Cell-cell adhesion is fundamental for the development and homeostasis of animal tissues and organs. Adherens junctions (AJs) are the best understood cell-cell adhesion complexes. In this volume, a group of internationally recognized experts reviews AJ biology over a wide range of organization; from atoms to molecules, to protein complexes, molecular networks, cells, tissues, and overall animal development. AJs have also been an integral part of animal evolution, and play central roles in cancer development, pathogen infection and other diseases. This book addresses major questions encompassing AJ biology. * How did AJs evolve? * How do cadherins and catenins interact to assemble AJs and mediate adhesion? * How do AJs interface with other cellular machinery to couple adhesion with the whole cell? * How do AJs affect cell behaviour and multicellular development? * How can abnormal AJ activity lead to disease?

In this fast moving field the main goal of this volume is to provide up-to-date information on the molecular and functional properties and pharmacology of mammalian TRP channels. Leading experts in the field describe properties of a single TRP protein/channel or portray more general principles of TRP function and important pathological situations linked to mutations of TRP genes or their altered expression. Thereby this volume on Transient Receptor Potential (TRP) Channels provides valuable information for readers with different expectations and backgrounds, for those who are approaching this field of research as well as for those wanting to make a trip to TRPs."

Expert authors provide critical, in-depth reviews of available methods for retrieving selective information out of complex biological systems. Sensors, probes and devices are present and future tools of medicinal diagnostics, environmental monitoring, food analysis and molecular biology. These are based on fluorescence, electrochemistry and mass spectrometry. Coverage of this volume includes sensor development for the detection of small analytes, monitoring of biomolecular interactions, analysis of cellular function, development of diagnostic tools.

In her thesis, Sara Bobone outlines spectroscopic studies of antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) which are promising lead compounds for drugs used to fight multidrug resistant bacteria. Bobone shows that AMPs interact with liposomes and she clarifies the structure of pores formed by one of these molecules. These results help us to understand how AMPs are selective for bacterial membranes and how their activity can be finely tuned by modifying their sequence. Findings which solve several conundrums debated in the literature for years. In addition, Bobone uses liposomes as nanotemplates for the photopolymerization of hydrogels - exploiting the self- assembly properties of phospholipids. Bobone was able to trap an enzyme using nanometeric particles, while still allowing its activity by the diffusion of substrates and products through the network of the polymer. The innovative nano devices described in this thesis could solve many of the hurdles still hampering the therapeutic application of protein-based drugs.

Recent developments in computer science enable algorithms previously perceived as too time-consuming to now be efficiently used for applications in bioinformatics and life sciences. This work focuses on proteins and their structures, protein structure similarity searching at main representation levels and various techniques that can be used to accelerate similarity searches. Divided into four parts, the first part provides a formal model of 3D protein structures for functional genomics, comparative bioinformatics and molecular modeling. The second part focuses on the use of multithreading for efficient approximate searching on protein secondary structures. The third and fourth parts concentrate on finding 3D protein structure similarities with the support of GPUs and cloud computing. Parts three and four both describe the acceleration of different methods. The text will be of interest to researchers and software developers working in the field of structural bioinformatics and biomedical databases.

"Protein Affinity Tags: Methods and Protocols" provides researchers with the necessary information, tools, and strategy required for proper inquiry into a given protein s function and structure. Today s researchers can easily alter the amino acid sequence of any given protein, a powerful technology allowing for the precise engineering of specific proteins. Protein affinity tagging employs the use of known protein binding interactions in order to fish out a protein-of-interest or, with more advanced tags, a protein complex. This technology paired with recent advancements in DNA sequencing technology promises a future that is awash with novel genomic information information that will not only expand our knowledge of the processes that govern life, but also fuel innovation that will undoubtedly conquer many of today s most salient health and environmental challenges. Written in the 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 protocols, and notes on troubleshooting and avoiding known pitfalls.

Authoritative and easily accessible, "Protein Affinity Tags: Methods and Protocols" will be an invaluable resource to those seeking to employ protein affinity tags to study their biological system of interest."

