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Books in Life sciences

Elsevier's Life Sciences collection helps researchers get comprehensive coverage and up-to-date information on the study of living organisms, their processes, and interrelationships, spanning disciplines like biology, genetics, and biochemistry, and addressing emerging trends such as genomics, biotechnology, and sustainability, essential for advancing knowledge and driving innovation in the field.

BooksJournals

    • Neural and Brain Modeling

      • 1st Edition
      • December 2, 2012
      • Ronald MacGregor
      • English
      • Paperback
        9 7 8 0 1 2 4 1 2 4 6 9 1
      • eBook
        9 7 8 0 3 2 3 1 4 3 8 4 4
      Neural and Brain Modeling reviews models used to study neural interactions. The book also discusses 54 computer programs that simulate the dynamics of neurons and neuronal networks to illustrate between unit and systemic levels of nervous system functions. The models of neural and brain operations are composed of three sections: models of generic mechanisms; models of specific neuronal systems; and models of generic operations, networks, and systems. The text discusses the computational problems related to galvanizing a neuronal population though an activity in the multifiber input system. The investigator can use a computer technique to simulate multiple interacting neuronal populations. For example, he can investigate the case of a single local region that contains two populations of neurons: namely, a parent population of excitatory cells, and a second set of inhibitory neurons. Computer simulation models predict the various dynamic activity occurring in the complicated structure and physiology of neuronal systems. Computer models can be used in "top-down" brain/mind research where the systemic, global, and emergent properties of nervous systems are generated. The book is recommended for behavioral scientists, psychiatrists, psychologists, computer programmers, students, and professors in human behavior.

    • Current Concepts in Cardiovascular Physiology

      • 1st Edition
      • December 2, 2012
      • Oscar Garfein
      • English
      • Paperback
        9 7 8 0 1 2 4 1 4 2 8 0 0
      • eBook
        9 7 8 0 3 2 3 1 4 5 9 6 1
      Current Concepts in Cardiovascular Physiology examines seven different areas related to the field of cardiac physiology. In addition to the biochemistry and receptor pharmacology of the heart, this book explores coronary physiology, cardiovascular function, and neural and reflex control of the circulation. The electrophysiology and biophysics of cardiac excitation are also considered, along with humoral control of the circulation. This monograph consists of seven chapters and opens with an overview of the biochemistry of the heart, with emphasis on cardiac energy metabolism and the ways in which metabolism and the biochemical pathways are controlled. The mechanisms whereby physiological events influence biochemical activities and vice versa are also discussed. The following chapters look at the chemistry and physiology of myocardial receptors; the complex interplay between the nervous and cardiovascular systems; and the chemical and hormonal factors that regulate, modify, and modulate the cardiovascular system. The influence of humoral, neural, intrinsic, vascular, and myocardial factors on coronary blood flow is also examined, along with muscle mechanics; the biochemical basis of contraction; cardiac function; and the factors determining the heart's electrophysiologic behavior. This text is directed primarily at clinical cardiologists, cardiovascular surgeons, and trainees in their disciplines, as well as internists, medical students, and house officers.

    • Sperm Competition and the Evolution of Animal Mating systems

      • 1st Edition
      • December 2, 2012
      • Robert L. Smith
      • English
      • Paperback
        9 7 8 0 1 2 4 1 2 3 9 8 4
      • eBook
        9 7 8 0 3 2 3 1 4 3 1 3 4
      Sperm Competition and the Evolution of Animal Mating Systems describes the role of sperm competition in selection on a range of attributes from gamete morphology to species mating systems. This book is organized into 19 chapters and begins with the conceptualization of sperm competition as a subset of sexual selection and its implications for the insects. The following chapter describes the relationship between multiple mating and female fitness, with an emphasis on determining the conditions under which selection on females is likely to counteract selection on males for avoiding sperm competition. Other chapters consider the female perspective on sperm competition; the evolutionary causation at the level of the individual male gamete; and the correlation of high paternal investment and sperm precedence in the insects. The remaining chapters are arranged phylogenetically and explore the sperm competition in diverse animal taxa, such as the Drosophila, Lepidoptera, spiders, amphibians, and reptiles. These chapters also cover the evolution of direct versus indirect sperm transfer among the arachnids or the problem for kinship theory presented by multiple mating and sperm competition in the Hymenoptera. This book further discusses the remarkable potential for sperm competition among certain temperate bat species whose females store sperm through winter hibernation and the mixed strategies and male-caused female genital trauma as possible sperm competition adaptations in poeciliid fishes. The concluding chapter examines the predictions concerning testes size and mating systems in the primates and the possible role of sperm competition in human selection. This book is of great value to reproductive biologists and researchers.

