Excerpt from a book review of Emerging Trends in Antibacterial Discovery: Answering the Call to Arms : "this book provides a comprehensive survey of the new and alternative antibacterial strategies that are currently being explored ... A must for anyone who is involved in the field of antibiotic research." from Julia Bandow (Bochum, Germany) writing in BIOspektrum (2011) 17: read more ...

Excerpt from a book review of Essentials of Veterinary Parasitology : "A new handbook of Veterinary Parasitology has been published. It is up-to-date, with the majority of the references after 2000 and even some from 2010. The book is written in an easy readable style and well illustrated. The authors have deliberately chosen to deal with the major parasitic diseases, leaving the less common ones ... the book is particularly suitable for students and veterinary practitioners. For parasitologists working in research, this book could be a handy read more ...

Jose M. Requena (Centro de Biologia Molecular "Severo Ochoa" (CSIC-UAM), Madrid, Spain) presents a new book on Stress Response in Microbiology In this book, expert authors from around the world summarise the current knowledge on microbial stress response and comprehensively review the recent findings that have greatly advanced the understanding of stress response systems. Each chapter is devoted to a particular organism or group of organisms including Gram-negative bacteria, Streptococcus,Neisseria, Listeria monocytogenes, Bacillus cereus, read more ...

from Ivan Mitov writing in Helicobacter pylori : Helicobacter pylori infection induces almost all mechanisms of innate and acquired immunity. Different bacterial, environmental and host factors may influence the balance between the protective role of the immune mechanisms and their role in gastric mucosal damage, respectively, the possibility of lifelong asymptomatic colonisation of gastric mucosa or clinical manifestation and H. pylori infection. Bacterial virulence factors stimulate Toll-like and Nod-like receptors to induce innate and read more ...

from Gijs A. Versteeg and Adolfo García-Sastre writing in Viruses and Interferon: Current Research : Influenza viruses are the etiological agents of seasonal influenza outbreaks as well as three devastating influenza pandemics in the 20th century and the 2009 swine-origin H1N1 pandemic. Like most viruses that cause significant disease, influenza viruses have developed means to circumvent the induction and effects of the innate immune system. Unlike most other RNA viruses, influenza viruses replicate in the nucleus, rather than in the read more ...

Innate Immunity and Flavivirus Infection from Maudry Laurent-Rolle, Juliet Morrison and Adolfo García-Sastre writing in Molecular Virology and Control of Flaviviruses : Flaviviruses, along with the distantly related Hepacivirus and Pestiviruses, belong to the Flaviviridae family. Currently, more than 70 flaviviruses have been reported, including dengue virus serotypes 1 to 4 (DENV1-4), yellow fever virus (YFV), West Nile virus (WNV), Japanese encephalitis virus (JEV) and tick-borne encephalitis virus (TBEV). Flaviviruses are read more ...

Ins and Outs of the Bacillus subtilis Membrane Proteome from Jan Maarten van Dijl, Annette Dreisbach, Marcin J. Skwark, Mark J.J.B. Sibbald, Harold Tjalsma, Jessica C. Zweers and Girbe Buist writing in Bacillus : Cellular and Molecular Biology (Second edition) : Bacterial homeostasis is largely determined by a phospholipid bilayer that encloses the cytoplasm. The proteins residing in this cytoplasmic membrane are responsible for communication between the cytoplasm and extracytoplasmic cell compartments or the extracellular milieu of the read more ...

Introduction to Paramyxoviruses from Brian W.J. Mahy writing in The Biology of Paramyxoviruses : There is no abstract for this chapter, however the first paragraph is presented here instead. The chapters in this excellent book provide a truly comprehensive account of all known paramyxoviruses, a group whose members include highly pathogenic viruses affecting the human population, as well as animals and birds. In the early days of virology, the word "myxovirus" was coined for a group of viruses that had common features, namely an affinity for read more ...

from Hany M. Elsheikha and Naveed Ahmed Khan writing in Essentials of Veterinary Parasitology : We tend to think of parasites as a nuisance, but they are in fact very serious disease-causing agents. Despite advances of veterinary medicine, parasitic diseases have remained a major cause of morbidity, mortality and economic losses, worldwide. With the increasing burden of parasites on human and animal suffering, study of "parasitology" has become an important and rapidly growing discipline of science. Veterinarians' awareness of parasitic read more ...

