Advances in Molecular Toxicology features the latest advances in the subspecialties of the broad area of molecular toxicology. This series details the study of the molecular basis of toxicology by which a vast array of agents encountered in the human environment, and produced by the human body, manifest themselves as toxins. The book is not strictly limited to documenting these examples, but also covers the complex web of chemical and biological events that give rise to toxin-induced symptoms and disease. The new technologies that are being harnessed to analyze and understand these events are also reviewed by leading experts in the field.
Oxidative stress is the result of an imbalance in pro-oxidant/antioxidant homeostasis that leads to the generation of toxic reactive oxygen species. Brain cells are continuously exposed to reactive oxygen species generated by oxidative metabolism, and in certain pathological conditions defense mechanisms against oxygen radicals may be weakened and/or overwhelmed. DNA is a potential target for oxidative damage, and genomic damage can contribute to neuropathogenesis. It is important therefore to identify tools for the quantitative analysis of DNA damage in models on neurological disorders. This book presents detailed information on various neurodegenerative disorders and their connection with oxidative stress. This information will provide clinicians with directions to treat these disorders with appropriate therapy and is also of vital importance for the drug industries for the design of new drugs for treatment of degenerative disorders.
Advances in Cancer Research is a biannual publication that includes timely reviews on the most cutting-edge issues in cancer research. Topics covered in Volume 67 include a developmental model of progenitor cell oncogenesis based on a description of transcriptional control; pathways of chromosome alteration in human epithelial cancers, using colorectal, breast, lung, and endometrial cancers as examples; the genetics of murine lung tumors; the molecular pathogenesis of AIDS-related lymphomas; HLA class I antigens in human tumors, focusing on abnormal MHC expression detected in human tumors and the biological role these alterations may have in tumor development; a summary of the information obtained by the molecular characterization of EBV diversity and discussion of its relevance for viral epidemiology, transmission, and pathogenesis. There are two reviews discussing angiogenesis: the first focuses on the role of scatter factor and the second, the VEGF-FH receptor system. The "Foundations in Cancer Research" article by Alfred G. Knudson is a personal account of his career studying mutation and cancer.