This book updates the latest development in production, stabilization and structural analysis techniques of membrane proteins. This field has made significant advances since the elucidation of the first 3-D structure of a recombinant G Protein Coupled Receptor (GPCR), rhodopsin, with the structure of several more GPCRs having been solved in the past five years. In fact, the 2012 Nobel Prize in Chemistry was awarded for groundbreaking discoveries on the inner workings of GPCRs. This book is essential reading for all researchers, biochemists and crystallographers working with membrane proteins, who are interested by the structural characterization of their favorite protein and who wish to follow the expression, migration, modifications and recycling of a membrane protein.

Cell surface molecules are critically important in regulating cell structure and function. Recent advances on the functional role of cell surface molecules, particularly glycoconjugates are presented in this book. Comprising of 22 chapters from the 2011 International Symposium on Biochemical Roles of Eukaryotic Cell Surface Macromolecules, it covers topics on the analysis of glycome, biophysical approaches to study cell surface molecules, glycoconjugate metabolism and its dysregulation, and molecular mechanisms involved in cell-cell and cell-matrix interaction.

The book contains chapters written by leaders in the research on the structure and function of respiratory complex I. It will provide a concise and authoritative summary of the current knowledge on complex I of respiratory chains. This enzyme is central to energy metabolism and is implicated in many human neurodegenerative diseases, as well as in aging. Until recently it was poorly understood on a structural level, and this book will provide a timely reference resource. Such a book was not published previously. The last time a minireview series on complex I were published was in 2001, and since then complex I field changed quite dramatically.

Exploring these type II trans-membrane proteins, The TNF Superfamily: Methods and Protocols focuses on various techniques to investigate aspects of the TNF Superfamily members in health and disease. Opening with protocols to understand the signaling process of TNF family members, this detailed volume continues with technical examples of investigating the role of TNF family members in physiopathologies, protocols on modulation of TNF signaling by pathogens, experimental applications of TNF-reporter mice, as well as methodologies for various assays of TNF family members and the production of recombinant molecules. Written for the 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. Practical and ready to use, The TNF Superfamily: Methods and Protocols will aid researchers investigating this key family of proteins, involved in vital processes such as providing signals for activation, differentiation, survival and death of cells, modulation of immune response and inflammation, hematopoiesis and osteoclastogenesis.

A number of techniques to study ion channels have been developed since the electrical basis of excitability was first discovered. Ion channel biophysicists have at their disposal a rich and ever-growing array of instruments and reagents to explore the biophysical and structural basis of sodium channel behavior. Armed with these tools, researchers have made increasingly dramatic discoveries about sodium channels, culminating most recently in crystal structures of voltage-gated sodium channels from bacteria. These structures, along with those from other channels, give unprecedented insight into the structural basis of sodium channel function. This volume of the Handbook of Experimental Pharmacology will explore sodium channels from the perspectives of their biophysical behavior, their structure, the drugs and toxins with which they are known to interact, acquired and inherited diseases that affect sodium channels and the techniques with which their biophysical and structural properties are studied.

In Flavins and Flavoproteins: Methods and Protocols, expert researchers in the field detail many of the methods which are now commonly used to study flavins and flavoproteins. These include review style methods and protocols to exemplify the variety, the power and the success of modern techniques and methods in application to flavoproteins. Part I of this Volume covers general properties, syntheses and applications of free flavins as well as its analogs and flavoproteins. Part II covers characterizations of flavins and flavoproteins using modern experimental techniques as well as theoretical methods. Written in the highly successful Methods in Molecular Biology series format, the chapters include the kind of detailed description and implementation advice that is crucial for getting optimal results in the laboratory. Thorough and intuitive, Flavins and Flavoproteins: Methods and Protocols aids scientists in continuing to tackle the countless questions that need to be answered to more fully comprehend the vast diversity and specificity of flavin-governed biological processes.