Alain A.M. Filloux (Centre for Molecular Microbiology and Infection, Imperial College London, UK) presents a new book on Bacterial Regulatory Networks Renowned authors under the expert guidance of the editor Alain A.M. Filloux, have contributed authoritative, up-to-date reviews of the current research and theories on regulatory networks in bacteria. The volume contains critical reviews written by the leading research scientists in this topical field. The authors fully explore various regulatory networks, discuss variations of common themes read more ...

Ionizing Radiation Resistant Microorganisms from Kelley R. Gwin and John R. Battista writing in Extremophiles: Microbiology and Biotechnology : Of all the phenotypes associated with microorganisms, ionizing radiation resistance - the ability to survive exposure to high dose gamma radiation - is perhaps the most difficult to rationalize in terms of the natural world. There is no obvious selective advantage to being ionizing radiation resistant on Earth, as average yearly exposures to ionizing radiation from cosmic rays and radioactive decay read more ...

The new book on Extremophiles edited by Roberto Paul Anitori will be available for dispatch within the next 2 or 3 read more ...

from David J. Bartley and Hany M. Elsheikha writing in Essentials of Veterinary Parasitology : Accurate diagnosis of parasitic infections is a prerequisite for successful treatment and control of these pathogens. Errors in the diagnosis can lead to the initiation of unnecessary therapies, or delays in initiating the correct therapy. Thus, the clinicians must maintain a sharp index of suspicion and must rely on detailed history and clinical manifestations, to raise the possibility of a parasitic disease. Even though the diagnosis can be read more ...

from Yasushi Kawai and Tadao Saito writing in Lactic Acid Bacteria and Bifidobacteria: Current Progress in Advanced Research : Bacteriocins produced by lactobacilli from the lactic acid bacteria (LAB) group have been reported since about 1990 in the same time period when similar bacteriocins were reported in other bacterial species. Almost all of the bacteriocins from lactobacilli belong to class II bacteriocins except for a class III helveticin J produced by Lactobacillus helveticus 481 (37kDa, 333 amino acid residues, using an unknown read more ...

Excerpt from a book review of Essentials of Veterinary Parasitology : "The text is easy to read, uses straight forward language but standard terminology, and the figures use cheerful colors and complement the text well. I liked the liberal use of micrographs of parasites. I think the book would be suitable as an introductory text for Veterinary students or college students. It is helpful to have ectoparasites, worms and protozoa covered in a single text at a level of detail that could reasonably be covered in a one-semester course. The focus read more ...

from Fuminori Yoneyama, Takeshi Zendo, and Kenji Sonomoto writing in Lactic Acid Bacteria and Bifidobacteria: Current Progress in Advanced Research : Lactococcus is one of the most important genera of lactic acid bacteria (LAB), because of the widespread use in dairy fermentation foods. Since nisin produced by Lactococcus lactis was discovered in 1928 (Rogers and Whittier, 1928), many bacteriocin-producing Lactococcus strains have been reported and studied so far (Cotter et al., 2005a). Here, recent studies on lactococcal bacteriocins, read more ...

Lessons from DNMT3L Dependent Methylation During Gametogenesis from Sarah A. Kinkel and Hamish S. Scott writing in Epigenetics: A Reference Manual : DNMT3L (DNA methyltransferase 3 like) is member of the DNA methyltransferase family of enzymes responsible for the methylation of CpG dinucleotides. Biochemical studies have revealed that while DNMT3L lacks DNA methyltransferase activity, it can bind to and stimulate the activity of de novo DNA methyltransferases DNMT3A and DNMT3B. DNMT3L has also been shown to interact directly with chromatin read more ...

