Nanomedicine, a scientific branch of nanotechnology that operates on the same scale as biology, offers the possibility of influencing the healing process from inside of the body by manipulating the matter at cellular or molecular levels. Throughout this book, current healing approaches based on this revolutionary new technology are summarized from a scientific assessment. The aim of the authors is to give, through select examples, a deep insight to nanotechnology status and the great progress that its rigorous application will bring to human health. The authors' commitment is to broaden the vision of health professionals who will eventually be the future users of this knowledge.

Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is one of the deadliest threats to global public health. This book focuses on dynamics in the landscape of AMR while informing about the latest technologies and strategies to mitigate it. The menace of AMR in different niches, routes of penetration across various domains, socio-economic impact, and the need for a 'One Health' approach in mitigating AMR has been emphasized. Factors involved in AMR, underlying mechanisms, and pharmacometrics in developing antimicrobials are highlighted. Emphasis is given to emerging technologies that are sustainable, scalable, and applicable to the global community, such as big data analytics, bioactive agents, phage therapy, and nanotechnology. The book also explores current and alternative treatment strategies to combat AMR, emphasizing the use of nanoparticles to target pathogens and as a viable alternative to antibiotics.

White biotechnology is industrial biotechnology dealing with various biotech products through applications of microbes. The main application of white biotechnology is commercial production of various useful organic substances, such as acetic acid, citric acid, acetone, glycerine, etc., and antibiotics like penicillin, streptomycin, mitomycin, etc., and value added product through the use of microorganisms especially fungi and bacteria. The value-added products included bioactive compounds, secondary metabolites, pigments and industrially important enzymes for potential applications in agriculture, pharmaceuticals, medicine and allied sectors for human welfare. In the 21st century, techniques were developed to harness fungi to protect human health (through antibiotics, antimicrobial, immunosuppressive agents, value-added products etc.), which led to industrial scale production of enzymes, alkaloids, detergents, acids, biosurfactants. The first large-scale industrial applications of modern biotechnology have been made in the areas of food and animal feed production (agricultural/green biotechnology) and pharmaceuticals (medical/red biotechnology). In contrast, the production of bio-active compounds through fermentation or enzymatic conversion is known industrial or white biotechnology. The beneficial fungal strains may play important role in agriculture, industry and the medical sectors. The beneficial fungi play a significance role in plant growth promotion, and soil fertility using both, direct (solubilization of phosphorus, potassium and zinc; production of indole acetic acid, gibberellic acid, cytokinin and siderophores) and indirect (production of hydrolytic enzymes, siderophores, ammonia, hydrogen cyanides and antibiotics) mechanisms of plant growth promotion for sustainable agriculture. The fungal strains and their products (enzymes, bio-active compounds and secondary metabolites) are very useful for industry. The discovery of antibiotics is a milestone in the development of white biotechnology. Since then, white biotechnology has steadily developed and now plays a key role in several industrial sectors, providing both high valued nutraceuticals and pharmaceutical products. The fungal strains and bio-active compounds also play important role in the environmental cleaning. This volume covers the latest research developments related to value-added products in white biotechnology through fungi.

This volume details PCR technique with focus on its application specificities to the biotechnology and bioengineering field. Chapters are broken into five sections covering sgeneral PCR protocols, different applied examples to molecular and synthetic biotechnology, food science and technology, environmental microbiology and molecular ecology, and healthcare. 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, PCR: Methods and Protocols hopes to be a valuable and useful resource for wet lab researchers, particularly within the biotechnology and bioengineering field.

This detailed volume explores molecularly imprinted polymers (MIPs), which have attracted great interest both in fundamental research and for practical applications due to their selective molecular recognition capabilities, extraordinary stability, and ease of preparation. Beginning with key laboratory protocols describing the different steps towards the synthesis of MIPs by different polymerization strategies, the volume continues by examining MIP use in sample preparation, their implementation on the development of sensors, as well as applications in other areas such catalysis and the use of bioinformatics and molecular modeling for MIPs design. Written for the highly successful Methods in Molecular Biology series, chapters include introductions to the 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, Molecularly Imprinted Polymers: Methods and Protocols serves as an ideal guide for researchers seeking to harness this very powerful approach for the preparation of molecular selective synthetic polymers.

