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Elsevier

Books in Agricultural and biological sciences

The Agricultural and Biological Sciences collection advances science-based knowledge for the improvement of animal and plant life and for secure food systems that produce nutritious, novel, sustainable foods with minimal environmental impact. Food Science titles include not only those products from agriculture but all other aspects from food production to nutrition, health and safety, chemistry to security, policy, law and regulation. Biological Sciences address animal behaviour and biodiversity, organismal and evolutionary biology, entomology, marine biology and aquaculture, plant science and forestry.

  • Theoretical Systems Ecology

    Advances and Case Studies
    • 1st Edition
    • Efraim Halfon
    • English
    Theoretical Systems Ecology: Advances and Case Studies aims to relate systems ecology theory to theoretical systems ecologists and other theoreticians in systems science. The main language of systems theory is mathematics. This book somewhat simplifies concepts, advances, and developments of the field to non-mathematicians who lack background in some aspects of systems ecology. It presents examples after every chapter that shows the application of theory to the development and analysis of models. This book generally focuses on three problems. The first problem is the selection of components found in the system model. The definition of the relationships and interactions between the system variables is another concern of this book. It also looks into the model analysis. These problems are thoroughly discussed in each section of the book. The theory of modeling, formalisms, classes, and properties of models are covered in the first two sections of this book. A whole section in this book is dedicated to Systems Identification and deals mostly with the problem of extracting information from data. Other sections cover model analysis with focus on trends in some aspects, such as stability and control theory.

  • Arctic and Tropical Arboviruses

    • 1st Edition
    • Edouard Kurstak
    • English
    Arctic and Tropical Arboviruses contains the proceedings of the Second International Symposium on Arctic Arboviruses held at Mont Gabriel, Canada on May 26-28, 1977. This book contains a total of 20 chapters; a few of these chapters describe the diseases with arbovirus as a possible etiological agent, such as in the case of nephropatia epidemica, rapid diagnostic techniques for the detection of arboviruses, and in vitro culture methods for arboviruses using arthropod cells. Several other chapters are devoted to the investigations on arboviruses in the northern regions and on their vectors, mosquitoes, and ticks, as well as to the detection in the north of arboviruses originally isolated inthe south. Such bipolar distribution of arboviruses could be the result of the transport of arbovirus-infected ticks by migratory birds. This volume will provide a useful tool for all concerned with viral diseases, including virologists, epidemiologists, and ecologists.

  • DNA Repair Mechanisms

    • 1st Edition
    • Philip Hanawalt
    • English
    DNA Repair Mechanisms is an account of the proceedings at a major international conference on DNA Repair Mechanisms held at Keystone, Colorado on February 1978. The conference discusses through plenary sessions the overall standpoint of DNA repair. The papers presented and other important documents, such as short summaries by the workshop session conveners, comprise this book. The compilation describes the opposing views, those that agree and dispute about certain topic areas. This book, divided into 15 parts, is arranged according to the proceedings in the conference. The plenary sessions are grouped with the related workshop and poster manuscripts. The first two parts generally tackle repair in terms of its identification and quantification, as well as the models, systems, and perspectives it utilizes. The following parts discuss the various types of repair including base excision, nucleotide excision repair in bacteria, excision repair in mammalian cells, inducible/error-pron... repair in prokaryotes, and strand break repair in mammalian cells among others. This reference material looks into the replicative bypass mechanisms in mammalian cells, viral probes, and hereditary repair defects. It explains repair deficiency and human disease, as well as mutagenesis and carcinogenesis. The last part of this book deals with the consequences and effects of DNA repair. This volume is a helpful source of reference for students, teachers, scientists, and researchers in the different fields of genetics, radiology, biochemistry, and environmental biology.

  • Inhibition and Destruction of the Microbial Cell

    • 1st Edition
    • W Hugo
    • English
    Inhibition and Destruction of the Microbial Cell focuses on the effects of various classes of toxic chemical agents on microbial cell. This book is organized into 14 chapters that cover the topics from two points of view: the agent and the target (the microbial cell). The introductory chapters are devoted to the inhibitory effects of elevating temperature and to the lethal effect of environmental thermal energy supply restriction on growing bacteria. A chapter focuses on the effect of various classes of antibacterial compounds, such as 4-amino-quinaldinium and 8-hydroxyquinoline derivatives, chlorhexidine, amidines, halogens, dyes, and nitrofurans. The subsequent chapters examine the effects of other chemical agents on microorganisms, including toxic gases, solutes, ions, and radiations. The book goes on examining the inhibition and destruction of specific microorganisms, such as Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Enterobacteriaceae, Mycobacteria, Cocci, bacterial spores, molds, yeasts, and viruses. The last chapter discusses the effect of the cultural prehistory of microorganisms upon their response to inhibition and destruction. This book is an invaluable resource for graduate research workers and scientists in pure and applied microbiology. This will also be a good reference for undergraduates reading specialized courses at honors level in microbiology or applied courses in food science and agriculture. Furthermore, it will be of interest to the medical profession, especially those involved in public health and pathology, as well as to scientists in the pharmaceutical industry.