Lipopolysaccharide Biosynthesis from Leslie Cuthbertson writing in Bacterial Glycomics: Current Research, Technology and Applications : Lipopolysaccharide (LPS) constitutes the major portion of the outer leaflet of the outer membrane and plays a major role in the physiology of Gram-negative bacteria. LPS can be divided into three structurally distinct regions: lipid A, core oligosaccharide and O-antigenic polysaccharide. Each of these regions as well as regulated modifications, are important in the overall functions of the LPS molecule. read more ...

Macrosatellite Epigenetics from Brian P. Chadwick writing in Epigenetics: A Reference Manual : The recent completion of several mammalian genome sequences makes obvious that we share a near-identical collection of genes. What defines us as human must therefore be encoded within regions of the genome where we differ, providing an added level of complexity that probably influences the spatial and temporal expression of genes. Most DNA sequence variation occurs within the repetitive DNA, once called 'Junk DNA' that accounts for at least half of read more ...

from Theron et al. in Nanotechnology in Water Treatment Applications In contrast to gold nanoparticles and QDs, magnetic nanoparticles have not been used in many biological applications. Nevertheless, advances in the synthesis of monodispersed magnetic nanoparticles, ranging in size from 2 to 20 nm, has provided a basis from which to explore applications of magnetic nanoparticles in diagnostics. Magnetic nanoparticles are produced from materials that can be strongly attracted by magnets or be magnetized. They can be prepared in the form of read more ...

Brian D. Robertson and Brendan W. Wren (Centre for Integrated Systems Biology and Bioinformatics, Imperial College, London and London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, London, UK; respectively) present a new book on Systems Microbiology: Current Topics and Applications This volume contains cutting-edge reviews by world-leading experts on the systems biology of microorganisms. As well as covering theoretical approaches and mathematical modelling this book includes case studies on single microbial species of bacteria and archaea, and read more ...

from Hany M. Elsheikha writing in Essentials of Veterinary Parasitology : Cestoda is a class of parasitic flatworms (Platyhelminthes), commonly called tapeworms or cestodes. All tapeworms use vertebrates as a definitive host, and vertebrates or invertebrates (arthropods, crustaceans) as an intermediate host, depending on the species. The definitive host harbors the adult, sexual, or mature stages of parasite. Larval 'metacestode' development occurs in the intermediate host (I.H.), which will be eaten by definitive host. In the latter, larval read more ...

from Philip J. Skuce writing in Essentials of Veterinary Parasitology : Dicrocoeliosis is caused by Dicrocoelium dendriticum , which is also known as 'lancet fluke' or 'small liver fluke'. It can infect sheep, goats, cattle, deer and rabbits, and occasionally horses and pigs. Dicrocoeliasis is a widespread problem worldwide in grazing livestock. The epidemiology of Dicrocoelium depends upon the environment and on the presence of its intermediate and definitive hosts. Dicrocoelium spp. do pose a zoonotic risk but are very uncommon in humans, read more ...

The new book on Bacterial Glycomics edited by Christopher W. Reid, Susan M. Twine, and Anne N. Reid will be available for dispatch within the next 2 or 3 read more ...

from Hany M. Elsheikha writing in Essentials of Veterinary Parasitology : Classification of nematodes has been traditionally based on the presence or absence of a posterior cuticular chemoreceptor called 'phasmid'. Nematode species with phasmid are known as phasmidea (Secernentea) and nematodes that lack phasmid are called aphasmidea (Adenophera). It is important to realize that the parasite taxonomy is an evolving field and there is no a single scheme that is always acceptable. Class Nematoda encompasses numerous species that infect read more ...

Martin Filion (Department of Biology, Universite de Moncton, Canada) presents a new book on Quantitative Real-time PCR in Applied Microbiology Written by experts in the field and aimed specifically at microbiologists, this volume describes and explains the most important aspects of current qPCR strategies, instrumentation and software. Renowned authors cover the application of qPCR technology in various areas of applied microbiology and comment on future trends. Topics covered include instrumentation, fluorescent chemistries, quantification read more ...

