This compendium presents some of the major applications of neutron scattering techniques to problems in biology. It is a record of the papers presented at the Neutrons in Biology Conference, the third in an occasional series held to highlight progress in the field and to provide a focus for future direction. The strength ofthe neutron scattering technique remains principally in the manipula tion of scattering density through hydrogen and deuterium atoms. The development ofad vanced detectors, innovative instrument and beamline components, and sophisticated data acquisition systems through the 1970s and early 1980s provided a sound foundation for the technique. With continued development, some of the exotic and expensive equipment has become affordable by the medium-sized facilities, thereby broadening the user base considerably. Despite problems with the major neutron sources in the late 1980s and early 1990s, some spectacular results have been achieved. Whilst the high and medium flux beam reac tors will continue to make a major impact in the field, the results from the first experi ments, and the planned developments on spallation neutron sources, clearly indicate that the technique has enormous potential.

Advances in Polymer Science enjoys a longstanding tradition and good reputation in its community. Each volume is dedicated to a current topic, and each review critically surveys one aspect of that topic, to place it within the context of the volume. The volumes typically summarize the significant developments of the last 5 to 10 years and discuss them critically, presenting selected examples, explaining and illustrating the important principles, and bringing together many important references of primary literature. On that basis, future research directions in the area can be discussed. Advances in Polymer Science volumes thus are important references for every polymer scientist, as well as for other scientists interested in polymer science - as an introduction to a neighboring field, or as a compilation of detailed information for the specialist.

Not since the late 1970s has a single work presented the biology of this heterogenous group of secondary alkaloids in such depth. Alkaloids, a unique treatise featuring leaders in the field, presents both the historical use of alkaloids and the latest discoveries in the biochemistry of alkaloid production in plants alkaloid ecology, including marine invertebrates, animal and plant parasites, and alkaloids as antimicrobial and current medicinal use . Highlights include chapters on the chemical ecology of alkaloids in host-predator interactions, and on the compartmentation of alkaloids synthesis, transport, and storage. Extensive cross-referencing in tabular format makes this volume an excellent reference.

This volume assembles and integrates the wealth of diverse information that is now accumulating in this burgeoning field. The existing and potential therapeutic applications of targeting CA cover a remarkably wide-range of diseases and disorders and have generated increasing and extensive interest in recent years. Its inter-disciplinary approach embraces both the most up-to-date therapeutic application of CA-targeting and the latest research data that will provide a platform for the development of novel applications. The interested audience comprises scientists and clinicians from many relevant disciplines within science and medicine.

Stilbenoids are formed by a particular branch of the flavonoid biosynthetic pathway. They are of special interest to natural product researchers for their roles in plant resistance to fungal pathogens, their general antibiotic properties and their cytotoxic and pharmacological effects. The first volume in The Biochemistry of Natural Products Series provides a comprehensive account of the distribution, chemistry, biological roles and uses of the stilbenoids. Detailed tables list the distribution of stilbenoids in major plant species and methods used for extracting and analysing stilbenoids are discussed. Biosynthetic pathways are reviewed and the possible biological role of stilbenoids is assessed. A concise coverage, this volume is written for those not specializing in natural product chemistry who are looking for an accessible, concise reference source. The work will be of interest to researchers in biochemistry, plant pathology, chemotaxonomy, pharmacology and natural product chemistry.

Biochemical Pathways and Environmental Responses in Plants, Part A, Volume 676 in the Methods in Enzymology series highlights new advances in the field with this new volume presenting interesting chapters on topics such as Structure, function, and engineering of plant polyketide synthases, A sensitive LC-MS/MS assay for enzymatic characterization of methylthioalkylmalate synthase involved in glucosinolate side-chain elongation, Assaying formate-tetrahydrofolate ligase with monoglutamylated and polyglutamylated substrates using a fluorescence-HPLC based assay, An Approach to Nearest Neighbor Analysis of Pigmented Protein Complexes by Using Chemical Crosslinking in Combination with Mass Spectrometry, and much more. Other chapters cover Biochemical characterization of plant aromatic aminotransferases, Functional Analysis of Phosphoethanolamine N-methyltransferase (PMT) in Plants and Parasites, A structure-guided computational screening approach for predicting plant enzyme-metabolite interactions, Plant metacaspase: an example of microcrystal structure determination and analysis, Biocatalytic system for comparative assessment of functional association of cytochrome P450 monooxygenases with their redox partners, Dirigent Protein Family Function and Structure, and more.

