2008 NOMINEE The Council on Botanical and Horticultural Libraries Annual Award for a Significant Work in Botanical or Horticultural Literature From medicinal, industrial, and culinary uses to cutting-edge laboratory techniques in modern research and plant conservation strategies, Natural Products from Plants, Second Edition reveals a vastly expanded understanding of the natural products that plants produce. In a single volume, this bookoffers a thorough inventory of the various types of plant-derived compounds. It covers their chemical composition, structure, and properties alongside the most effective ways to identify, extract, analyze, and characterize new plant-derived compounds. The authors examine new information on the chemical mechanisms plants use to deter predators and pathogens, attract symbiotic organisms, and defend themselves against environmental stress-insights which are key for adapting such mechanisms to human health. Along with updated and revised information from the highly acclaimed first edition, the second edition presents seven new chapters and features more than 50% new material relating to plant constituents, natural product biochemistry, and molecular biology. The book incorporates in-depth treatment of natural product biosynthesis with new collection and extraction protocols, advanced separation and analytical techniques, up-to-date bioassays, as well as modern molecular biology and plant biotechnology for the production of natural products. Unique in its breadth and coverage, Natural Products from Plants, Second Edition belongs on the shelf of interested researchers, policymakers, and consumers- particularly those involved in disease prevention, treatment, and pharmaceutical applications-who need a complete guide to the properties, uses, and study of plant natural products.

Several milestones in biology have been achieved since the first publication of the Handbook of Molecular and Cellular Methods in Biology and Medicine. This is true particularly with respect to genome-level sequencing of higher eukaryotes, the invention of DNA microarray technology, advances in bioinformatics, and the development of RNAi technology. Now in its third edition, this volume provides researchers with an updated tool kit that incorporates conventional as well as modern approaches to tackle biological and medicinal research in the post-genomics era. Significantly revised to address these recent changes, the editors have evaluated, revised, and sometimes replaced protocols with more efficient, more reliable, or simpler ones. The book has also been reorganized with section headings focusing on different biological levels connected to one another, taking into account the central dogma of biology (DNA RNA protein metabolites). The book first explores traditional approaches and then moves to the modern "omics" approaches, including genomics, proteomics, and metabolomics. It also discusses the manipulation of biological systems (including RNAi) and macromolecular analyses, focusing on the use of microscopy. In each chapter, various notes and cautionary considerations are presented for potentially hazardous reagents. Filled with diagrams, tables, and figures to clarify methods, most chapters also contain Troubleshooting Guides indicating problems, possible causes, and solutions that may be incurred in carrying out the procedures. Researchers and scientists who master the techniques in this book are putting themselves at the cutting edge of biological and medicinal research.

Plant biotechnology applies to three major areas of plants and their uses: (1) control of plant growth and development; (2) protection of plants against biotic and abiotic stresses; and (3) expansion of ways by which specialty foods, biochemicals, and pharmaceuticals are produced. The topic of recent advances in plant biotechnology is ripe for consideration because of the rapid developments in this ?eld that have revolutionized our concepts of sustainable food production, cost-effective alt- native energy strategies, environmental bioremediation, and production of pla- derived medicines through plant cell biotechnology. Many of the more traditional approaches to plant biotechnology are woefully out of date and even obsolete. Fresh approaches are therefore required. To this end, we have brought together a group of contributors who address the most recent advances in plant biotechnology and what they mean for human progress, and hopefully, a more sustainable future. Achievements today in plant biotechnology have already surpassed all previous expectations. These are based on promising accomplishments in the last several decades and the fact that plant biotechnology has emerged as an exciting area of research by creating unprecedented opportunities for the manipulation of biological systems. In connection with its recent advances, plant biotechnology now allows for the transfer of a greater variety of genetic information in a more precise, controlled manner. The potential for improving plant productivity and its proper use in agric- ture relies largely on newly developed DNA biotechnology and molecular markers.

Plant biotechnology applies to three major areas of plants and their uses: (1) control of plant growth and development; (2) protection of plants against biotic and abiotic stresses; and (3) expansion of ways by which specialty foods, biochemicals, and pharmaceuticals are produced. The topic of recent advances in plant biotechnology is ripe for consideration because of the rapid developments in this ?eld that have revolutionized our concepts of sustainable food production, cost-effective alt- native energy strategies, environmental bioremediation, and production of pla- derived medicines through plant cell biotechnology. Many of the more traditional approaches to plant biotechnology are woefully out of date and even obsolete. Fresh approaches are therefore required. To this end, we have brought together a group of contributors who address the most recent advances in plant biotechnology and what they mean for human progress, and hopefully, a more sustainable future. Achievements today in plant biotechnology have already surpassed all previous expectations. These are based on promising accomplishments in the last several decades and the fact that plant biotechnology has emerged as an exciting area of research by creating unprecedented opportunities for the manipulation of biological systems. In connection with its recent advances, plant biotechnology now allows for the transfer of a greater variety of genetic information in a more precise, controlled manner. The potential for improving plant productivity and its proper use in agric- ture relies largely on newly developed DNA biotechnology and molecular markers.