Measles Virus from Sibylle Schneider-Schaulies and W. Paul Duprex writing in The Biology of Paramyxoviruses : Measles virus (MV) infections continue to be of high clinical relevance as they can be associated with severe disease processes such as pneumonia and central nervous system (CNS) complications, but also because they cause a generalized transient immunosuppression. Though characterized and causatively linked to MV decades ago, the pathogenesis of these diseases including the prime target cells in the respiratory tract is far from read more ...

Mechanisms of Bacterial Entry Into Host Cells from Kevin Moreau and Frank Lafont writing in Bacterial Pathogenesis: Molecular and Cellular Mechanisms : Most invading bacteria enter the host cell by using either a triggered or a zippered mechanism. The former depends on membrane ruffles induced by injection of bacteria-derived effectors into the eukaryotic cell. A hallmark of the latter is a "sliding" of the bacteria into the cell through a clathrin-mediated structure, which is distinct from the pits in conventional clathrin-mediated read more ...

from Wittwer CT and Farrar JS (2011) in PCR Troubleshooting and Optimization Melting curve analysis is a powerful and practical extension of real-time PCR. While real-time PCR focuses on collecting fluorescence at a single temperature each PCR cycle, melting analysis monitors fluorescence over time as the temperature is changing. Melting analysis fits nicely into the kinetic paradigm of PCR. Duplexes melt as the temperature increases, and the hybridization of both PCR products and probes can be monitored. Similar to "old" (slow) PCR being read more ...

Excerpt from a book review of Metagenomics: Current Innovations and Future Trends : "For researchers, students, teachers, and people involved with biotechnological applications, this volume offers consistent coverage of theoretical, methodological, and applied areas of the rapidly advancing field of metagenomics." from Rebecca T. Horvat (University of Kansas, USA) writing in Ref. Res. Book News read more ...

Excerpt from a book review of Helicobacter pylori : "This is a well organized book that covers all important areas of Helicobacter pylori. This information will assist investigators in developing new treatment options for the chronic diseases and cancers associated with Helicobacter pylori." from Rebecca T. Horvat (University of Kansas, USA) writing in Doodys Suggested reading: Bacterial Pathogenesis: Molecular and Cellular Mechanisms Lactic Acid Bacteria and Bifidobacteria: Current Progress in Advanced Research Bifidobacteria: Genomics and read more ...

Metabolic Diversity of Thermophilic Prokaryotes: What's New? from Elizaveta Bonch-Osmolovskaya writing in Extremophiles: Microbiology and Biotechnology : Thermophilic microorganisms, though known since the beginning of the 20th century, were intensively studied in its last three decades. Natural terrestrial and submarine thermal environments were found to be populated by moderate, extreme and hyperthermophilic microorganisms representing diverse metabolic groups. However, during the past few years this knowledge has been extended, and new read more ...

Excerpt from a book review of Vaccine Design: Innovative Approaches and Novel Strategies : "The book is divided into 2 parts. The first part explores in considerable depth cutting-edge technologies and approaches to identify, develop, and test vaccine candidates ... The second part of the book presents current research aimed at developing new vaccines for diseases that still lack them or to replace imperfect older vaccines ... Vaccine Design deserves a place on the shelf of any serious student of vaccinology ... overall this book is a read more ...

Excerpt from a book review of Alphaherpesviruses: Molecular Virology : "provides an important niche in dealing specifically with HSV and VZV. The chapters are provocative summaries of existing knowledge regarding these two viruses in particular. As such, it provides insightful reading for graduate students" from Richard Whitley (University of Alabama at Birmingham, USA) writing in Antiviral Therapy (October read more ...

Metabolic Labeling of Bacterial Glycans with Chemical Reporters from Danielle H. Dube writing in Bacterial Glycomics: Current Research, Technology and Applications : Though long believed to be absent from bacteria, glycoproteins are now known to be synthesized in a number of bacterial species. Traditional methods to study glycoproteins have revealed fascinating glycan structures that are exclusively found in bacteria and are frequently linked to pathogenesis. In recent years, these methods have been augmented by a complementary approach, read more ...