    • Alcohol and Opiates

      • 1st Edition
      • December 2, 2012
      • Kenneth Blum
      • English
      • Paperback
        9 7 8 0 1 2 4 3 1 2 8 0 7
      • Hardback
        9 7 8 0 1 2 1 0 8 4 5 0 9
      • eBook
        9 7 8 0 3 2 3 1 5 0 8 0 4
      Alcohol and Opiates: Neurochemical and Behavioral Mechanisms contains the proceedings of the 1976 conference, ""The Neurochemical and Behavioral Mechanisms of Alcohol and Opiate Dependence"", held in New York. The papers focus on the commonalities and distinctions of alcohol and opiates in terms of neurochemical and behavioral mechanisms. It also highlights key research findings on alcohol and drug dependence as well as advances in the understanding of opiate neurochemistry and the nature of alcoholism. Organized into two sections comprised of 22 chapters, this compilation begins with an overview of the various techniques used to produce and to measure alcohol dependence using animal models. It then discusses the neurochemical components of ethanol dependence, the pharmacogenetics of alcoholism, and the effects of alcohol on behavioral performance. The remaining chapters examine the pharmacology of isoquinoline alkaloids and ethanol interactions, the neurochemical aspects of opiate dependence, the pharmocological heterogeneity of narcotic receptors, and the pharmacology of endogenous opiate-like peptides. The book also introduces the reinforcement of behavior by morphine injections and the metabolic stereospecificity of opiate agonist and antagonist drugs. It concludes with an assessment of future research directions concerning opioid peptides (endorphins). This book is a valuable source of information for those seeking to build clinical programs designed to alleviate the sociological and medical ills associated with alcohol and opiate abuse and drug dependency.

    • Marine Pharmacognosy

      • 1st Edition
      • December 2, 2012
      • Dean Martin
      • English
      • Paperback
        9 7 8 0 1 2 4 3 3 2 5 3 9
      • eBook
        9 7 8 0 3 2 3 1 5 5 6 0 1
      Marine Pharmacognosy: Action of Marine Biotoxins at the Cellular Level focuses on the study and utilization of marine drugs. This book discusses the methods of isolation and characterization of bioactive agents, bioassays, microcalorimetry, voltage-clamp techniques, toxin-induced alterations, measurement of muscle contraction, and kinetics of toxin-induced hemolysis. Organized into nine chapters, this book starts with an overview of the use and usefulness of marine bioactive agents as research tools. This text then examines the pharmacological effects of maculotoxin, which are similar to those of tetrodoxin and saritoxin. Other chapters consider the role of choline in general cellular processes. This book discusses as well the rate of hemolysis as a function of prymnesin concentration. The final chapter deals with the features of the prymnesin–membrane interaction. This book is a valuable resource for pharmacologists, bacteriologists, zoologists, physiologists, botanists, and oceanographers. Scientists involved in biological oceanography and comparative physiology will also find this book useful.

    • Amphibian Cytogenetics and Evolution

      • 1st Edition
      • December 2, 2012
      • David M. Green + 1 more
      • English
      • Paperback
        9 7 8 0 1 2 4 1 2 0 7 6 1
      • eBook
        9 7 8 0 3 2 3 1 4 0 4 5 4
      This book appears at a time when molecular cytogenetics is positioned to make a significant impact upon evolutionary studies, enabling problems of chromosomal structure and change to be critically assessed. It is an up-to-date and comprehensive survey of the cytogenetics of a major class of animals, including all three amphibian orders, with chapters authored by international leaders in the field.Amphibian Cytogenetics and Evolution will be of interest to classical and molecular cytogeneticists, systematicists, evolutionary biologists, herpetologists, and anyone using amphibians in genetic research.

    • Ultrastructure of rust Fungi

      • 1st Edition
      • December 2, 2012
      • Michele Heath
      • English
      • Paperback
        9 7 8 0 1 2 4 3 3 4 2 3 6
      • eBook
        9 7 8 0 3 2 3 1 5 7 3 5 3
      Ultrastructure of Rust Fungi provides a comprehensive review of rust ultrastructure and host-parasite relations. This book also critically analyzes the studies that have been done in this field. Organized into seven chapters, this book begins with the morphology and ontogeny of sori and spores. It then explains the infections of the susceptible host and the vegetative growth of the fungi in it. It also describes the possibility of incompatibility in plant-rust associations, as well as the parasites of rust fungi. The dynamics of growth and differentiation are emphasized in this book rather than just the mature stage of the rusts. Moreover, this book identifies some topics in which ultrastructural research is particularly lacking and which provide fertile areas for future research. This book will be a valuable reference source for fungal morphologists, taxonomists, and plant pathologists. It will also be helpful to others interested in the anatomy and associated biology of the rusts.

