The aim of these lecture notes is to give an introduction to several mathematical models and methods that can be used to describe the behaviour of living systems. This emerging field of application intrinsically requires the handling of phenomena occurring at different spatial scales and hence the use of multiscale methods.Modelling and simulating the mechanisms that cells use to move, self-organise and develop in tissues is not only fundamental to an understanding of embryonic dev...

The Treatment is the story of one tragedy of medical research that stretched over eleven years and affected the lives of hundreds of people in an Ohio city. Thirty years ago the author, then an assistant professor of English, acquired a large set of little-known medical papers at her university. These documents told a grotesque story. Cancer patients coming to the public hospital on her campus were being swept into secret experiments for the U.S. military; they were being irradiat...

In this monograph, the importance of fluctuations for biological reactions is discussed from various points of view. Understanding the biological reactions at the molecular level is one of the major targets in many scientific fields, including not only basic biology but also physics, physical chemistry, and medical science. One of the key factors in the process is “fluctuation”. Thermal energy causes biological molecules to be in constant fluctuation even while they are carrying out their ...

This text is a review of molecular immunohematology (MI). It draws from analyses and case studies around the world and details many techniques used in many labs. It is aimed at anyone interested in how MI is changing blood bank and transfusion medicine.

This atlas will illustrate the distribution and morphological features of interstitial cells of Cajal (ICC) which are the key cells to understanding of the regulatory mechanism of gastrointestinal motility, since ICC act as both pacemaker and as intermediates in neural transmission, and since ICC show specific distribution patterns depending on their anatomical positions. All subtypes of ICC located in the different tissue layers and different levels of the gastrointestinal tract will be r...

Despite spectacular advances, modern medicine faces formidable global challenges in several key areas—notably the persistence of major killer diseases such as malaria, tuberculosis, leprosy, and newer threats including HIV/AIDS, resistant infections, and Ebola. As such, modern medicine has not led to a significant decrease in chronic diseases like diabetes, obesity, and other degenerative and autoimmune diseases. The authors believe that modern medicine needs to experience a paradigm shift...

This practical book is written specifically for junior doctors by a team of highly experienced authors, as an introductory guide to clinical research. It covers all areas that a junior doctor needs to consider, including funding, study design, ethics, data analysis, disseminating findings, and furthering one's research career. It presents a balance view of clinical research and is written by authors actively involved in clinical research both at the 'coal-face' and at a more supervisory le...

This book continues as volume 3 of a multi-compendium on Edible Medicinal and Non-Medicinal Plants. It covers edible fruits/seeds used fresh or processed, as vegetables, spices, stimulants, edible oils and beverages. It encompasses species from the following families: Ginkgoaceae, Gnetaceae, Juglandaceae, Lauraceae, Lecythidaceae, Magnoliaceae, Malpighiaceae, Malvaceae, Marantaceae, Meliaceae, Moraceae, Moringaceae, Muntigiaceae, Musaceae, Myristicaceae and Myrtaceae. This work will be of ...

In 1898, an Austrian microbiologist Heinrich Winterberg made a curious observation: the number of microbial cells in his samples did not match the number of colonies formed on nutrient media (Winterberg 1898). About a decade later, J. Amann qu- tified this mismatch, which turned out to be surprisingly large, with non-growing cells outnumbering the cultivable ones almost 150 times (Amann 1911). These papers signify some of the earliest steps towards the discovery of an important phenomenon ...

This book comprehensively describes alkaptonuria and ochronosis. Beginning with the history, genetics, pathophysiology and diagnostics of the disease, the authors subsequently present a detailed characterization of its clinical manifestation in the spine, peripheral joints, eyes, ears, visceral organs and respiratory tract, its pathological anatomy and histology, as well as differential diagnosis. This is complemented by the latest data on therapy and experimental models of alkaptonuria, a...

Reviews in Fluorescence 2016, the tenth volume of the book serial from Springer, serves as a comprehensive collection of current trends and emerging hot topics in the field of fluorescence and closely related disciplines. It summarizes the year’s progress in fluorescence and its applications, with authoritative reviews specialized enough to be attractive to professional researchers, yet also appealing to the wider audience of scientists in related disciplines of fluorescence.Review...

I am very pleased to present this volume on engineering stem cells in Advances in Biochemical Engineering and Biotechnology. This volume stays abreast of recent developments in stem cell biology and the high expectations concerning the dev- opment of stem cell based regenerative therapies. Regenerative medicine is the focus of current biomedical research, with unique challenges related to scientific, technical and ethical issues of stem cell research, and the potential added value of conne...