Environmental protection and resource recovery are two crucial issues facing our society in the 21st century. Anaerobic biotechnology has become widely accepted by the wastewater industry as the better alternative to the more conventional but costly aerobic process and tens of thousands of full-scale facilities using this technology have been installed worldwide in the past two decades. Anaerobic Biotechnology is the sequel to the well-received Environmental Anaerobic Technology: Applications and New Developments (2010) and compiles developments over the past five years. This volume contains contributions from 48 renowned experts from across the world, including Gatze Lettinga, laureate of the 2007 Tyler Prize and the 2009 Lee Kuan Yew Water Prize, and Perry McCarty, whose pioneering work laid the foundations for today's anaerobic biotechnology. This book is ideal for engineers and scientists working in the field, as well as decision-makers on energy and environmental policies.

Explores how antiviral nanomaterials can be used in developing targeted drug delivery practices and enable pharmaceutical industries to reformulate available drugs on market Covers immunization, imaging, and drug delivery and features various case studies on managing viral diseases Addresses synthesis protocols and recent developments by performing physicochemistry on virion substrate, hybrid viral networks, and multilayered arrays thus enabling R&D experts to study and successfully instigate cutting-edge technologies unique to viruses Discusses current and near future applications of antiviral nanomaterials and their activity in drug delivery systems Describes the role of nanotechnology in prevention, detection, and treatment of COVID-19 Investigates the role of antiviral nanodrugs play in human and animal body systems and in major viral disease types.

An integrated approach to provide information about all aspects of cancer biology, diagnosis and therapy. Covers both conventional and emerging tools/ techniques applicable in cancer screening and diagnosis. Covers the mechanisms of conventional and emerging anticancer drugs and therapies. Provides insights about personalized medicine based approach in cancer diagnosis and therapy.

This volume provides a unique forum to review cell microencapsulation in a broad sense by exploring various cell types that have been encapsulated for different purposes, different approaches and devices used for microencapsulation, the biomaterials used in cell microencapsulation, the challenges to the technology, and the current status of its application in different clinical situations. This book is divided in five sections: Section I is an introductory part that discusses historical developments of the technology and its current challenges, as well as the various applications of cell microencapsulation; Section II discusses the main approaches and devices currently used in cell microencapsulation; Section III presents an overview of the various polymeric materials currently in use for cell microencapsulation and the enabling technologies to either monitor or enhance encapsulated cell function; Section IV gives specific examples of the methods used to encapsulate various cell types; and Section V provides an overview of the different clinical situations in which cell microencapsulation has been applied. 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. Thorough and practical, Cell Microencapsulation: Methods and Protocols is a valuable reference for researchers, engineers, clinicians, and other healthcare professionals, as well as food technologists who will find detailed descriptions of methods for the microencapsulation of specific cell types and their current of potential clinical and industrial applications. This volume also includes detailed information about the design and manufacture of different devices including large-scale production devices for use in cell microencapsulation.

Recombinant protein drugs are intimately associated with the impressive success story of the Biotech Industry during the past thirty years, some of them belonging to the most successful pharmaceutical products. More than thirty different proteins are available for a variety of clinical applications, over 300 proteins are presently being evaluated in clinical trials. In this new volume of the MDT series, historical, technical and clinical aspects of recombinant protein drug discovery and development are presented, covering past, present and future highlights. Leading scientists and co-founders of early Biotech companies describe technical breakthroughs and the fascinating story of pioneering discoveries, as well as the long way of translating them into products and business. Therefore, this book represents an exciting documentation of the beginning of a new era in the pharmaceutical industry. In addition, scientists from basic research, clinic and industry actively involved in new developments discuss...