This book provides a comprehensive, up-to-date review of the distribution, pharmacology and physiology of central 5-hydroxytryptamine (5-HT)4 receptors. The 5-HT receptor subtypes exhibit a unique pharmacology, distribution and function, of which the 5-HT4 receptor has been one of the most intensively studied in recent years, both from a basic research standpoint and as a target for novel therapeutics.

In the 100 years since the legume-Rhizobium symbiotic nitrogen fixation interaction was first described, interest in this field has grown rapidly. The types of studies have been cyclical in nature, involving a cross-section of disciplines. The availability of cheap nitrogenous fertilizers caused much of the biological nitrogen fixation research to become more theoretical in the developed world. The high cost of energy, coupled with environmental concerns and the interest in sustainable agriculture, has stimulated research in symbiotic nitrogen fixation. The development of modern genetic techniques has resulted in interdisciplinary research on plant-microbe interactions controlling nitrogen fixation. This has resulted in a better understanding of environmental factors influencing the nodulation process, chemical signalling between the symbiotic partners and the nature of the specificity between host plant and microsymbiotant. This volume summarizes the diverse research efforts in biological nitrogen fixation by presenting a collection of papers in the areas of physiology and metabolism, taxonomy and evolution, genetics and ecology.

Growth hormone secretagogues (GHS) administered alone or in combination with growth hormone releasing hexapeptides, are effective probes for the diagnosis of GH deficiency in both children and adults. Current research has developed and tested different GHS compounds that are active by the oral route, and have improved potency and bioavailability, giving rise to exciting therapeutic possibilities.
There was an enthusiastic response from experts in this area to the idea of distilling the huge amount of available data into one multi-authored volume. Each contributor has advanced the field of knowledge, and has here emphasized the practical aspects of their work, reviewing the subject in the light of their own experience. Therefore, the theme of the book is a practical one.
The volume deals with all aspects of GHS that are relevant to the field, from the chemical structure to the different analogues, to the cloning and expression of the GHS-receptor and the role of these compounds in the physiological control of GH secretion. Also discussed are the most recent advances in relation to the possible role of these compounds in the diagnostic therapeutic settings in different clinical situations, either in children, adults or the elderly.
The book meets the requirement of covering most, if not all of the advances in the field. It will enable scientists and clinicians to keep abreast of the rapidly evolving knowledge of the most recent years, and will also prove useful as a review for all interested in this topic.

Transcriptome Profiling: Progress and Prospects assists readers in assessing and interpreting a large number of genes, up to and including an entire genome. It provides key insights into the latest tools and techniques used in transcriptomics and its relevant topics which can reveal a global snapshot of the complete RNA component of a cell at a given time. This snapshot, in turn, enables the distinction between different cell types, different disease states, and different time points during development. Transcriptome analysis has been a key area of biological inquiry for decades. The next-generation sequencing technologies have revolutionized transcriptomics by providing opportunities for multidimensional examinations of cellular transcriptomes in which high-throughput expression data are obtained at a single-base resolution. Transcriptome analysis has evolved from the detection of single RNA molecules to large-scale gene expression profiling and genome annotation initiatives. Written by a team of global experts, key topics in Transcriptome Profiling include transcriptome characterization, expression analysis of transcripts, transcriptome and gene regulation, transcriptome profiling and human health, medicinal plants transcriptomics, transcriptomics and genetic engineering, transcriptomics in agriculture, and phylotranscriptomics.

Fluorescence spectroscopy and its applications to the physical and life sciences have evolved rapidly during the past decade. The increased interest in fluorescence appears to be due to advances in time resolution, methods of data analysis, and improved instrumentation. With these advances, it is now practical to perform time-resolved measurements with enough resolution to compare the results with the structural and dynamic features of mac- molecules, to probe the structures of proteins, membranes, and nucleic acids, and to acquire two-dimensional microscopic images of chemical or protein distributions in cell cultures. Advances in laser and detector technology have also resulted in renewed interest in fluorescence for clinical and analytical chemistry. Because of these numerous developments and the rapid appearance of new methods, it has become difficult to remain current on the science of fluorescence and its many applications. Consequently, I have asked the experts in particular areas of fluorescence to summarize their knowledge and the current state of the art. This has resulted in the initial two volumes of Topics in Fluorescence Spectroscopy, which is intended to be an ongoing series which summarizes, in one location, the vast literature on fluorescence spectroscopy. The third volume will appear shortly. The first three volumes are designed to serve as an advanced text. These volumes describe the more recent techniques and technologies (Volume 1), the principles governing fluorescence and the experimental observables (Volume 2), and applications in biochemistry and biophysics (Volume 3).

