Recent Progress in Hormone Research, Volume 50: Proceedings of the 1993 Laurentian Hormone Conference focuses on the advancements of processes, methodologies, techniques, and approaches involved in hormone research. The selection first offers information on the molecular design of the NMDA receptor channel; synthesis and signaling of growth hormone-releasing hormone; and signaling mechanisms during the response of pituitary gonadotropes to GnRH. The discussions focus on calcium economy of gonadotropes, role of oscillations, structure and expression of the GHRH gene, transgenic animal models for GHRH action, and functional determinants in NMDA receptors. The text then elaborates on signaling mechanisms during the response of pituitary gonadotropes to GnRH; molecular genetic analysis of cAMP and glucocorticoid signaling in development; and activins and the receptor serine kinase superfamily. The publication takes a look at MAP kinase cascade, expression and signal transduction pathways of gonadotropin-releasing hormone receptors, ovarian cell differentiation, and the role of oxytocin and its receptor in parturition. The book also examines the role of prolactin in developmental differentiation of hypophysiotropic tuberoinfundibular dopaminergic neurons and calcitonin gene expression in rat uterus during pregnancy. The selection is a valuable source of data for researchers interested in hormone research. - Neuroendocrinology - Transmembrane signaling - Reproduction - Steroids and the steroid receptor family - Hypertension

Among the topics covered in Volume 49 are neurotransmitter transporters circadian rhythms, transgenic model for studying isles development, protein phosphateses, the androgen receptor, molecular genetics of steroid 5oz-reductases and benign and malignant prostatic neoplasms.

Recent Progress in Hormone Research, Volume 45 covers the proceedings of the 1988 Laurentian Hormone Conference. The book presents papers on the molecular characterization of the glucocorticoid receptor; the estrogen regulation of gene transcription and mRNA stability; and the molecular and cellular biology of mammalian progesterone receptors. The text also includes papers on the molecular basis of regulation of ionic channels by G proteins; the role of biologically active follicle-stimulating hormone in reproduction; and the role of glycosylphosphoinositides in signal transduction. Papers on the mechanisms of growth control in normal and malignant breast epithelium; the biochemical and structural analysis of the nerve growth factor receptor; and the isolation, molecular cloning, and mechanism of action of parathyroid hormone-related protein are also considered. The book further tackles the regulation and dysregulation of adipsin in obesity and other metabolic states. Endocrinologists, physiologists, biochemists, and scientists involved in hormone research will find the book invaluable.

What was it like to be a woman scientist battling the “old boy's” network during the 1960s and 1970s? Neena Schwartz, a prominent neuroendocrinologist at Northwestern University, tells all. She became a successful scientist and administrator at a time when few women entered science and fewer succeeded in establishing independent laboratories. She describes her personal career struggles, and those of others in academia, as well as the events which lead to the formation of the Association of Women in Science, and Women in Endocrinology, two national organizations, which have been successful in increasing the numbers of women scientists and their influence in their fields.The book intersperses this socio-political story with an account of Schwartz's personal life as a lesbian and a description of her research on the role of hormones in regulating reproductive cycles. In a chapter titled “Don't Ask, Don't Tell,” she examines the “evidence” from a scientist's point of view for the hormonal and genetic theories for homosexuality. Other chapters provide advice on mentoring young scientists and a discourse on why it matters to all of us to have more women doing and teaching science. She also describes the process of putting together an interdisciplinary Center on Reproductive Science at Northwestern, which brought together basic and clinical scientists in an internationally recognized program of research and practice.

The 1997 Les Houches workshop on "Dynamical Network in Physics and Biology" was the third in a series of meetings "At the Frontier between Physics and Biology". Our objective with these workshops is to create a truly interdisciplinary forum for researchers working on outstanding problems in biology, but using different approaches (physical, chemical or biological). Generally speaking, the biologists are trained in the particular and motivated by the specifics, while, in contrast, the physicists deal with generic and "universal" models. All agree about the necessity of developing "robust" models. The specific aim of the workshop was to bridge the gap between physics and biology in the particular field of interconnected dynamical networks. The proper functioning of a living organism of any complexity requires the coordinated activity of a great number of "units". Units, or, in physical terms, degrees of freedom that couple to one another, typically form networks. The physical or biological properties of interconnected networks may drastically differ from those of the individual units: the whole is not simply an assembly of its parts, as can be demonstrated by the following examples. Above a certain (critical) concentration the metallic islands, randomly distributed in an insulating matrix, form an interconnected network. At this point the macroscopic conductivity of the system becomes finite and the amorphous metal is capable of carrying current. The value of the macroscopic conductivity typically is very different from the conductivity of the individual metallic islands.

The newly revised and updated Hormones, Second Edition provides a comprehensive treatment of human hormones, viewed in light of modern theories of hormone action and in the context of current understanding of subcellular and cellular architecture and classical organ physiology. Each chapter presents a physiological description of the hormone system under consideration, followed by a listing of the mode-of-action of the hormone. This book includes significant advances in the molecular biology of receptors, hormones, and studies of hormone action that have transpired over the past five years. The text updates the material on enzymes related to steroid metabolism and new hormone systems, as well as providing a new chapter on hormones and cancer. - Completely updates the material, covering new discoveries and significant advances since the First Edition was published in 1987 - Contains new information regarding steroid hormones, the role of hormones in cancer, and a comprehensive introductory chapter - Presents an overview of virtually all important hormones - Provides detailed physiological, cellular, and molecular descriptions of classical human endocrine systems - Streamlines the presentation of the First Edition, making the book easier to use and read