Stochastic Models With Applications To Genetics Cancers Aids And Other Biomedical Systems

This book presents a systematic treatment of Markov chains, diffusion processes and state space models, as well as alternative approaches to Markov chains through stochastic difference equations and stochastic differential equations. It illustrates how these processes and approaches are applied to many problems in genetics, carcinogenesis, AIDS epidemiology and other biomedical systems.One feature of the book is that it describes the basic MCMC (Markov chain and Monte Carlo) procedures and illustrates how to use the Gibbs sampling method and the multilevel Gibbs sampling method to solve many problems in genetics, carcinogenesis, AIDS and other biomedical systems.As another feature, the book develops many state space models for many genetic problems, carcinogenesis, AIDS epidemiology and HIV pathogenesis. It shows in detail how to use the multilevel Gibbs sampling method to estimate (or predict) simultaneously the state variables and the unknown parameters in cancer chemotherapy, carcinogenesis, AIDS epidemiology and HIV pathogenesis. As a matter of fact, this book is the first to develop many state space models for many genetic problems, carcinogenesis and other biomedical problems.

"This book presents a systematic treatment of Markov chains, diffusion processes and state space models, as well as alternative approaches to Markov chains through stochastic difference equations and stochastic differential equations. It illustrates how these processes and approaches are applied to many problems in genetics, carcinogenesis, AIDS epidemiology and other biomedical systems. One feature of the book is that it describes the basic MCMC (Markov chain and Monte Carlo) procedures and illustrates how to use the Gibbs sampling method and the multilevel Gibbs sampling method to solve many problems in genetics, carcinogenesis, AIDS and other biomedical systems. As another feature, the book develops many state space models for many genetic problems, carcinogenesis, AIDS epidemiology and HIV pathogenesis. It shows in detail how to use the multilevel Gibbs sampling method to estimate (or predict) simultaneously the state variables and the unknown parameters in cancer chemotherapy, carcinogenesis, AIDS epidemiology and HIV pathogenesis. As a matter of fact, this book is the first to develop several state space models for many genetic problems, carcinogenesis and other biomedical problems. To emphasize special applications to medical problems, in this new edition the book has added a new chapter to illustrate how to develop biologically-supported stochastic models and state space models of carcinogenesis in human beings. Specific examples include hidden Markov models and state space models for human colon cancer, human liver cancer and some human pediatric cancers such as retinoblastoma and hepatoblastoma. The book also gives examples to illustrate how to develop procedures to assess cancer risk of environmental agents through initiation-promotion protocols."--

Composed of contributions from an international team of leading researchers, this book pulls together the most recent research results in the field of cancer modeling to provide readers with the most advanced mathematical models of cancer and their applications.Topics included in the book cover oncogenetic trees, stochastic multistage models of carcinogenesis, effects of ionizing radiation on cell cycle and genomic instability, induction of DNA damage by ionizing radiation and its repair, epigenetic cancer models, bystander effects of radiation, multiple pathway models of human colon cancer, and stochastic models of metastasis. The book also provides some important applications of cancer models to the assessment of cancer risk associated with various hazardous environmental agents, to cancer screening by MRI, and to drug resistance in cancer chemotherapy. An updated statistical design and analysis of xenograft experiments as well as a statistical analysis of cancer occult clinical data are also provided.The book will serve as a useful source of reference for researchers in biomathematics, biostatistics and bioinformatics; for clinical investigators and medical doctors employing quantitative methods to develop procedures for cancer diagnosis, prevention, control and treatment; and for graduate students.

This new fifth edition of Information Resources in Toxicology offers a consolidated entry portal for the study, research, and practice of toxicology. Both volumes represents a unique, wide-ranging, curated, international, annotated bibliography, and directory of major resources in toxicology and allied fields such as environmental and occupational health, chemical safety, and risk assessment. The editors and authors are among the leaders of the profession sharing their cumulative wisdom in toxicology’s subdisciplines. This edition keeps pace with the digital world in directing and linking readers to relevant websites and other online tools. Due to the increasing size of the hardcopy publication, the current edition has been divided into two volumes to make it easier to handle and consult. Volume 1: Background, Resources, and Tools, arranged in 5 parts, begins with chapters on the science of toxicology, its history, and informatics framework in Part 1. Part 2 continues with chapters organized by more specific subject such as cancer, clinical toxicology, genetic toxicology, etc. The categorization of chapters by resource format, for example, journals and newsletters, technical reports, organizations constitutes Part 3. Part 4 further considers toxicology’s presence via the Internet, databases, and software tools. Among the miscellaneous topics in the concluding Part 5 are laws and regulations, professional education, grants and funding, and patents. Volume 2: The Global Arena offers contributed chapters focusing on the toxicology contributions of over 40 countries, followed by a glossary of toxicological terms and an appendix of popular quotations related to the field. The book, offered in both print and electronic formats, is carefully structured, indexed, and cross-referenced to enable users to easily find answers to their questions or serendipitously locate useful knowledge they were not originally aware they needed. Among the many timely topics receiving increased emphasis are disaster preparedness, nanotechnology, -omics, risk assessment, societal implications such as ethics and the precautionary principle, climate change, and children’s environmental health. Introductory chapters provide a backdrop to the science of toxicology, its history, the origin and status of toxicoinformatics, and starting points for identifying resources Offers an extensive array of chapters organized by subject, each highlighting resources such as journals, databases,organizations, and review articles Includes chapters with an emphasis on format such as government reports, general interest publications, blogs, and audiovisuals Explores recent internet trends, web-based databases, and software tools in a section on the online environment Concludes with a miscellany of special topics such as laws and regulations, chemical hazard communication resources, careers and professional education, K-12 resources, funding, poison control centers, and patents Paired with Volume Two, which focuses on global resources, this set offers the most comprehensive compendium of print, digital, and organizational resources in the toxicological sciences with over 120 chapters contributions by experts and leaders in the field

