Introduction To Molecular Biophysics

Molecular biophysics is a rapidly growing field of research that plays an important role in elucidating the mysteries of life's molecules and their assemblies, as well as the relationship between their structure and function. Introduction to Molecular Biophysics fills an existing gap in the literature on this subject by providing the reader with th

Biophysics is the science of physical principles underlying all processes of life, including the dynamics and kinetics of biological systems. This fully revised 2nd English edition is an introductory text that spans all steps of biological organization, from the molecular, to the organism level, as well as influences of environmental factors. In response to the enormous progress recently made, especially in theoretical and molecular biophysics, the author has updated the text, integrating new results and developments concerning protein folding and dynamics, molecular aspects of membrane assembly and transport, noise-enhanced processes, and photo-biophysics. The advances made in theoretical biology in the last decade call for a fully new conception of the corresponding sections. Thus, the book provides the background needed for fundamental training in biophysics and, in addition, offers a great deal of advanced biophysical knowledge.

Provides an introduction to the structure and function of biomolecules --- especially proteins --- and the physical tools used to investigate them The discussion concentrates on physical tools and properties, emphasizing techniques that are contributing to new developments and avoiding those that are already well established and whose results have already been exploited fully New tools appear regularly - synchrotron radiation, proton radiology, holography, optical tweezers, and muon radiography, for example, have all been used to open new areas of understanding

This book provides an introduction to two important aspects of modern bioch- istry, molecular biology, and biophysics: computer simulation and data analysis. My aim is to introduce the tools that will enable students to learn and use some f- damental methods to construct quantitative models of biological mechanisms, both deterministicandwithsomeelementsofrandomness;tolearnhowconceptsofpr- ability can help to understand important features of DNA sequences; and to apply a useful set of statistical methods to analysis of experimental data. The availability of very capable but inexpensive personal computers and software makes it possible to do such work at a much higher level, but in a much easier way, than ever before. TheExecutiveSummaryofthein?uential2003reportfromtheNationalAcademy of Sciences, “BIO 2010: Transforming Undergraduate Education for Future - search Biologists” [12], begins The interplay of the recombinant DNA, instrumentation, and digital revolutions has p- foundly transformed biological research. The con?uence of these three innovations has led to important discoveries, such as the mapping of the human genome. How biologists design, perform, and analyze experiments is changing swiftly. Biological concepts and models are becoming more quantitative, and biological research has become critically dependent on concepts and methods drawn from other scienti?c disciplines. The connections between the biological sciences and the physical sciences, mathematics, and computer science are rapidly becoming deeper and more extensive.

A comprehensive graduate textbook explaining key physical methods in biology, reflecting the very latest research in this fast-moving field.

This new textbook offers a comprehensive introduction to the molecular physics of biological systems: it seeks to explain how the laws and concepts of physics apply to the living world at the molecular and subcellular level, with an emphasis on electrical and dynamical behaviour. The book is organized into five parts: * conformation of biopolymers * dynamics of biopolymers * hydration of biopolymers * biopolymers as polyelectrolytes *association between molecules The author adopts a multi-disciplinary approach and limits mathematics only to what is strictly necessary for the development of the subject. The text should be suitable for students from a wide range of backgrounds in biology, physics or chemistry taking advanced courses in molecular biophysics or biophysical chemistry.

Electrical Interactions in Molecular Biophysics: An Introduction deals with electrical interactions between biomolecules and therefore encompasses two disciplines, molecular biology and physics. The emphasis is on the electrical nature of biochemical or molecular biological reactions. The principles of electrostatics are used to explain some of the basic units of structure on a molecular level. Comprised of nine chapters, this book opens with an overview of the concepts and structures of biochemistry, with particular reference to different structural biochemical groups and how they are used as building blocks in forming molecules. The following chapters discuss the basics of elementary electrostatics; dielectric constants and dipoles; the dipole moments of biomolecules; van der Waals forces; and Debye-Huckel theory. Water and water structure are also considered from a physical standpoint. The final chapter is devoted to experimental techniques that rely upon the electrical properties of biomolecules and explains what types of information can be obtained from each experimental form. This monograph will be of interest to students and practitioners in biochemistry, molecular biology, biophysics, or microbiology.

Introduction to Molecular Biology focuses on the principles of polymer physics and chemistry and their applications to fundamental phenomena in biological sciences. It examines the structure, synthesis, and function of nucleic acids and proteins, as well as the physicochemical techniques necessary in determining the macromolecular structure, the kinetics and mechanism of enzyme action, the genetics of bacteria and their viruses, and the genetic code. It also considers the importance of precise quantitative analysis in biochemistry and biophysics, the architecture and function of biological macromolecules, and the unique mechanisms that regulate the cell's biological activity. Organized into five chapters, this book begins with an overview of proteins and their functional activity, from contractility and enzymatic catalysis to immunological activity, formation of selectively permeable membranes, and reversible binding and transport. It explains how such functions are related to molecular interactions and therefore fall within the purview of molecular biology. The book then proceeds with a discussion on the chemical structure of proteins and nucleic acids, the physicochemical techniques in measuring molecular size and shape, the mechanism of enzymatic reactions, the functions of DNA and RNA, and the mechanism of phase transition in polynucleotides. This book is intended for both biologists and non-biologists who want to be acquainted with the advances made in molecular biology, molecular genetics, and molecular biophysics during the 1950s and 1960s.