The marine environment has been, and continues to be, a fruitful source of novel chemical compounds that are not found in terrestrial and freshwater organisms. Many of these substances show potential biomedical applications, which could lead to development of new pharmaceutical products. Research on the utilization of natural products from marine organisms is growing by leaps and bounds; one important reason why being that, investigators, through new diving technologies, are becoming able to explore at greater depths. Studies of these marine natural products include investigations of neuronal membrane-active toxins, ion channel blockers, antitumor and antiviral agents, and anti-inflammatory molecules. This volume is the sixth in the ongoing series.

Bioremediation, the use of microorganisms to degrade, sequester, or remove environmental contaminants, is an urgent need of our planet for protection and restoration from toxic contaminants. This book not only provides cutting edge information about bioremediation of aquatic and terrestrial habitats, but also highlights the gaps in our knowledge of the subject. Among the topics covered in this volume are those that deal with petroleum spill bioremediation, bioremediation of heavy metals, and the use of genetically engineered microorganisms in bioremediation.

The use of marine organisms to degrade a variety of natural and synthetic substances in the marine environment, thereby reducing the levels of hazardous compounds, is increasingly drawing attention because of the potential such bioremediation has for environmental restoration. Among the current research efforts in bioremediation are some directed towards identifying organisms that possess the ability to degrade specific pollutants. With such organisms, which have already been identified, biochemical studies are going on with the aim of elucidating the pathways of these degradative processes and the enzymes involved. The volume includes chapters that are devoted to petroleum spill bioremediation, use of spectroscopy to identify microbial metabolic pathways, detoxification of mercury by using recombinant mercury-resistant bacteria, and the use of manganese-oxidizing bacteria for bioremediation. A broad-based approach to bioremediation of marine habitats is required because of the wide variety of contaminants in our oceans.

Presents information that can be useful to facilitate the aquaculture of a wide variety of food species. Operation of an economically successful aquaculture venture depends upon the complete life cycle of a species occurring in captivity. Possible solutions to how such complete control of life cycles of important food organisms might be accomplished are presented in each chapter. Whereas this volume (Part A) deals with Seaweeds and Invertebrates, a compendium volume (Part B) deals with Fishes.

While advances in marine biotechnology will certainly enhance our capabilities in the marine realm, what we learn there will doubtless provide new insight into the biology of freshwater and terrestrial organisms. This volume is a compilation of information that covers a wide range of animal groups. This book will be of interest not only to biotechnologists but also to aquaculturists, comparative animal physiologists, comparative endocrinologists, and developmental biologists.

This volume illustrates the broad array of approaches being tested for using molecular genetics for biotechnology purposes. Chapters examine the use of mirocsatellite probes for DNA fingerprinting of cultured red algae, gene transfer technology for salmon, and more.

Organisms, both aquatic and terrestrial, are sources of a wide variety of substances, many of which have already been shown to be bioactive. They play a wide variety of physiological and environmental roles. These chemicals include a broad array of proteins, lipids, and polysaccharides. Many of these natural products find applications in industry, agriculture, and medicine. The emphasis of study now is on testing and the development of new applications to solve medical and environmental problems, among others. This volume explores ongoing efforts to develop these natural products into commercially viable materials that will contribute to solving, especially, health and environmental problems worldwide. Among the chapters in this volume are ones that deal with the use of compounds from plants to treat Alzheimer?s disease, the antimicrobial activity of terpenes from African plants, antioxidant compounds from plants, antiangiogenic compounds from marine invertebrates, bioactive natural products from marine fungi