Gregory Bock R.

The past decade has seen mounting global concern regarding viral outbreaks such as SARS, avian influenza and West Nile virus. In 2004 and 2005, reports of bird-to-human, and possible human-to-human, transmissions of the H5N1 influenza viruses raised fears that these viruses could cause a pandemic on the scale of the Spanish flu pandemic of 1918. Previous to this, a novel coronavirus had been identified as the aetiological agent of the severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS), a new respiratory...

A timely volume dealing with the evolutionary and structural links between the clotting and fibrinolytic proteins and plasminogen-related growth factors. The role of individual domains for enzymatic proteins and plasminogen-related growth factors is also comprehensively examined.

This book investigates new agricultural systems such as organic and green manuring, as well as integrated pest management practices, and looks at how they can improve farm productivity against the enhancements for the environment. Much of the information presented focuses on microinvestigation of the soil, and on the effects of soil variability within fields on yields and nutrient flows.

A comprehensive review of recent work on chromatin and non-histone proteins, this book arises from the interactions of a multidisciplinary group of scientists involved in the study of acetylation. This area of research opens up new and exciting possibilities for drug design, and so the final chapters in the book examine some of the potential applications in the treatment of various diseases.

Sensory Guidance of Movement Chairman: Mitchell Glickstein, 1998 In the past few years there has been an increasing recognition of the multiplicity of sensory and motor areas of the cerebral cortex. However, still relatively little is known about the way in which sensory areas are functionally linked to motor areas. On the basis of current anatomical evidence, there are three major pathways involved in this linking. One of these routes is by way of cortico-cortical links, beginning in the...

This book features contributions from experts in cell biology, genetics, neurobiology, immunology and structural biology. The unifying element is that they all study processes of cell shape change and motility. Several key questions in this field of research are discussed: What are the organising principles behind cell shape change? Are there ‘master switches’ present in every cell type? How are extracellular signals interpreted by the cell in order to activate intracellular mechanisms? What is...

Understanding stem cells at the molecular level is essential to understanding their behaviour in a physiological context. This volume in our acclaimed Novartis Foundation series features animated discussion from the world’s experts in this topic on the important ethical issues that are raised by research on stem cells. They review the various regulatory regimes, which apply in different countries – a key factor in determining where future stem cell research is carried out. Potential clinical...

A comprehensive volume examining the fundamental questions raised by reductionists' theory about levels of explanation necessary to understand biological systems. The book evaluates the enormously powerful techniques of molecular biology, and analyzes precisely how molecular information has improved our understanding of fundamental biological processes.

The field of lymphokine research has grown in parallel to the exciting developments around the two sets of cells which defend the body. While lymphokines are the «property» of immunologists, the molecular regulators of hemopoiesis (CSFs) belong to the hematologists. This book offers the rare opportunity to examine these separate fields of expertise together.

Amyloid fibrils are associated with a range of pathological disorders including Alzheimer's Disease, Down's syndrome, diabetes, cardiomyopathies, and transmissible spongiform encephalopathies. This volume is a comprehensive account of recent developments in the understanding of the process of amyloid fibrils. Contains up-to-date data on all of the clinical problems which, despite their pathological significance, are still largely unsolved.

Much recent research in evolutionary developmental biology has focused on the origin of new body plans. However, most evolutionary change at the population and species level consists of tinkering: small-scale alterations in developmental pathways within a single body plan. Such microevolutionary events have been well studied on a population genetic level and from the perspective of adaptive phenotypic evolution, but their developmental mechanisms remain poorly studied. This book explores both...

Tissue engineering takes advantages of the combined use of cultured living cells and three-dimensional scaffolds to reconstruct adult tissues that are absent or malfunctioning. This book brings together scientists and clinicians working on a variety of approaches for regenerating of damaged or lost cartilage and bone to assess the progress of this dynamic field. In its early days, tissue engineering was driven by material scientists who designed novel bio-resorbable scaffolds on which to seed...

Cigarette smoking is estimated to lead to 4.9 million premature deaths per year worldwide. This is predicted to rise to 10 million by 2020. In western countries it kills half of all smokers who fail to stop. The prevailing model for tobacco addiction is that nicotine from cigarettes rewards smoking and punishes abstinence, tapping into a motivational system of operant conditioning that requires no conscious awareness. However, there are also accounts which involve cognitive biases and the effect...