Informational Biopolymers Of Genes And Gene Expression

This new text examines thebiophysics and biochemistry of nucleic acids and proteins, carving outthe dynamic interface between chemistry and molecular biology, and providing adetailed picture of nucleic acids and proteins, their structures, biologicalproperties, and origins and evolution.

This book is the first volume in a new series Progress in Gene Expres sion. The control of gene expression is a central-most topic in molecular biology as it deals with the utilization and regulation of gene informa tion. As we see huge efforts mounting all over the developed world to understand the structure and organization of several complex eukaryotic genomes in the form of Gene Projects and Genome Centers, we have to remember that without understanding the basic mechanisms that gov ern the use of genetic information, much of this effort will not be very productive. Fortunately, however, research during the past seven years on the mechanisms that control gene expression in eukaryotes has been extremely successful in generating a wealth of information on the basic strategies of transcriptional control. (Although regulation of gene ex pression is exerted at many different levels, much of the emphasis in this series will be on transcriptional control. A future volume, however, will deal with other levels of regulation). The progress in understanding the control of eukaryotic transcription can only be appreciated by realizing that seven years ago we did not know the primary structure of a single sequence specific transcriptional activator, and those whose primary structures were available (e. g. , homeo domain proteins) were not yet recognized to function in this capacity.

All living things contain carbon in some form, as it is the primary component of macromolecules including proteins, lipids, nucleic acids (RNA and DNA), and carbohydrates. As a matter of fact, it is the backbone of all organic (chemistry) compounds forming different kinds of bonds. Carbon: The Black, the Gray and the Transparent is not a complete scientific history of the material, but a book that describes key discoveries about this old faithful element while encouraging broader perspectives and approaches to its research due to its vast applications. All allotropes of carbon are described in this book, along with their properties, uses, and methods of procurement or manufacturing. Black carbon is represented by coal, gray carbon is represented by graphite, and transparent carbon is represented by diamond.

This book is a short introduction to the engineering principles of harnessing the vast potential of microorganisms, and animal and plant cells in making biochemical products. It was written for scientists who have no background in engineering, and for engineers with minimal background in biology. The overall subject dealt with is process. But the coverage goes beyond the process of biomanufacturing in the bioreactor, and extends to the factory of cell’s biosynthetic machinery. Starting with an overview of biotechnology and organism, engineers are eased into biochemical reactions and life scientists are exposed to the technology of production using cells. Subsequent chapters allow engineers to be acquainted with biochemical pathways, while life scientist learn about stoichiometric and kinetic principles of reactions and cell growth. This leads to the coverage of reactors, oxygen transfer and scale up. Following three chapters on biomanufacturing of current and future importance, i.e. cell culture, stem cells and synthetic biology, the topic switches to product purification, first with a conceptual coverage of operations used in bioseparation, and then a more detailed analysis to provide a conceptual understanding of chromatography, the modern workhorse of bioseparation. Drawing on principles from engineering and life sciences, this book is for practitioners in biotechnology and bioengineering. The author has used the book for a course for advanced students in both engineering and life sciences. To this end, problems are provided at the end of each chapter.

This collection contains papers by participants in the seminar on mathematical methods in molecular biology who worked for several years at the Laboratory of Molecular Biology and Bioorganic Chemistry (now the Institute of Physical and Chemical Problems in Biology) at Moscow State University. The seminar united mathematicians and biologists around the problems of biological sequences. The collection includes original results as well as expository material and spans a range of perspectives, from purely mathematical problems to algorithms and their computer realizations. For this reason, the book is of interest to mathematicians, statisticians, biologists, and computational scientists who work with biopolymer sequences.

Concepts of Biology is designed for the single-semester introduction to biology course for non-science majors, which for many students is their only college-level science course. As such, this course represents an important opportunity for students to develop the necessary knowledge, tools, and skills to make informed decisions as they continue with their lives. Rather than being mired down with facts and vocabulary, the typical non-science major student needs information presented in a way that is easy to read and understand. Even more importantly, the content should be meaningful. Students do much better when they understand why biology is relevant to their everyday lives. For these reasons, Concepts of Biology is grounded on an evolutionary basis and includes exciting features that highlight careers in the biological sciences and everyday applications of the concepts at hand.We also strive to show the interconnectedness of topics within this extremely broad discipline. In order to meet the needs of today's instructors and students, we maintain the overall organization and coverage found in most syllabi for this course. A strength of Concepts of Biology is that instructors can customize the book, adapting it to the approach that works best in their classroom. Concepts of Biology also includes an innovative art program that incorporates critical thinking and clicker questions to help students understand--and apply--key concepts.