- Provides updated and detailed information about bioinformatics for human genomics research - Brings information from multiple areas of bioinformatics in one place - Facilitates application of key computational methods in human genomics research

This book examines the bioeconomy concept, analysing the opportunities it can generate, the constraints and the potential benefits for society. The main objective of bioeconomy is to promote economic development, by creating jobs and enhancing the sustainable utilization of bio-resources. A primary driver of bioeconomy strategy, therefore, is the need to respond to the growing population's food and economic requirements. While today research and literature related to bioeconomy are limited, this book presents a unique collection of perspectives on the complex dimensions of the bioeconomy debate. Drawing on the experiences from Europe, Asia and Africa, it presents an international overview. The chapters address a wide range of issues, including coastal-land interactions, ecosystem services, food production, rural development, agriculture, forest management and bioenergy. As a whole, the volume outlines what role bioeconomy can play in contributing to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) without compromising on the ecological sustainability and equitable distribution of benefits. The book concludes by providing recommendations for developing bioeconomy in respective sectors (agriculture, forestry, fisheries, renewable energy) and directions for planning future bioeconomy programmes and strategies. The Bioeconomy Approach will be of great interest to students and scholars of ecological economics, development economics and environmental economics, as well as policy-makers and practitioners involved in sustainable development.

The handbook provides an understanding of consolidated processing and biorefinery systems for the production of bio-based chemicals and value-added bioproducts from renewable sources. The chapters look at a variety of bioenergy technological advances and improvements in the energy and materials sectors that aim to lower our dependence of fossil fuels and consequently reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. The volume looks at a selection of processes for the production of energy and biomaterials, including the Fischer-Tropsch process, gasification, pyrolysis, combustion, fermentation from renewable sources (such as, plants, animals and their byproducts), and others. Applications that are explored include transportation fuels, biodiesel production, wastewater treatment, edible packaging, bioplastics, physical rehabilitation, tissue engineering, biomedical applications, thermal insulation, industrial value compounds, and more. All of the topics covered in this publication address consolidated processes that play a pivotal role in the production of bioenergy and biomaterials because these processes require fewer unitary operations needed in the process, leading to a more direct method of production. This type of production system contributes to decreasing negative effects on the environment, lowering costs, saving energy and time, and improving profitability and efficiency. This volume will be valuable for the industrial sector, for researchers and scientists, as well as for faculty and advanced students.

We have surpassed the omics era and are truly in the Age of Molecular Therapeutics. The fast-paced development of SARS-CoV-2 vaccines, such as the mRNA vaccines encoding the viral spike protein, demonstrated the need for and capability of molecular therapy and nanotechnology-based solutions for drug delivery. In record speed, the SARS-CoV-2 viral RNA genome was sequenced and shared with the scientific community, allowing the rapid design of molecular therapeutics. The mRNA vaccines exploit the host cell endoplasmic reticulum to produce viral spike proteins for antigen presentation and recognition by the innate and adaptive immune system. Lipid nanoparticles enable the delivery of the fragile, degradation-sensitive nucleic acid payloads. Molecular-based therapeutics and nanotechnology solutions continue to drive the scientific and medical response to the COVID-19 pandemic as new mRNA, DNA, and protein-based vaccines are developed and approved and the emergency use approved vaccines are rapidly manufactured and distributed throughout the globe. The need for molecular therapies and drug delivery solutions is clear, and as these therapies progress and become more specialized there will be important advancements in organelle targeting. For example, using organelle targeting to direct lipid nanoparticles with mRNA payloads to the endoplasmic reticulum would increase the efficacy of mRNA vaccines, reducing the required dose and therefore the biomanufacturing demand. Likewise, improving the delivery of DNA therapeutics to the nucleus would improve efficacy. Organelles and molecules have always been drug targets, but until recently we have not had the tools or capability to design and develop such highly specific therapeutics. Organelle targeting has far-reaching implications. For example, mitochondria are central to both energy production and intrinsic apoptosis. Effectively targeting and manipulating mitochondria has therapeutic applications for diseases such as myopathies, cancer, neurodegeneration, progerias, diabetes, and the natural aging process. The SARS-CoV-2 vaccines that exploit the endoplasmic reticulum (for mRNA vaccines) and the nucleic translational process (DNA vaccines) attest to the need for organelle and molecular therapeutics. This book covers the status, demand, and future of organelle- and molecularly targeted therapeutics that are critical to the advancement of modern medicine. Organelle and molecular targeting is the drug design and drug delivery approach of today and the future; understanding this approach is essential for students, scientists, and clinicians contributing to modern medicine.