    • Lysozyme

      • 1st Edition
      • December 2, 2012
      • Elliott Osserman
      • English
      • Paperback
        9 7 8 0 1 2 4 1 2 4 5 2 3
      • eBook
        9 7 8 0 3 2 3 1 4 3 6 7 7
      Lysozyme contains the proceedings of the Lysozyme Conference held in New York on October 29-31, 1972 on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the discovery of lysozyme by Sir Alexander Fleming. The papers explore the chemistry and structure of lysozymes, their interactions with substrates and inhibitors, and distribution in tissues. Changes associated with various disease states are also discussed, along with evidence indicating that lysozyme may significantly alter certain mammalian cell constituents. Comprised of 42 chapters, this book begins with an overview of the structure of various lysozymes, including avian and mammalian lysozymes. The use of X-ray crystallography for lysozyme analysis is also considered. Subsequent chapters focus on the structure of bacterial cell walls; affinity labeling of lysozyme; substrate requirements of glycosidases for lytic activity on bacterial walls; and the solution behavior of hen egg white and human lysozyme. The role of lysozyme in hematology and its relation to myeloperoxidase and lactoferrin are also examined, together with lysozyme measurements in acute leukemia; serum and urine lysozyme in sarcoidosis; lysozyme as a component of human cartilage; and agglutination of rat liver mitochondria by lysozyme. This monograph should be of interest to practitioners and researchers in the fields of biophysics, chemistry, microbiology, physiology, and clinical medicine.

    • Organization and Assembly of Plant and Animal Extracellular Matrix

      • 1st Edition
      • December 2, 2012
      • W. Steven Adair
      • English
      • Paperback
        9 7 8 0 1 2 4 3 1 5 2 0 4
      • eBook
        9 7 8 0 3 2 3 1 5 3 2 2 5
      Organization and Assembly of Plant and Animal Extracellular Matrix presents a state-of-the-art view of some of the experimental systems in plant and animal matrix biology. It discusses certain principles underlying establishment of complex three-dimensional architecture cross broad evolutionary boundaries. The opening chapter reviews studies on the cellular mechanisms responsible for storage, release, assembly, and function of extracellular matrices during early sea urchin development. The subsequent chapters describe the structure, assembly, disassembly, and molecular biology of the Chlamydomonas reinhardtii cell wall. The chapters also summarize the status of work on basement membrane assembly. Important insights into approaches to identify critical molecular domains and the complexity of relating defined molecular associations to establishment of matrix architecture are provided. A family of discovered cell wall genes that encode protein products containing up to 70% glycine is presented in Chapter 4. This is followed by a discussion on the role of alginate self-assembly in cell wall formation in Fucus. The book goes on to address the issue of protein-carbohydrate recognition with a detailed discussion of plant and animal lectins. Chapter 7 tackles a family of genes encoding higher plant hydroxyproline-rich glycoproteins (HRGPs) and the relationship between the HRGP genes cloned and their products. The final two chapters are devoted to one of the most important classes of protein modifying enzymes for extracellular matrix formation and function, the prolyl hydroxylases. This book will be of help to workers in plant and animal matrix in understanding information, approaches, and ideas that they may not normally encounter.

    • Methods for Studying Mononuclear Phagocytes

      • 1st Edition
      • December 2, 2012
      • Dolph Adams
      • English
      • eBook
        9 7 8 0 3 2 3 1 4 0 6 9 0
      Methods for Studying Mononuclear Phagocytes is a practical guide to the study of mononuclear phagocytes that brings together various well-established and useful methods for examining these cells. The technical protocols have been made detailed, specific, practical, and inclusive of the necessary mystique for immediate and direct application in the laboratory. The book is divided into 11 parts arranged according to the sequence of steps that would generally be followed to study a given population of mononuclear phagocytes: (I) methods for obtaining and culturing populations of human and animal mononuclear phagocytes; (II) methods for separating populations of leukocytes to enrich or deplete their content of mononuclear phagocytes; (II) criteria and techniques for identifying mononuclear phagocytes; (IV) methods for quantifying the number of mononuclear phagocytes; (V) techniques for studying the morphology of mononuclear phagocytes; (VI) methods for quantifying the biochemical constituents of mononuclear phagocytes; (VII) methods of quantifying phagocytosis, pinocytosis, and chemotaxis; (VIII) methods for quantifying the secretory products of mononuclear phagocytes; (IX) procedures for quantifying the destruction of tumor cells and of microorganisms by mononuclear phagocytes; (X) methods for studying the cell biology of mononuclear phagocytes; and (XI) techniques for studying mononuclear phagocytes in vivo, including procedures for estimating their kinetics, accumulation, identification, and microbicidal properties.

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