Nodules produced on legume roots by root-nodule bacteria provide the major nitrogenous input into natural and agricultural systems worldwide. This book provides an in-depth and up-to-the-minute analysis of what is known about this symbiosis, its origins, the process of nodule formation and development, and the biochemistry and genetics of nodular nitrogen fixation. It also reviews the physiology of the root-nodule bacteria themselves, their ecology in both natural and agricultural systems, and how we can introduce new legumes along with the bacteria they require. This book is recommended for scientists working with root nodule bacteria or host legumes, agronomists, forestry scientists, and soil scientists.

In this inaugural volume of a new series, experts in the field help biochemists, analytical chemists, spectroscopists, biophysicists, and other specialists keep up with the latest techniques and technologies available in fluorescence spectroscopy.

Advances in Clinical Chemistry, Volume 110, the latest installment in this internationally acclaimed series, contains chapters authored by world-renowned clinical laboratory scientists, physicians and research scientists.

Human Microbiome in Health and Disease, Volume 191, Part A presents updated knowledge on human microbiome as covered by renowned science faculty across the globe. Chapters in this volume include an introduction to human microbiome, Structure, functions and diversity of healthy human microbiome, Role of human microbiome in cancer, Gut microbiota and gastrointestinal cancer, Dysbiosis of human microbiome and metabolic diseases, Gut microbiome and type 2 diabetes, Gut microbiome and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, Hepatic drug metabolism and intestinal microbiota, Emerging tools for understanding the human microbiome, and Microbiome therapeutics: Opportunity and challenges, and more. These chapters cover the composition, diversity, dynamics and functions of human microbiome in health and disease. This book will form an excellent and informative text on keystone, autochthonous, and exogenous microbiota important for human health in a simple to understand and easy to read format.

This book provides a comprehensive overview of chitin biology and chitin metabolism related enzymes. Chitin, the second most abundant biopolymer in nature after to cellulose, is a linear biopolymer composed of -1,4-linked N-acetylglucosamine (GlcNAc), and an essential component in the exoskeletons of insects, mites, ticks and crustaceans, the egg shells of parasitic nematodes, and fungal cell walls. Although some chitin-containing organisms are a threat to human health, food safety and agricultural production, non-chitin containing organisms like humans, mammals and plants have an innate immune response to these hazardous organisms. The book provides researchers and students with information on the recent research advances concerning the biology of chitin-containing organisms as well as cross-talks between chitin-containing and non-chitin-containing organisms. Highlighting chitin remodeling enzymes and inhibitors, it also offers drug developers essential insights into designing specific molecules for the control of hazardous chitin-containing organisms.

This thesis mainly describes the development of a screening process for a mirror-image library of chiral natural products. It demonstrates how, by using mirror-image proteins for the screening of available natural products, unavailable mirror-image isomers of natural products can be screened in a mirror process. Moreover, as mirror-image isomers including target proteins and natural products are mainly prepared by means of chemical synthesis, the screening strategy presented here suggests the importance of organic chemistry. Natural products are commonly used as valuable resources for drug discovery. However, as they are mostly produced as single enantiomeric forms, researchers have tested o nly natural products bearing one stereochemistry available in nature. As natural products and their enantiomers have identical physicochemical properties and different biological activities, mirror-image isomers of natural products are promising candidates for novel medicinal resources. In an effort to identify anticancer agents from the mirror-image library, chemical protein syntheses of some target oncoproteins, MDM2, MDMX and Grb2, and their applications to the chemical array screening process were achieved. In the course of this process the NP843 enantiomer, which is the enantiomer of an -tocopherol derivative, was successfully identified as a novel MDM2-p53 interaction inhibitor. These results clearly show that a mirror-image library of chiral natural products represents an invaluable medicinal resource. Accordingly, the chemistry-based screening strategy described in this thesis will be of great interest to a broad range of chemists involved in natural product, medicinal, and synthetic chemistry.

This volume presents detailed descriptions and analyses of the underlying features, issues and suppositions associated with seed and seedling laboratory bioassays presented in a previous volume.It is, however, broader in scope and substance in that the information provided is relevant to all water-soluble compounds released to soil by putative allelopathic living plants and their litter and residues.It is ultimately an attempt to update and expand the practical guidelines for designing laboratory bioassays that have previously been provided in the literature with the hope that the designs of future seed and seedling laboratory bioassays will become more relevant to field systems.Standard references have been included to provide background and additional details.This volume has been written specifically for researchers and their graduate students who are interested in studying plant-plant allelopathic interactions."

