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Redox Signaling and Regulation in Biology and Medicine

ISBN: 978-3-527-62759-2

May 2009

514 pages

Description
For the human body, redox processes are a two-edged sword: We need them to burn our food, to provide the body with energy, to fight off invading organisms and to transmit biochemical signals between and within our cells. On the other hand, redox processes can attack and degrade cells and their constituents if they occur in the wrong context or place. To keep redox events in check, cells have evolved a complex regulatory and feedback network. Consequently, malfunctions or impairments in redox control are a cause of disease and greatly contribute to the aging of cells, tissues, and organs. This first entry-level guide to the fascinating field of redox signaling and regulation fills the knowledge gap in existing biochemistry and biology textbooks. In an easily accessible manner, the authors integrate the chemistry, biochemistry, cell biology and medical implications of intracellular redox processes, demonstrating that complex science can be presented in a clear and even entertaining manner. Perfect for students and researchers, this is an equally valuable addition to courses in biochemistry, molecular biology, cell biology, and human physiology.
About the Author
Claus Jacob is Junior Professor of Bioorganic Chemistry at the School of Pharmacy, University of Saarland, Germany. He studied chemistry in Kaiserslautern, Germany, and Leicester, UK, subsequently earning his doctorate from the University of Oxford. From 1996 until 1999 he was a postdoc under Prof. Bert Vallee at Harvard Medical School, before taking up the position of lecturer in inorganic chemistry at the University of Exeter, where he remained until moving to his current position in 2005. Claus Jacob is currently coordinator of the EU Framework 7 Marie Curie Initial Training Network on "Natural Products and related Redox Catalysts: Basic Research and Applications in Medicine and Agriculture". His particular interest is in the chemistry underlying biochemical redox events, most notably reactive sulfur species.

Paul Winyard is Professor of Experimental Medicine at Peninsula College of Medicine and Dentistry, Exeter, UK (since 2002). He previously held a Chair in Experimental Medicine at St Bartholomew's and the Royal London School of Medicine and Dentistry, London, UK, and was a Visiting Professor at the University of California, San Francisco (2000-2001). Paul's research interests centre on the role of oxidative/nitrosative stress in human chronic inflammatory diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis. In particular, he has focused on the development of novel therapeutic strategies and free radical assays, and the translation of these developments into preclinical and early-phase clinical studies.