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Cancer and other genetic human diseases are caused by a variety of mutations, ranging from subtle sequence changes to larger genomic rearrangements and alterations in chromosome number (aneuploidy). With contributions by reputed experts, this book aims to update the knowledge on the multiple mechanisms of genomic instability leading to human disease. Emphasis is given to the different types of genomic sequences involved in disease-related genomic rearrangements as well as to the various exogenous factors increasing the frequency of mutations. Several chapters are dedicated to the dysfunction of important cellular mechanisms like DNA repair and chromosome segregation, which may cause genomic instability and result in tumorigenesis. Important 'caretaker' genes controlling the stability of our genome have been identified through their defect in genomic instability syndromes, which are also extensively reviewed in this volume. This book provides an important update not only for investigators in biology and medicine, but also for physicians and anyone interested in the molecular basis of human disease.
Recent major advances in the field of comparative genomics and cytogenomics of plants, particularly associated with the completion of ambitious genome projects, have uncovered astonishing facets of the architecture and evolutionary history of plant genomes. The aim of this book was to review these recent developments as well as their implications in our understanding of the mechanisms which drive plant diversity. New insights into the evolution of gene functions, gene families and genome size are presented, with particular emphasis on the evolutionary impact of polyploidization and transposable elements. Knowledge on the structure and evolution of plant sex chromosomes, centromeres and microRNAs is reviewed and updated. Taken together, the contributions by internationally recognized experts present a panoramic overview of the structural features and evolutionary dynamics of plant genomes.This volume of Genome Dynamics will provide researchers, teachers and students in the fields of biology and agronomy with a valuable source of current knowledge on plant genomes.
Meiosis is a key event in the life of all sexually reproductive organisms. As a consequence of recombination and segregation of maternal and paternal sets of chromosomes, it represents the largest natural source of genetic variability. The field of meiosis research is expanding rapidly, with significant progress resulting from the use of suitable model systems as well as from the identification and characterization of proteins, many of them meiosis-specific, which play a key role during meiotic events. This volume provides the reader with a series of authoritative review articles summarizing some of the most recent advances in the field of meiosis research. Most of the more commonly used model systems are investigated taking the comparative aspects into account. Written by leading experts in the field, the book is a valuable reference for researchers and graduate students in genetics, cell and developmental biology, reproductive biology and andrology.
This volume gives an overview on mobile DNA and how such contradiction to the obligatory stability of genomes can be understood. Obviously, an understanding can only be achieved by cutting deeply into the evolutionary history of life.
Archaea represent a third domain of life with unique properties not found in the other domains. Archaea actively compete for environmental resources. They perceive themselves and can distinguish between ‘self’ and ‘non-self’. They process and evaluate available information and then modify their behaviour accordingly. They assess their surroundings, estimate how much energy they need for particular goals, and then realize the optimum variant. These highly diverse competences show us that this is possible owing to sign(aling)- mediated communication processes within archaeal cells (intra-organismic), between the same, related and different archaeal species (interorganismic), and betwee...
The publication of the first draft of the human genome five years ago marked the start of a new era of vertebrate comparative genomics. Genome draft sequences for chimpanzee, mouse, rat, dog, chicken as well as for several fish species are now available for the reconstruction of the evolutionary history of vertebrate genomes over the last 450 million years. This volume of Genome Dynamics presents a timely update on the past, present and future of major vertebrate genome projects. In 16 chapters, renowned specialists provide informative reviews on the current status of mammalian, bird, amphibian and fish genomics. In addition, a chapter on urochordate genomes is included. The reader will also find a useful overview of resources available for each genome as well as a description of the medical and economical perspectives opened by the different projects. This book is recommended reading for biologists interested in genetics, genomics, evolution and zoology.
"Our way of understanding evolution has changed completely with the era of genomics, particularly since the emergence of comparative genomics, a discipline allowing the analysis of complete genomes and biological processes over vast periods of time. In this volume, internationally recognized experts present and discuss an update of the evolutionary processes at the onset of organismal diversification and complexity, and review the mechanisms leading to the acquisition of new traits and functions. Different levels of evolution are considered, from internal modules in genes and proteins to interactomes and biological networks, with integration of the influence of both the genomic environment and the ecological context. Particular emphasis will be given to the origin of novel genes and gene functions as well as to the evolutionary impact of the duplication of genetic information, with several chapters devoted to transposable elements. Providing an excellent update on gene and protein evolution, this book will be appreciated by researchers in biology and medicine, biology teachers and anyone interested in evolution and genomics."--Publisher's description.
In the years since the publication of Susumu Ohno's 1970 landmark book Evolution by gene duplication tremendous advances have been made in molecular biology and especially in genomics. Studies of genome structure and function prerequisite to testing hypotheses of genome evolution were all but impossible until recent methodological advances. This book evaluates newly generated empirical evidence as it pertains to theories of genomic evolutionary patterns and processes. Tests of hypotheses using analyses of complete genomes, interpreted in a phylogenetic context, provide evidence regarding the relative importance of gene duplication. The alternative explanation is that the evolution of regulatory elements that control the expression of and interactions among genes has been a more important force in shaping evolutionary innovation. This collection of papers will be of interest to all academic and industry researchers working in the fields of molecular biology, biotechnology, genomics and genome centers.
The biology of the Siberian sturgeon, Acipenser baerii Brandt 1869, has become a very attractive subject of investigation for biologists since the 1980s. This volume 1 is part of a two-volume set devoted to the species, the second of which focuses on farming. The present volume is divided into three parts: Biology and ecology, Biology and physiology of reproduction, and Ecophysiology, i.e. adaptation to the environment. The first part addresses a broad range of topics, such as: the ecology, including a new approach to species-specificity, a new insight on the mineralization of vertebral elements, two approaches to sex determination, transposable elements in the gonads, early ontogeny, olfact...
Monsters are a part of every society, and ours is no exception. They are deeply embedded in our history, our mythos, and our culture. However, treating them as simply a facet of children’s stories or escapist entertainment belittles their importance. When examined closely, we see that monsters have always represented the things we fear: that which is different, which we can’t understand, which is dangerous, which is Other. But in many ways, monsters also represent our growing awareness of ourselves and our changing place in a continually shrinking world. Contemporary portrayals of the monstrous often have less to do with what we fear in others than with what we fear about ourselves, what...