In this fast moving field the main goal of this volume is to provide up-to-date information on the molecular and functional properties and pharmacology of mammalian TRP channels. Leading experts in the field will describe properties of a single TRP protein/channel or portray more general principles of TRP function and important pathological situations linked to mutations of TRP genes or their altered expression. Thereby this volume on Transient Receptor Potential (TRP) Channels provides valuable information for readers with different expectations and backgrounds, for those who are approaching this field of research as well as for those wanting to make a trip to TRPs.

Application of NMR and Molecular Docking in Structure-Based Drug Discovery, by Jaime L. Stark and Robert Powers NMR as a Unique Tool in Assessment and Complex Determination of Weak Protein-Protein Interactions, by Olga Vinogradova and Jun Qin The Use of Residual Dipolar Coupling in Studying Proteins by NMR, by Kang Chen und Nico Tjandra NMR Studies of Metalloproteins, by Hongyan Li and Hongzhe Sun Recent Developments in 15N NMR Relaxation Studies that Probe Protein Backbone Dynamics, by Rieko Ishima Contemporary Methods in Structure Determination of Membrane Proteins by Solution NMR, by Tabussom Qureshi and Natalie K. Goto Protein Structure Determination by Solid-State NMR, by Xin Zhao Dynamic Nuclear Polarization: New Methodology and Applications, by Kong Hung Sze, Qinglin Wu, Ho Sum Tse and Guang Zhu

Photoswitching Proteins: Methods and Protocols, focuses on proven applications of photoswitching proteins in cell and neurobiology. Optical approaches have been mostly embraced by the neurosciences to allow fast, high-resolution characterization and manipulation of single cells in complex neuronal tissue. These tools, including photoswitching of proteins, are now successfully used in almost all fields of biological research. 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 key tips on troubleshooting and avoiding known pitfalls.Comprehensive and practical, Photoswitching Proteins: Methods and Protocols highlights many of the possibilities for research based on light-inducible, high-resolution manipulation of biological systems.

ABPP Methodology: Introduction and Overview, by Matthew B. Nodwell und Stephan A. Sieber Activity-Based Protein Profiling for Natural Product Target Discovery, by Joanna Krysiak und Rolf Breinbauer Photoaffinity Labeling in Activity-Based Protein Profiling, by Paul P. Geurink, Laurette M. Prely, Gijs A. van der Marel, Rainer Bischoff und Herman S. Overkleeft Application of Activity-Based Protein Profiling to the Study of Microbial Pathogenesis, by William P. Heal und Edward W. Tate Functional Analysis of Protein Targets by Metabolomic Approaches, by Yun-Gon Kim und Alan Saghatelian

The phrase "Life, stress and death" connects three terms, but is there a biological basis for that? Are there molecules that are essential to/or mediate these phenomena? This contributory volume "Mortalin Biology: Life, Stress and Death" is a remarkable compilation of the research outcomes on the stress protein mortalin, a member of heat shock 70 family of proteins. The book is unique as it describes mortalin playing essential role in life, stress response and death either from cancer, when it becomes hyperactive or from neuro-degeneration, when it becomes hypoactive. The book provides up-to-date knowledge on mortalin with respect to its discovery, structure, evolutionary conservation, function and signal transduction in different organisms in a simple, but most comprehensive way, that besides offering an enjoyable and in-depth reading, prompts the reader to ask further questions to explore this protein with new ideas, approaches and experiments. Twenty-one chapters by the world leaders on the specific areas of mortalin research throw light on its multi-functionality, potentials for biotechnology, diagnostics and therapeutic values. Avenues of mortalin biology, yet unexplored, hold immense promises for future, and reading this volume provides an easy, enthusiastic and energetic head-on start.

This SpringerBrief explores the physiological roles of Skp1-Cullin1-F-box Complex (SCF) and Anaphase Promoting Complex (APC) in normal cells and in tumor formation. These two related, multi-subunit E3 ubiquitin ligase enzymes, APC and SCF are thought to be the major driving forces governing proper cell cycle progression. Defective cell cycle regulation leads to genomic instability and ultimately, cancer development. Selective degradation of key cell cycle regulators by the ubiquitin-proteasome system has been proven to be a major regulatory mechanism for ensuring ordered and coordinated cell cycle progression. The SCF and APC E3 ligases have been characterized to play pivotal roles in regulating the cell cycle progression by timely degrading various critical cell cycle regulators. This Brief reviews recent studies that have shown that deregulation of signaling pathways in which the two ubiquitin ligases are involved causes aberrant cell cycle regulation, in turn leading to tumorigenesis. The text also discusses how SCF and APC may present promising therapeutic targets to treat various cancers.