  • A Computer-Mapped Flora

    A Study of The County of Warwickshire
    • 1st Edition
    • D.A. Cadbury
    • English
    A Computer-Mapped Flora presents the study of county flora using electronic data processing methods to sort and codify the information gathered. This book also uses computer techniques for the construction of distribution maps that report the presence or absence of a species in a certain area and their major habitats. The book is comprised of 15 chapters. The first chapter is subdivided into two parts that discuss the previous work and a review and revision of old methods used in the study. The following paragraphs focus on the physical aspect of the topic. This volume includes chapters on the physical background, geology and soils, and historical geography. Also included in the book is a chapter dedicated to the historical survey of Warwickshire bryophytes. The following section focuses on the study and research aspect. Topics included are the recording and processing of data and habitat studies. The topics discussed in the subsequent chapters focus on plants, specifically flowering and vascular plants and bryophytes. Distribution maps, graph-plotted maps, and vascular plant checklists are some of the topics discussed. The book aims to be of service to botanists and other biologists outside of the British setting. This reference material will be helpful to other disciplines as the methods documented herein can also be applied to other studies and research.

  • Concepts in Radiation Cell Biology

    • 1st Edition
    • Gary Whitson
    • English
    Concepts in Radiation Cell Biology summarizes current concepts related to the effects of radiation on cell biology, with emphasis on the underlying macromolecular basis for cellular changes in irradiated cells. It explores the effects of non-ionizing radiation, such as ultraviolet and visible light; the use of laser light in cellular studies; and the biological effects of ionizing radiation on cells. Results of ultraviolet studies implicating DNA as the main target macromolecule responsible for radiation injury, such as division delays, lethality, and delayed DNA replication, are presented. Divided into eight chapters, this volume begins with an overview of ultraviolet irradiation of DNA as well as the physical and biological properties of irradiated DNA. It then discusses methods used in the photoinactivation of viruses; the effects of ultraviolet radiation on bacteria; radiation-induced biochemical changes in protozoa; and techniques for the analysis of radiation-induced mitotic delay in synchronously dividing sea urchin eggs. The book also covers the effects of radiation on mammalian cells; the effects of ionizing radiation on higher plants; and the photodynamic effects of laser light on cells. This book is a valuable resource for cell biologists, as well as students and investigators who are seeking the necessary information for further experimentation in radiation cell biology.

  • Fixation for Electron Microscopy

    • 1st Edition
    • M.A. (Eric) Hayat
    • English
    Fixation for Electron Microscopy presents how to better understand the effects of fixatives on the molecular structure of the cell. This book attempts to consider each aspect of fixation, including chemical interactions between fixatives and individual cellular substances. The chemistry of fixative interactions that are discussed in the book is based primarily on the reactions of a fixative with isolated proteins, lipids, nucleic acids, and carbohydrates. The book shows that the correct interpretation of information retrieved from electron micrographs depends on the knowledge of the basic principles underlying the fixation procedure. Also, the book presents the fixation of both eukaryotic and prokaryotic specimens. The special fixation conditions for plant specimens are discussed in detail and have been allotted a whole chapter. Also emphasized in this book is the connection between morphology and biochemical aspects of preparatory treatments and the chemical basis of the formation of artifacts. This topic is useful in understanding the modifications of cell structures introduced during their processing. A guide for recognizing and minimizing major artifacts and fixation faults that are usually encountered is also presented in the book. This valuable resource will prove useful to both students and professionals in the field of biology and clinical medicine. Specimen preservation researchers can also benefit from this book.

  • General Biophysics

    • 1st Edition
    • M Volkenstein
    • English
    General Biophysics, Volume I deals with the theoretical physics underlying biological phenomena and presents some pertinent experimental results. It explores the molecular foundations of biophysics, the thermodynamics of nonequilibrium systems and membrane transport, nerve impulses, and mechanochemical processes. Comprised of five chapters, this volume begins with an overview of molecular biophysics and the concept of molecular recognition, followed by a discussion of the interaction between antibodies and antigens, the primary processes that determine odor reception, and the importance of intercellular interactions in the existence and development of multicellular organisms. The next chapters explain how protein biosynthesis is regulated by molecules and how proteins are biosynthesized in eukaryotic cells, along with the application of thermodynamics to the analysis of biophysical problems and the coupling of chemical reactions near equilibrium. The reader is also introduced to the stability conditions of a steady state, the concept of entropy for an open system, the thermodynamics of the sodium pump, ionic equilibrium between sodium and potassium solutions separated by an active membrane, the conformational properties of membranes, and the general phenomenological theory of facilitated transport and the role of the carriers. The book concludes with a chapter on biological mechanochemical processes and their thermodynamics. This book is a valuable resource for physicists and biophysicists, graduate and postgraduate students having the necessary knowledge of physics, and anyone acquainted with proteins and nucleic acids.

  • Dairy Cattle Feeding and Nutrition

    • 1st Edition
    • W. J. Miller
    • English
    Dairy Cattle Feeding and Nutrition was designed to provide information needed by those interested in the feeding and nutrition of dairy cattle. It contains basic information for students in courses on feeds and feeding, dairy cattle production, and animal nutrition.

  • Cytogenetics, Host–Parasite Interactions, and Physiology

    • 1st Edition
    • B Zuckerman
    • English
    Plant Parasitic Nematodes, Volume II: Cytogenetics, Host-Parasite Interactions, and Physiology is a masterful reference work in nematology that includes information in ultrastructure, enzymology, and chemistry of body composition; culturing; virus transmission; biological races; and nature of plant resistance. This volume provides information about plant parasitic nematode genetics and cytology. It first explains the history and the advances in nematology, and then discusses the more specific topics about the biological processes involving nematodes. The discussions on host-parasite interactions, biochemistry, and physiology follow these topics. This book also presents useful information regarding free-living and animal parasitic nematodes. This treatise is written to provide an up-to-date reference source for students, lecturers, and research professionals in plant parasitology, specifically nematology, and related fields.

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