Introduces an approach to ethical decision making based on treating data as clients Compares the ethics of three professions; engineering, medicine and bioengineering Provides five moral theories to choose from for evaluating ethical decisions, and includes a procedure for applying them to moral analysis, and application of the procedure to example cases. Explains the process of developing a medical product under FDA regulation Explores the role of lawyers in product development, including intellectual property protection Examines a range of ethical cases, from the historical Tuskegee autonomy case to the modern CRISPR-Cas9 patent case.

Explores planning for biogas plants as a pre-requisite to develop a functional plant balancing energy production and consumption Gives out detailed provision of the types of substances that are and can be used for biogas production covering animal wastes, municipal and industrial wastes Provides knowledge for aspiring biogas producers as well as decision makers, specifically in the context of Nigeria Covers use of digestrate for anaerobic digestion as a waste treatment method and on the input (feedstock) to the biogas plant Compares carbon dioxide emissions from biogas plants with fossil fuel plants

This comprehensive edited book on microbial prospective discusses the innovative approaches and investigation strategies, as well as provides a broad spectrum of the cutting-edge research on the processing, properties and technological developments of microbial products and their applications. Microbes finds very important applications in our lives including industries and food processing. They are widely used in the fermentation of beverages, processing of dairy products, production of pharmaceuticals, chemicals, enzymes, proteins and biomaterials; conversion of biomass into fuel, fuel cell technology, health and environmental sectors. Some of these products are produced commercially, while others are potentially valuable in biotechnology. Microorganisms are considered invaluable in research as model organisms. This is a useful compilation for students and researchers in microbiology, biotechnology and chemical industries.

Physical oncology has the potential to revolutionize cancer research and treatment. The fundamental rationale behind this approach is that physical processes, such as transport mechanisms for drug molecules within tissue and forces exchanged by cancer cells with tissue, may play an equally important role as biological processes in influencing progression and treatment outcome. This book introduces the emerging field of physical oncology to a general audience, with a focus on recent breakthroughs that help in the design and discovery of more effective cancer treatments. It describes how novel mathematical models of physical transport processes incorporate patient tissue and imaging data routinely produced in the clinic to predict the efficacy of many cancer treatment approaches, including chemotherapy and radiation therapy. By helping to identify which therapies would be most beneficial for an individual patient, and quantifying their effects prior to actual implementation in the clinic, physical oncology allows doctors to design treatment regimens customized to each patient's clinical needs, significantly altering the current clinical approach to cancer treatment and improving the outcomes for patients.

Stresses the Potential Applications of Biosurfactants in Various Industries Environmental concerns and a demand for sustainable chemical production have become important issues in recent years. As a result, microbial biosurfactant-producing systems are gaining momentum as potential replacements for chemical surfactants. Biosurfactants: Production and Utilization-Processes, Technologies, and Economics explores the production, utilization, and industrial/economic use of biosurfactants in modern biotechnology. This book represents comprehensive material developed by contemporary experts in the field. Focusing on research and developments within the last 20 years, it highlights relevant changes in the industry. It provides a detailed account of the current applications of biosurfactants, considers the potential for further environmental, biological, and industrial applications, and concentrates on surfactants and organisms with possibilities for future use. Emphasizes Process Scale-Up and Commercialization Factoring in the industrial application of biosurfactant production based on renewable resources, the book determines how biosurfactants can enhance or replace the properties of chemically synthesized surface-active agents. It discusses moving beyond the laboratory scale of research and development and on to the industrial scale of commercial interest. The book consists of 17 chapters and features expert authors discussing topics that include: Understanding the regulatory processes controlling the production of biosurfactants Strategies for feasible commercial biosurfactant production Examples of cost analysis based on published information The viability of industrial applications in food, cosmetics, and pharmaceuticals Patents for future trends Biosurfactants: Production and Utilization-Processes, Technologies, and Economics contains special sections devoted to the overview and evaluation of specific patents relating to biosurfactants, and methods for production of biosurfactants on a laboratory and industrial/commercial scale. It also presents novel and proven applications for biosurfactants from a number of biotechnology laboratories and research facilities around the world. In addition, it introduces the reader to a variety of real-world industry techniques readily applicable for practical use.

