and disciplines. His theory had a revolutionary impact not only on biology, but also on other natural sciences and the new social sciences. The term 'Darwinism', already popular in Darwin's lifetime, ranged across many different areas and ideological aspects, and his own ideas about the implications of evolution for human cognitive, emotional, social and ethical capacities were often interpreted in a way that did not mirror his own intentions. The implications for religious, philosophical and political issues and institutions remain as momentous today as in his own time.This volume conveys the many-sidedness of Darwin's reception and exhibit his far-reaching impact on our self-understanding as human beings.

Key Features: Describes feedstock evaluation and the effects of elemental, chemical and fractional composition. Details reactor types and bed types. Explores the process options and parameters involved. Assesses coke formation and additives. Considers next generation processes and developments.

This book focuses on modules and emergence with self-organization in the life sciences. As Aristotle observed so long ago, the whole is more than the sum of its parts. However, contemporary science is dominated by reductionist concepts and tends to neglect the non-reproducible features of complex systems, which emerge from the interaction of the smaller units they are composed of. The book is divided into three major parts; the essays in part A highlight the conceptual basis of emergence, linking it to the philosophy of science, systems biology and sustainability. This is subsequently exemplified in part B by applying the concept of emergence to various biological disciplines, such as genetics, developmental biology, neurobiology, plant physiology and ecology. New aspects of emergence come into play when biology meets the technical sciences, as revealed in a chapter on bionics. In turn, part C adopts a broader view, revealing how the organization of life follows a hierarchical order in terms of scalar dimensions, ranging from the molecular level to the entire biosphere. The idea that life is primarily and exclusively shaped by processes at the molecular level (and, in particular, by the information encoded in the genome) is refuted; rather, there is no hierarchy with respect to the level of causation in the cross-talk between the levels. In the last two chapters, the evolutionary trend toward ever-increasing complexity in living systems is interpreted in terms of the Gaia hypothesis sensu Lovelock: the entire biosphere is viewed as a functional unit (or 'holobiont-like system') organized to develop and sustain life on Earth.

As a research subject, the biomechanics of the urinary bladder are relatively young, yet medical problems associated with them are as old as mankind. Offering an update on recent achievements in the field, the authors highlight the underlying biological, chemical and physical processes of bladder function and present the systematic development of a mathematical model of the organ as a thin, soft biological shell. The book will be a valuable resource for postgraduate students and researchers interested in the applications of computational mathematics and solid mechanics to modern problems in biomedical engineering and medicine.

This contributed volume comprises research articles and reviews on topics connected to the mathematical modeling of cellular systems. These contributions cover signaling pathways, stochastic effects, cell motility and mechanics, pattern formation processes, as well as multi-scale approaches. All authors attended the workshop on "Modeling Cellular Systems" which took place in Heidelberg in October 2014. The target audience primarily comprises researchers and experts in the field, but the book may also be beneficial for graduate students.

The complexity of biological systems has intrigued scientists from many disciplines and has given birth to the highly influential field of systems biology wherein a wide array of mathematical techniques, such as flux balance analysis, and technology platforms, such as next generation sequencing, is used to understand, elucidate, and predict the functions of complex biological systems. More recently, the field of synthetic biology, i.e., de novo engineering of biological systems, has emerged. Scientists from various fields are focusing on how to render this engineering process more predictable, reliable, scalable, affordable, and easy. Systems and control theory is a branch of engineering and applied sciences that rigorously deals with the complexities and uncertainties of interconnected systems with the objective of characterising fundamental systemic properties such as stability, robustness, communication capacity, and other performance metrics. Systems and control theory also strives to offer concepts and methods that facilitate the design of systems with rigorous guarantees on these properties. Over the last 100 years, it has made stellar theoretical and technological contributions in diverse fields such as aerospace, telecommunication, storage, automotive, power systems, and others. Can it have, or evolve to have, a similar impact in biology? The chapters in this book demonstrate that, indeed, systems and control theoretic concepts and techniques can have a significant impact in systems and synthetic biology. Volume I provides a panoramic view that illustrates the potential of such mathematical methods in systems and synthetic biology. Recent advances in systems and synthetic biology have clearly demonstrated the benefits of a rigorous and systematic approach rooted in the principles of systems and control theory - not only does it lead to exciting insights and discoveries but it also reduces the inordinately lengthy trial-and-error process of wet-lab experimentation, thereby facilitating significant savings in human and financial resources. In Volume I, some of the leading researchers in the field of systems and synthetic biology demonstrate how systems and control theoretic concepts and techniques can be useful, or should evolve to be useful, in order to understand how biological systems function. As the eminent computer scientist Donald Knuth put it, "biology easily has 500 years of exciting problems to work on". This edited book presents but a small fraction of those for the benefit of (1) systems and control theorists interested in molecular and cellular biology and (2) biologists interested in rigorous modelling, analysis and control of biological systems.

Herbal Medicines: A Boon for Healthy Human Life provides a comprehensive overview of the role of herbal medicines for treating a broad variety of human diseases, from neurological disorders to cancer and major disorders such as infectious diseases, metabolic disorders, and more. Each chapter summarizes the current state and future direction of the use of herbal medicines against multiple diseases from a translational point-of-view, making this reference a valuable source of information for a large audience, including researchers and healthcare providers interested in the field of herbal remedies.

The fascinating machinery that life uses to harness energy is the focus of this volume of the Advances in Photosynthesis and Respiration series. Experts in the field communicate their insights into the mechanisms that govern biological energy conversion from the atomic scale to the physiological integration within organisms. By leveraging the power of current structural techniques the authors reveal the inner workings of life.

Applications: - Applications of Microbial Cell Sensors, by Mifumi Shimomura-Shimizu and Isao Karube - Whole-Cell Bioreporters for the Detection of Bioavailable Metals, by Anu Hynninen and Marko Virta - Bacteriophage-Based Pathogen Detection, by Steven Ripp - Cell-Based Genotoxicity Testing, by Georg Reifferscheid and Sebastian Buchinger - Cytotoxicity and Genotoxicity Reporter Systems Based on the Use of Mammalian Cells, by Christa Baumstark-Khan, Christine E. Hellweg, and Gunther Reitz - Live Cell Optical Sensing for High Throughput Applications, by Ye Fang - Cyanobacterial Bioreporters as Sensors of Nutrient Availability, by George S. Bullerjahn, Ramakrishna Boyanapalli, Mark J. Rozmarynowycz, and R. Michael L. McKay - Application of Microbial Bioreporters in Environmental Microbiology and Bioremediation, by E. E. Diplock, H. A. Alhadrami, and G. I. Paton

This volume is based on the Workshop on Systems Biology of Tumor Dormancy meeting, held July 25th to July 28th, 2011. The first annual CCSB workshop brought together biologists, clinicians, mathematicians, and computer scientists to discuss various aspects of tumor dormancy and develop novel mathematical/computational models with the keynote speakers. Specific topics included the angiogenic switch, immune system interactions, cancer stem cells and signaling.

Computational modeling is emerging as a powerful new approach to study and manipulate biological systems. Multiple methods have been developed to model, visualize, and rationally alter systems at various length scales, starting from molecular modeling and design at atomic resolution to cellular pathways modeling and analysis. Higher time and length scale processes, such as molecular evolution, have also greatly benefited from new breeds of computational approaches. This book provides an overview of the established computational methods used for modeling biologically and medically relevant systems.