Human Chromosomes

The fourth edition of this well-known text provides students, researchers and technicians in the area of medicine, genetics and cell biology with a concise, understandable introduction to the structure and behavior of human chromosomes. This new edition continues to cover both basic and up-to-date material on normal and defective chromosomes, yet is particularly strengthened by the complete revision of the material on the molecular genetics of chromosomes and chromosomal defects. The mapping and molecular analysis of chromosomes is one of the most exciting and active areas of modern biomedical research, and this book will be invaluable to scientists, students, technicians and physicians with an interest in the function and dysfunction of chromosomes.

There is growing enthusiasm in the scientific community about the prospect of mapping and sequencing the human genome, a monumental project that will have far-reaching consequences for medicine, biology, technology, and other fields. But how will such an effort be organized and funded? How will we develop the new technologies that are needed? What new legal, social, and ethical questions will be raised? Mapping and Sequencing the Human Genome is a blueprint for this proposed project. The authors offer a highly readable explanation of the technical aspects of genetic mapping and sequencing, and they recommend specific interim and long-range research goals, organizational strategies, and funding levels. They also outline some of the legal and social questions that might arise and urge their early consideration by policymakers.

The question of how man has emerged must be as old as human thought itself. However, it was not until last century that, amidst a storm of opposition and highly emotional criticism, man was first conceived as a product of evolution rather than creation. Moreover, it is not yet thirty years since the chemical composition and molecular structure of the hereditary material was fully understood or the chromosome number of man became known. It should not be surprising then, to find how little, at present, we understand how our genes and chromosomes operate, and how they have evolved during phylogeny. In this work I have discussed how our own chromosomes have been transmitted and altered as far back as we may trace their phylogeny into the past. To make the work more complete, the composition and evolution of our own genome had also to be consiered in order to understand some of the recent findings at the chromosome level. These have resulted from using methods for localizing repetitive and single copy DNA sequences in chromosomes. Moreover, the development of biochemical methods of studying evolution at the macromolecular level has not only led to a more complete understanding of the evolutionary mechanisms, but has enabled us to make comparisons with evolutionary change at the chromosome level. In addition, a simple reference to the fossil record was necessary, because impressive discoveries in recent years have supplied valuable data on man's evolution.

It's obvious why only men develop prostate cancer and why only women get ovarian cancer. But it is not obvious why women are more likely to recover language ability after a stroke than men or why women are more apt to develop autoimmune diseases such as lupus. Sex differences in health throughout the lifespan have been documented. Exploring the Biological Contributions to Human Health begins to snap the pieces of the puzzle into place so that this knowledge can be used to improve health for both sexes. From behavior and cognition to metabolism and response to chemicals and infectious organisms, this book explores the health impact of sex (being male or female, according to reproductive organs and chromosomes) and gender (one's sense of self as male or female in society). Exploring the Biological Contributions to Human Health discusses basic biochemical differences in the cells of males and females and health variability between the sexes from conception throughout life. The book identifies key research needs and opportunities and addresses barriers to research. Exploring the Biological Contributions to Human Health will be important to health policy makers, basic, applied, and clinical researchers, educators, providers, and journalists-while being very accessible to interested lay readers.

This atlas presents the results of cases of structural chromosome aberrations based on the currently available methods of analysis for different types of abnormality. It particularly focuses on which spectrum should be chosen when combining the different techniques to achieve the best method of diagnosis in individual cases, for example direct preparation of cells and mitoses, short or long-time cell culture, fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH), analysis of interphases, microarray or DNA sequencing. Generally it has to be taken into account, that the development of new and improved investigation methods is forthcoming. Thus, by improvement of diagnostic possibilities new fields of investigation arise, and special groups of patients with cytogenetic analyses can be re-analysed under new research questions.

This book provides an introduction to human cytogenetics. It is also suitable for use as a text in a general cytogenetics course, since the basic features of chromosome structure and behavior are shared by all eukar yotes. Because my own background includes plant and animal cytoge netics, many of the examples are taken from organisms other than man. Since the book is written from a cytogeneticist's point of view, human syndromes are described only as illustrations of the effects of abnormal chromosome constitutions on the phenotype. The selection of the phe nomena to be discussed and of the photographs to illustrate them is, in many cases, subjective and arbitrary and is naturally influenced by my interests and the work done in our laboratory. The approach to citations is the exact opposite of that usually used in scientific papers. Whenever possible, the latest and/or most comprehen sive review has been cited, instead of the original publication. Thus the reader is encouraged to delve deeper into any question of interest to him or her. I am greatly indebted to many colleagues for suggestions and criticism. However, my special thanks are due to Dr. JAMES F. CROW, Dr. TRAUTE M. SCHROEDER, and Dr. CARTER DENNISTON for their courage in reading the entire manuscript. I wish to express my gratitude also to the cytogeneticists and editors who have generously permitted the use of published and unpublished photographs.

Critical to the accurate diagnosis of human illness is the need to distinguish clinical features that fall within the normal range from those that do not. That distinction is often challenging and not infrequently requires considerable experience at the bedside. It is not surprising that accurate cytogenetic diagnosis is also often a challenge, especially when chromosome study reveals morphologic findings that raise the question of normality. Given the realization that modern human cytogenetics is just over five decades old, it is noteworthy that thorough documentation of normal chromosome var- tion has not yet been accomplished. One key diagnostic consequence of the inability to distinguish a “normal” variation in chromosome structure from a pathologic change is a missed or inaccurate diagnosis. Clinical cytogeneticists have not, however, been idle. Rather, progressive biotechnological advances coupled with virtual completion of the human genome project have yielded increasingly better microscopic resolution of chromosome structure. Witness the progress from the early short condensed chromosomes to the later visualization of chromosomes through banding techniques, hi- resolution analysis in prophase, and more recently to analysis by fluorescent in situ hybridization (FISH).