Since synthetic plastics derived from fossil resources are mostly non-biodegradable, many academic and industrial researchers have shifted their attention toward bio-based materials, which are more eco-friendly. Bio-Based Composites for High-Performance Materials: From Strategy to Industrial Application provides an overview of the state-of-art in bio-based composites. The book integrates knowledge from various disciplines including plant science, materials science, polymer chemistry, chemical engineering, and nanotechnology. It discusses the raw materials used in bio-based composites, basic design principles, properties, applications, and life cycle assessments. The book also presents a strategic and policy-oriented view of these composites and considers the costs of retrofitting existing chemical production plants for bio-based composite manufacture. It is a definitive resource on bio-composites for academics, regulatory agencies, research and development communities, and industries worldwide.

The over-riding premise for biotechnology in this book is bringing novel products to market to substantially advance patient care and disease mitigation. Biotechnology, over its relatively brief existence of 40 years, has experienced a mercurial growth. The vast educational need for biotechnology information in this rapidly burgeoning field is a basic rationale here. However a more prominent underpinning is that, bringing biotech products to market for patient care involves success in the following four areas of engagement simultaneously - scientific advances for healthcare technologies, novel and varied products for untreated diseases, regulatory authorities, and biotech companies. Features Comprehensive coverage of biotechnology science topics used in development and manufacturing Addresses all the scientific technologies within biotechnology responsible for products on the market and the pipeline Presents business issues such as marketing and sales of the products, as well as companies engaged, and how biotech business has evolved

Provides information about the different surfactants. Describes constraints in production and novel production strategies. Includes application oriented aspects of biosurfactants in various fields such as agriculture, Environmental, Pharmaceutical, and Food industry. Authored by experts in the field of biosurfactants.

Biofilms and Implantable Medical Devices: Infection and Control explores the increasing use of permanent and semi-permanent implants and indwelling medical devices. As an understanding of the growth and impact of biofilm formation on these medical devices and biomaterials is vital for protecting the health of the human host, this book provides readers with a comprehensive treatise on biofilms and their relationship with medical devices, also reporting on infections and associated strategies for prevention.

This is the first book which deals with cyanobacterial nitrogen metabolism exclusively. It combines both environmental and biotechnological aspects. The chapters are contributed by leading researchers of the subject area.

This book advances the use of biodiesel-more environmentally friendly than traditional fossil fuels-by showing how it can be synthesized at a lower cost, with greater efficiency and as a more pure and stable product. It presents methods based on fluorescence spectroscopy, which are less time-consuming than the traditional Rancimat analysis for monitoring stability, and are therefore less prone to allowing oxidative decay in the biofuel. Biodiesel exploits a variety of raw materials, from freshly harvested cottonseed to recycled cooking oil. These are cheap to produce and generate fuel lower in polluting sulphur and aromatic compounds than its petroleum-based equivalent. Beginning by addressing different protocols for synthesis based on fatty acids, methyl and ethyl esters, it then describes chemical analyses essential to establishing the purity of the biodiesel. It highlights in detail the use of multifunctional and synthetic antioxidants, and investigates the impact of synthetic chalcones and their derivatives on the oxidative stability of biodiesel. The author goes on to explain how to ameliorate various influences - UV irradiation and metal contaminants for example - which increase the hazards of oxidation, such as degradation and instability. New pre-treatment procedures performed using ultrasonic energies, thermostatic bath and vortex stirring are not only more environmentally friendly, but cut down on the time-consuming process of determining metal content, and allow for the use of more environmentally friendly aqueous reagents. The book investigates and demonstrates these techniques on the basis of real-world results. Further, it suggests the practical uses of byproducts of biodiesel production, for example, using glycerol as a source of energy and high valuable chemicals. These useful techniques aid any researcher exploring the production process of biodiesel and its stabilization and characteristics.