This book provides a molecular view of membrane transport by means of numerous biochemical and biophysical techniques. The rapidly growing numbers of atomic structures of transporters in different conformations and the constant progress in bioinformatics have recently added deeper insights.The unifying mechanism of energized solute transport across membranes is assumed to consist of the conformational cycling of a carrier protein to provide access to substrate binding sites from either side of a cellular membrane. Due to the central role of active membrane transport there is considerable interest in deciphering the principles of one of the most fundamental processes in nature: the alternating access mechanism.This book brings together particularly significant structure-function studies on a variety of carrier systems from different transporter families: Glutamate symporters, LeuT-like fold transporters, MFS transporters and SMR (RND) exporters, as well as ABC-type importers.The selected examples impressively demonstrate how the combination of functional analysis, crystallography, investigation of dynamics and computational studies has made it possible to create a conclusive picture or more precisely, a molecular movie . Although we are still far from a complete molecular description of the alternating access mechanism, remarkable progress has been made from static snapshots towards membrane transport dynamics."

Metalloproteins are involved in many key biological processes such as gas transport and metabolism, photosynthesis, cell respiration, the Krebs cycle and many other vital redox reactions. Metalloproteins: Methods and Protocols addresses multiple aspects of metalloenzyme research from the production and purification of metalloproteins using both standard recombinant techniques and a cell-free system, to the electrochemical analysis of metalloproteins, as well as IR techniques, Moessbauer spectroscopy and the theoretical interpretation of metalloenzyme catalytic and redox processes, to name a few topics. Written in the 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 protocols and notes on troubleshooting and avoiding known pitfalls. Authoritative and easily accessible, Metalloproteins: Methods and Protocols seeks to serve both professionals and novices interested in the metalloprotein field.

Proteins are the most diverse group of biologically important substances. With the recent technological advances in the genomics area and the efforts in proteomics research, the rate of discovery for new proteins with unknown structure and function has increased. These proteins generated from genomic approaches present enormous opportunities for research and industrial application. Protein Downstream Processing: Design, Development and Application of High and Low-Resolution Methods is a compilation of chapters within the exciting area of protein purification designed to give the laboratory worker the information needed to design and implement a successful purification strategy. It presents reliable and robust protocols in a concise form, emphasizing the critical aspects on practical problems and questions encountered at the lab bench. Written in the 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 protocols and notes on troubleshooting and avoiding known pitfalls. Authoritative and easily accessible, Protein Downstream Processing: Design, Development and Application of High and Low-Resolution Methods will be an ideal source of scientific information to advanced students, junior researchers, and scientists involved in health sciences, cellular and molecular biology, biochemistry, and biotechnology and other related areas in both academia and industry.

Phospholipases generate lipid signaling molecules through their hydrolytic action on phospholipids and are known to regulate function of a variety of cells under normal and diseased conditions. While several physiological, biochemical and molecular techniques have identified key players involved in different disease processes, phospholipases have also emerged as critical players in the pathogenesis of a number of different diseases including cancer and heart disease. In addition, phospholipases are also implicated in such conditions as brain disorder/injury, kidney and immune cell dysfunction. Phospholipases in Health and Disease is a compilation of review articles dedicated to the study of the field with respect to biochemical and molecular mechanisms of normal and abnormal cell function. The wide range of area covered here is of interest to basic research scientists, clinicians and graduate students, who are engaged in studying pathophysiological basis of a variety of diseases. Furthermore, this book highlights the potential of the different phospholipases as therapeutic targets as well as part of prevention strategies. Twenty three articles in this book are organized in four sections that are designed to emphasize the most characterized forms of the phospholipases in mammalian cells. The first section discusses general aspect of phospholipases. Section two covers the role and function of phospholipase A in different pathophysiological conditions. The third section is focussed on phospholipase C which is believed to play a central role in transmembrane signaling. The final section covers phospholipase D which is present in a variety of different cells. The book illustrates that the activation of phospholipases is of fundamental importance in signal transduction affecting cell function. Overall, this book discusses the diverse mechanisms of phospholipase mediated signal transduction in different pathophysiological conditions and raises the possibility of specific forms of phospholipases serving as novel targets for drug development.