With contributions from an international team of leading researchers, the book pulls together updated research results in the area of HIV/AIDS modeling to provide readers with the latest information in the field. Topics covered include: AIDS epidemic models; vaccine models; models for HIV/cell dynamics and interactions; cellular kinetics; viral dynamics with antiviral treatments; modeling of drug resistance and quasispecies. Extensive deterministic models, statistical models, stochastic models and state space models on treating AIDS patients with anti-retroviral drugs are provided, as well as an in-depth discussion of these models. The book also contains updated reviews on mathematical models for assessing effects of AIDS vaccines, statistical methods for analyzing clinical trial data on AIDS vaccines, and overviews of models and statistical methods for assessing drug resistance of HIV to anti-retroviral drugs. Some important statistical methods specific to the intervention and prevention of HIV epidemic are also discussed. This will be a useful reference source for graduate students and researchers in biomathematics and biostatistics, as well as for HIV/AIDS epidemiologists and clinical investigators learning quantitative methods to study AIDS epidemics and HIV infection. Contents:Mathematical Models for HIV Transmission Among Injecting Drug Users (V Capasso & D Morale)A Class of Methods for HIV Contact Tracing in Cuba: Implications for Intervention and Treatment (Y-H Hsieh et al.)Dynamical Models for the Course of an HIV Infection (C Kamp)Identifiability of HIV/AIDS Models (A M Jeffrey & X Xia)A Branching Process Model of Drug Resistant HIV (H Zhou & K S Dorman)Design of Population Studies of HIV Dynamics (C Han & K Chaloner)Statistical Estimation, Inference and Hypothesis Testing of Parameters in Ordinary Differential Equations Models of HIV Dynamics (S Holte)and other papers Readership: Upper-level undergraduates, graduate students, biomathematical and biostatistical researchers, HIV/AIDS epidemiologists and researchers, AIDS clinical investigators. Keywords:AIDS Epidemics;AIDS Vaccines;Antiviral Treatments;Cell Kinetics;HIV Dynamics;Viral ResistanceKey Features:Only book that provides deterministic and stochastic models of AIDS vaccines and statistical methods for analyzing clinical trial data on AIDS vaccinesOnly book on extensive, deterministic models, statistical models, stochastic models and state space models and statistical methods for HIV epidemic involving IV drug usage and HIV epidemic in homosexual populationsProvides most recent biological insights into HIV pathogenesis and HIV kinetics at the cellular level, and illustrates how to build up mathematical models based on these biological insightsOnly publication that provides in-depth analysis of HAART treatment protocols and discusses possible improvements to the HAART protocol. The book also provides connection between pharmacokinetics with treatment in HIV-infected individuals

The blood system is multi-scale, from the organism to the organs to cells to intracellular signaling pathways to macromolecule interactions. Blood consists of circulating cells, cellular fragments (platelets and microparticles), and plasma macromolecules. Blood cells and their fragments result from a highly-ordered process, hematopoiesis. Definitive hematopoiesis occurs in the bone marrow, where pluripotential stem cells give rise to multiple lineages of highly specialized cells. Highly-productive and continuously regenerative, hematopoiesis requires a microenvironment of mesenchymal cells and blood vessels. A Systems Biology Approach to Blood is divided into three main sections: basic components, physiological processes, and clinical applications. Using blood as a window, one can study health and disease through this unique tool box with reactive biological fluids that mirrors the prevailing hemodynamics of the vessel walls and the various blood cell types. Many blood diseases, rare and common can and have been exploited using systems biology approaches with successful results and therefore ideal models for systems medicine. More importantly, hematopoiesis offers one of the best studied systems with insight into stem cell biology, cellular interaction, development; linage programing and reprograming that are every day influenced by the most mature and understood regulatory networks.

Human health risk assessment involves the measuring of risk of exposure to disease, with a view to improving disease prevention. Mathematical, biological, statistical, and computational methods play a key role in exposure assessment, hazard assessment and identification, and dose-response modelling. Recent Advances in Quantitative Methods in Cancer and Human Health Risk Assessment is a comprehensive text that accounts for the wealth of new biological data as well as new biological, toxicological, and medical approaches adopted in risk assessment. It provides an authoritative compendium of state-of-the-art methods proposed and used, featuring contributions from eminent authors with varied experience from academia, government, and industry. Provides a comprehensive summary of currently available quantitative methods for risk assessment of both cancer and non-cancer problems. Describes the applications and the limitations of current mathematical modelling and statistical analysis methods (classical and Bayesian). Includes an extensive introduction and discussion to each chapter. Features detailed studies of risk assessments using biologically-based modelling approaches. Discusses the varying computational aspects of the methods proposed. Provides a global perspective on human health risk assessment by featuring case studies from a wide range of countries. Features an extensive bibliography with links to relevant background information within each chapter. Recent Advances in Quantitative Methods in Cancer and Human Health Risk Assessment will appeal to researchers and practitioners in public health & epidemiology, and postgraduate students alike. It will also be of interest to professionals working in risk assessment agencies.