Protein Moonlighting In Biology And Medicine

The past 25 years has seen the emergence of a wealth of data suggesting that novel biological functions of known proteins play important roles in biology and medicine. This ability of proteins to exhibit more than one unique biological activity is known as protein moonlighting. Moonlighting proteins can exhibit novel biological functions, thus extending the function of the proteome, and are also implicated in the pathology of a growing number of idiopathic and infectious diseases. This book, written by a cell biologist, protein evolutionary biologist and protein bioinformatician, brings together the latest information on the structure, evolution and biological function of the growing numbers of moonlighting proteins that have been identified, and their roles in human health and disease. This information is revealing the enormous importance protein moonlighting plays in the maintenance of human health and in the induction of disease pathology. Protein Moonlighting in Biology and Medicine will be of interest to a general readership in the biological and biomedical research community.

Proteins in Biology and Medicine contains the proceedings of the 1981 U.S.-China Conference on Proteins in Biology and Medicine, held in Shanghai, China. The papers explore the structure-function relationships of proteins, including their regulatory properties. Topics range from the regulation of biological processes to the structure-function relationships of enzymes and blood proteins, along with protein-protein interactions. Organized into four sections encompassing 23 chapters, this book begins with an overview of structure-function relationships in phospholipase A2, including the enzyme fo ...

Microbial infection is increasingly seen as a problem as we begin to run out of antibiotics. Understanding how microbes cause disease is essential. In recent years it has begun to emerge that bacteria, fungi, protozoa and viruses can use their cell stress proteins to cause infection. This volume brings together the world's leading experts in the study of the microbial and human cell stress proteins that are involved in enabling microorganisms to infect humans and cause serious disease.

This book explores the role of exaptation in diverse areas of life, with examples ranging from biology to economics, social sciences and architecture. The concept of exaptation, introduced in evolutionary biology by Gould and Vrba in 1982, describes the possibility that already existing traits can be exploited for new purposes throughout the evolutionary process. Edited by three active scholars in the fields of biology, physics and economics, the book presents an interdisciplinary collection of expert viewpoints illustrating the importance of exaptation for interpreting current reality in various fields of investigation. Using the lenses of exaptation, the contributing authors show how to view the overall macroscopic landscape as comprising many disciplines, all working in unity within a single complex system. This book is the first to discuss exaptation in both hard and soft disciplines and highlights the role of this concept in understanding the birth of innovation by identifying key elements and ideas. It also offers a comprehensive guide to the emerging interdisciplinary field of exaptation, provides didactic explanations of the basic concepts, and avoids excessive jargon and heavy formalism. Its target audience includes graduate students in physics, biology, mathematics, economics, psychology and architecture; it will also appeal to established researchers in the humanities who wish to explore or enter this new science-driven interdisciplinary field.

Structure and Intrinsic Disorder in Enzymology offers a direct, yet comprehensive presentation of the fundamental concepts, characteristics and functions of intrinsically disordered enzymes, along with valuable notes and technical insights powering new research in this emerging field. Here, more than twenty international experts examine protein flexibility and cryo-enzymology, hierarchies of intrinsic disorder, methods for measurement of disorder in proteins, bioinformatics tools for predictions of structure, disorder and function, protein promiscuity, protein moonlighting, globular enzymes, intrinsic disorder and allosteric regulation, protein crowding, intrinsic disorder in post-translational, and much more. Chapters also review methods for study, as well as evolving technology to support new research across academic, industrial and pharmaceutical labs. Unifies the roles of intrinsic disorder and structure in the functioning of enzymes and proteins Examines a range of enzyme and protein characteristics, their relationship to intrinsic disorder, and methods for study Features chapter contributions from international leaders in the field

Foodborne microorganisms play a pivotal role in mediating the tight relation between food and human health from a dual perspective. In fact, notwithstanding the introduction of strict regulations and new technologies to ensure food quality and safety, foodborne pathogens continue to cause infections and diseases and represent a serious public health concern, while spoilage bacteria can severely affect food quality thus leading to major industry and commercial losses. On the other hand, probiotics positively affect human health, promoting digestion and uptake of dietary nutrients, strengthening intestinal barrier function, modulating immune response and enhancing antagonism towards pathogens. Nowadays, proteomics represents a key discipline to perform high-throughput studies in the field of food microbiology and enables the most accurate identification of complex networks of proteins involved in the cell adaptation to different growth conditions as well as in beneficial or harmful effects on human health. The present eBook offers an overview of the most up to date proteomic methodologies and further assesses the strength of proteomics in exploring different aspects of the foodborne microorganism life-style and defining biomarkers of food quality and safety.