The first edition of this book, published in 1999 and called DNA Repair Protocols: Eukaryotic Systems, brought together laboratory-based methods for studying DNA damage and repair in diverse eukaryotes: namely, two kinds of yeast, a nematode, a fruit fly, a toad, three different plants, and human and murine cells. This second edition of DNA Repair Protocols covers mammalian cells only and hence its new subtitle, Mammalian Systems. There are two reasons for this fresh emphasis, both of them pragmatic: to cater to the interests of what is now a largely mammalocentric DNA repair field, and to expedite editing and prod- tion of this volume. Although DNA Repair Protocols: Mammalian Systems is a smaller book than its predecessor, it actually contains a greater variety of methods. Fourteen of the book’s thirty-two chapters are entirely new and areas of redundancy present in the first edition have been eliminated here (for example, now just two chapters describe assays for nucleotide excision repair [NER], rather than seven). All eighteen returning chapters have been revised, many of them ext- sively. In order to maintain a coherent arrangement of topics, the four-part p- titioning seen in the first edition was dispensed with and chapters concerned with ionizing radiation damage and DNA strand breakage and repair were re- cated to near the front of the book. Finally, an abstract now heads each chapter.

Genotoxicity and DNA Repair: A Practical Approach provides a key reference for determining how to analyze the genotoxic activity of molecules or materials and, at the same time, serves as a useful tool for researchers in the Environmental Mutagenesis and DNA Repair fields. Focused on genotoxicity assays recommended by the “OECD guidelines for the testing of chemicals”, this volume also covers other useful assays, such as some gene mutation assays, the comet assay in different species and applications, and the SMART assays of Drosophila. For all the assays, the book presents brief theoretical introductions to the topics and updated standard and modified step-by-step protocols to perform them. Special emphasis is placed on the analysis of nanoparticles, including an integrative approach analysis. The DNA Repair section includes several assays that provide information on repair activity in vitro and in vivo, as well as recent applications to study DNA repair in humans, cell cultures, and animal models. As a volume in the Methods in Pharmacology and Toxicology series, the chapters contain the kind of detail and key implementation advice that ensures reproducible results in the lab. Authoritative and invaluable, Genotoxicity and DNA Repair: A Practical Approach aims to aid scientists in their pursuit of forwarding this vital field of study.

The processes of DNA recombination and repair are vital to cell integrity - an error can lead to disease such as cancer. It is therefore a large and exciting area of research and is also taught on postgraduate and undergraduate courses. This book is not a comprehensive view of the field, but a selection of the issues currently at the forefront of knowledge.

When setting out to decide on the content of DNA Repair Protocols: Prokaryotic Systems, I was conscious of the need to portray the vast array of pathways and enzymatic activities that are part of the discipline of DNA repair. In addition to the classical DNA repair activities, I wanted to convey the significant interest that has been generated in recent years in the use of the proteins and repair systems as research tools, much like the use of restriction enzymes over the last few decades. Therefore, in addition to chapters deta- ing protocols for investigating specific repair activities, I have included s- eral chapters in this book on the applied use of DNA repair proteins and systems. The many years of research on bacterial DNA repair systems have allowed us to really understand the majority of DNA repair pathways in bac- rial cells. Building on this knowledge, research has lead to major advances in understanding mammalian DNA repair and uncovered its links to human d- ease, such as DNA mismatch repair and colon cancer, nucleotide excision repair and xeroderma pigmentosum, DNA helicase function in Bloom’s s- drome, and so on. Such have been the advances that Science magazine iden- fied the collective DNA repair systems as its “Molecule of the Year” in 1994.

DNA Repair Mechanisms is an account of the proceedings at a major international conference on DNA Repair Mechanisms held at Keystone, Colorado on February 1978. The conference discusses through plenary sessions the overall standpoint of DNA repair. The papers presented and other important documents, such as short summaries by the workshop session conveners, comprise this book. The compilation describes the opposing views, those that agree and dispute about certain topic areas. This book, divided into 15 parts, is arranged according to the proceedings in the conference. The plenary sessions are ...

Genetic recombination, in the broadest sense, can be defined as any process in which DNA sequences interact and undergo a transfer of information, producing new “recombinant” sequences that contain information from each of the original molecules. All organisms have the ability to carry out recombination, and this striking universality speaks to the essential role recombination plays in a variety of biological processes fundamentally important to the maintenance of life. Such processes include DNA repair, regulation of gene expression, disease etiology, meiotic chromosome segregation, and evolution. One important aspect of recombination is that it typically occurs only between sequences that display a high degree of sequence identity. The stringent requirement for homology helps to ensure that, under normal circumstances, a cell is protected from deleterious rearrangements since a swap of genetic information between two nearly identical sequences is not expected to dramatically alter a genome. Recombination between dissimilar sequences, which does happen on occasion, may have such harmful consequences as chromosomal translocations, deletions, or inversions. For many organisms, it is also important that recombination rates are not too high lest the genome become destabilized. Curiously, certain organisms, such as the trypanosome parasite, actually use a high rate of recombination at a particular locus in order to switch antigen expression continually and evade the host immune system effectively.

Basic Clinical Radiobiology is a concise but comprehensive textbook setting out the essentials of the science and clinical application of radiobiology for those seeking accreditation in radiation oncology, clinical radiation physics, and radiation technology. Fully revised and updated to keep abreast of current developments in radiation biology and radiation oncology, this fifth edition continues to present in an interesting way the biological basis of radiation therapy, discussing the basic principles and significant developments that underlie the latest attempts to improve the radiotherapeutic management of cancer. This new edition is highly illustrated with attractive 2-colour presentation and now includes new chapters on stem cells, tissue response and the convergence of radiotherapy, radiobiology, and physics. It will be invaluable for FRCR (clinical oncology) and equivalent candidates, SpRs (and equivalent) in radiation oncology, practicing radiation oncologists and radiotherapists, as well as radiobiologists and radiotherapy physicists.