Since several excellent books have appeared on the issue of chemical and biochemical sensing, this compendium concentrates on recent creative new approaches using chemical means for the detection and quanti?cation of - portant analytes. These are presented either from a technical viewpoint or fromtheperspectiveofselectivemolecularrecognitionwitharti?cialreceptor molecules. Consequently, the entire book is subdivided into two categories, i. e. , natural targetsand detection techniques. In the ?rst part, the challenging task of sensing peptides and proteins as wellassaccharidesisaddressedfromseveralperspectives:Smalllibrarieswith maximum diversity are ef?ciently used to reach high af?nity and selectivity of arti?cial hosts for short peptide sequences. Preorganized aromatic vessels are tailored for certain protein epitopes and shown to selectively address the prion protein, and a new conjugation technique operating at physiological conditions on helix-loop-helix motifs, leads to protein binders of exquisite af?nity. Finally, elegant sensor systems for multifunctional carbohydrates in their naturalform,whichuse theprinciple ofphoto-induced electrontransfer for ?uorescence detection, are presented. The second part of this book is devoted to creative detection techniques employing chemical processes: Liposomes with integral self-assembled - acetylene lipid areas show an intense blue color, which gradually changes to red if biological analytes of various sizes speci?cally interact with emb- ded hosts. Principal component analysis and arti?cial neuronal networks are novel methods to quantitatively analyze complex mixtures. An alternative - proach uses arti?cial peptidic pores, which are able to release self-quenched ?uorophoresthataresubstitutedbytighterbindinganalytes.

Internationally eminent scientists illuminate the most important scientific aspects of essential fatty acids (EFAs)-from their biochemistry to their physiological consequences in both health and illness. The distinguished contributors integrate a wide range of topics, including the basic biochemistry of EFAs and lipid metabolism, the role of EFAs in the neuronal membrane, the effects of EFAs and lipids in various diseases, and the effects of normal levels and EFA deficiencies on cognition and behavior. The book's consolidation of our knowledge of the biology and metabolism of the EFAs lays the groundwork for dramatic advances in our understanding of these ubiquitous biochemicals and their role in health and illness.

This multi-author contributed volume gives a comprehensive overview of recent progress in various vibrational spectroscopic techniques and chemometric methods and their applications in chemistry, biology and medicine. In order to meet the needs of readers, the book focuses on recent advances in technical development and potential exploitations of the theory, as well as the new applications of vibrational methods to problems of recent general interest that were difficult or even impossible to achieve in the not so distant past. Integrating vibrational spectroscopy and computational approaches serves as a handbook for people performing vibrational spectroscopy followed by chemometric analysis hence both experimental methods as well as procedures of recommended analysis are described. This volume is written for individuals who develop new methodologies and extend these applications to new realms of chemical and medicinal interest.

The annual Evolutionary Biology Meetings in Marseille aim to bring together leading scientists, promoting an exchange of state-of-the-art knowledge and the formation of inter-group collaborations. This book presents the most representative contributions to the 13th meeting, which was held in September 2009. It comprises 21 chapters, which are organized into the following three categories: * Evolutionary Biology Concepts * Genome/Molecular Evolution * Morphological Evolution/Speciation This book offers an up-to-date overview of evolutionary biology concepts and their use in the biology of the 21st century.

In the approach to the analysis of disease, including, of course, cancer, two major thrusts may be distinguished. These may be referred to, in shorthand, as agents and processes: the causative agents (chemical, microbial, physical, environmental, and psychosocial) and the organismic processes, initiated and furthered by the agents, culminating in observable pathology (at the macromolecular, cytological, histological, organ function, locomotor, and behavioral levels). The past 25 years, since the appearance of the first volume of the predecessor series (1) authored by the Editors of this present volume, have seen an impressive number of studies on chemicals (and other agents) as etiologic factors in the induction of cancer. The major emphasis has been on the discovery of many chemical carcinogens of widely different structures, their metabolism by various tissues and cells, and, in turn, their molecular-biochemical effects on the cells. This rapidly expanded body of information, as effectively covered in the predecessor volumes, is an excellent entree to the second half of the overall problem of chemical carcinogenesis, the processes. The active agents trigger a large array of molecular-biochemical alterations to which the target cells, target tissues, and target organisms respond in many select and common ways. This second major aspect of the induction of cancer by chemicals (and by other agents)- the sequence of cellular and tissue changes clearly relevant to cancer-remains the challenge for the future.