This is a timely collection of important biomedical applications for a set of separation/characterization techniques that are rapidly gaining popularity due to their wide dynamic range, high resolution, and ability to function in most commonly used solvent systems. Importantly, the field-flow fractionation (FFF) technique has recently emerged as a prominent complement to size exclusion chromatography for protein pharmaceuticals. Fractionation with FFF is gentle and preserves protein structural integrity better than existing alternatives. In the present text, different chapters are written by experts in their respective field of application, who offer comparisons between the FFF techniques and other methods for characterizing their special focus material. Practical guide-lines for successful implementation, such as choice of operating conditions, are offered in conjunction with each application. In addition to new instrumentation and approaches that address important current topics, readers are provided with an overall sense of prior (but timeless) major developments that may be overlooked in literature searches.

Artificial riboswitches and other ligand-responsive gene regulators make it possible to switch protein synthesis ON or OFF with arbitrary ligand molecules. Artificial Riboswitches: Methods and Protocols focuses on the state-of-the-art methods developed in recent years for creating artificial riboswitches, therefore this volume could be regarded as a collection of recipes for the gene circuit elements in synthetic biology and metabolic engineering. Chapters cover topics such as screening or rational design methods for obtaining artificial riboswitches that function in either bacterial or eukaryotic translational systems, protocols for evaluating the activities of the resultant riboswitches, as well as protocols for construction of ligand-dependent, trans-acting gene regulators. Written in the 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 protocols, and notes on troubleshooting and avoiding known pitfalls. Authoritative and easily accessible, Artificial Riboswitches: Methods and Protocols seeks to serve not only bioengineers who aim to reprogram cell behaviors and molecular biologists who leverage these regulators for genetic studies, but to all researchers interested in this fascinating field.

Tea is an important non-alcoholic beverage plant of the world. Cultivation of tea is very important as it earns revenue for the tea growing nations especially the developing countries such as India. Although conventional breeding is well-established and has contributed significantly for varietal improvement of this plant and other Camellia species with ornamental value, yet applications of biotechnology are required to intervene some of the issues where conventional breeding is restricted particularly for woody plants such as tea. It is note-worthy to mention that some amounts of biotechnology works in several facets of tea and its wild species have also been done. In the present book, a state-of-the-art on various aspects of breeding and biotechnology has been complied in eight chapters. They are: i) Origin and descriptions of health benefits as well as morphological classification as first chapter, ii) Breeding and cytogenetics that comprise with various conventional approaches of varietal improvement of tea along with their genetic resources, iii) Micropropagation which deals with in-depth study of clonal propagation, iv) Somatic embryogenesis along with alternative techniques such as suspension culture, cry-preservation etc. v) Molecular breeding that deals with application of various DNA-based markers, linkage map etc., vi) Genetic transformation and associated factors, vii) Stress physiology complied with various works done in tea along with its wild relatives on abiotic as well as biotic stress, and viii) Functional genomics that describe the various works of molecular cloning and characterizations, differential gene expression, high-throughput sequencing, bioinformatics etc. Importantly, the author has made exclusive tables in most of the chapters that include the summary of the works in particular topic. In a nutshell, the book compiles the work already been done, identifies the problems, analyzes the gaps on breeding and biotechnological works of tea as well as its wild species and discusses the future scope as conclusion. Every effort has been made to include all the published works till June 2013. The book will be a useful resource for post-graduate, doctoral as well post-doctoral students working on tea as well as other woody plants. This will also be useful for the scientists working in the areas of life sciences, genomics, biotechnology and molecular biology.