Henry Jay Forman, Jon Fukuto and Martine Torres "Research is to see what everybody else has seen and to think what nobody else has thought. " -- Albert Szent-Gyorgyi Several years ago, one of us put together a book that dealt with various aspects of oxidative stress and introduced the concept of signal transduction by oxidants. Since then, the interest in the mechanisms by which reactive oxygen and nitrogen species (ROS/RNS) can modulate the cell’s response has tremendously grown, paralleling the intense efforts towards identifying new signaling pathways in which phosphorylation/dephosphorylation events take center stage. Evidence is now mounting that production of these species by the cells is required for their function from growth to apoptosis and numerous signaling pathways have been identified where the participation of ROS and RNS is apparent (see Chapters 11-14, 16 and 18). Thus, the field is no more limited to the group of free radical aficionados who have pioneered this area of research but has now gone mainstream. While it is satisfactory for those of us who have been working on this topic for a long time, it has the risk of becoming the “fashionable” motto where those molecules, still mysterious to some, become responsible for everything and anything.

It is a natural phenomenon for all living organisms in the world to undergo different kinds of stress during their life span. Stress has become a common problem for human beings in this materialistic world. In this period, a publication of any material on stress will be helpful for the human society. The book Basic Principles and Clinical Significance of Oxidative Stress targets all aspects of oxidative stress, including principles, mechanisms, and clinical significance. This book covers four sections: Free Radicals and Oxidative Stress, Natural Compounds as Antioxidants, Antioxidants - Health and Disease, and Oxidative Stress and Therapy. Each of these sections is interwoven with the theoretical aspects and experimental techniques of basic and clinical sciences. This book will be a significant source to scientists, physicians, healthcare professionals, and students who are interested in exploring the effect of stress on human life.

Sturkie's Avian Physiology, Seventh Edition is the classic comprehensive single volume on the physiology of domestic as well as wild birds. This latest edition is thoroughly revised and updated and features several new chapters with entirely new content on such topics as vision, sensory taste, pain reception, evolution, and domestication. Chapters throughout have been greatly expanded due to the many recent advances in the field. This book is written by international experts in different aspects of avian physiology. For easy reading and searches, this book is structured under a series of themes, beginning with genomic studies, sensory biology and nervous systems, and major organs. The chapters then move on to investigate metabolism, endocrine physiology, reproduction, and finally cross-cutting themes such as stress and rhythms. New chapters on feathers and skin are featured as well. Sturkie's Avian Physiology, Seventh Edition is an important resource for ornithologists, poultry scientists, and other researchers in avian studies. It is also useful for students in avian or poultry physiology, as well as avian veterinarians. - Stands out as the only single volume devoted to bird physiology - Features updates, revisions, or additions to each chapter - Written and edited by international leaders in avian studies

Feed Efficiency in the Beef Industry provides a thorough and concise overview of feed efficiency in beef cattle. It frames the great importance of feed efficiency to the industry and details the latest findings of the many scientific disciplines that intersect and aim to improve efficient and sustainable production of nutritious beef. The vast majority of production costs are directly tied to feed. With increased demand for grains to feed a rapidly increasing world population and to supply a new demand for alternative fuels, feed costs continue to increase. In recent years, the negative environmental impacts of inefficient feeding have also been realized; as such feed efficiency is an important factor in both economic viability and environmental sustainability of cattle production. Feed Efficiency in the Beef Industry covers a broad range of topics ranging from economic evaluation of feed efficiency to the physiological and genetic bases of efficient conversion of feed to high quality beef. Chapters also look at how a fuller understanding of feed efficiency is leading to new selective breeding efforts to develop more efficient cattle. With wide-ranging coverage from leading international researchers, Feed Efficiency will be a valuable resource for producers who wish to understand the complexities, challenges, and opportunities to reduce their cost of production, for students studying the topic and for researchers and professionals working in the beef industry.

Studies on Men’s Health and Fertility provides a comprehensive series of up-to-the-minute reviews addressing the role of oxidative stress in the aetiology of reproductive pathologies in the male. This volume represents by far the most detailed, authoritative review of the field that has been produced to date. The text encompasses the basic science of reactive oxygen species (ROS) production by mammalian spermatozoa, the way in which these highly reactive molecules are processed by the germ line and the physiological significance of this redox activity in the generation of a functional gamete. The factors responsible for perturbing the delicate balance between physiological redox signaling on the one hand and oxidative stress on the other are also extensively reviewed and some of the first clues concerning the underlying mechanisms (age, heat, infection, cryostorage, aberrant lipid metabolism), clearly identified. From a clinical perspective there are chapters setting out the methods we should be using to diagnose oxidative stress in the male germ line, a clinical perspective on the aetiology of this condition and detailed considerations of the most suitable means of ameliorating such stress from a therapeutic point of view. Studies on Men’s Health and Fertility is intended to provide clinicians and scientists with a snap shot of the current status of this exciting, rapidly moving field. The book will be of value to clinicians interested in strategies for the management of oxidative stress in their infertility patients and scientists wishing to understand the molecular mechanisms underpinning the generation of ROS by these cells and its pathophysiological significance. It was not so long ago that the ability of spermatozoa to generate ROS was a hotly disputed topic. With the publication of this book such doubts can finally be laid to rest. There is now no doubt that these cells actively generate ROS, that oxidative stress is a major contributor to defects in male reproductive health and that the successful clinical management of this condition depends on developing a deeper understanding of the underlying molecular mechanisms. In this quest, Studies on Men’s Health and Fertility will be seen as a clear and important milestone.

This book describes the three gasotransmitters nitric oxide (NO), hydrogen sulphide (H2S) and carbon monoxide (CO) and their function as intracellular signalling molecules in plants. Common properties are shared by NO, H2S and CO: they are beneficial at low concentrations but hazardous in higher amounts; they are small molecules of gas; they can freely cross cell membranes; their effects do not rely on receptors; they are generated enzymatically and their production is regulated; their functions can be mimicked by exogenous application; and their cellular effects may or may not be mediated by second messengers, but have specific cellular and molecular targets. In plants, many aspects of the biology of gasotransmitters remain completely unknown and generate intriguing questions, which will be discussed in this book.

Volume 64 of Reviews in Mineralogy and Geochemistry presents examples that include the effects of inhaled dust particles in the lung (Huang et al. 2006; Schoonen et al. 2006), biomineralization of bones and teeth (Glimcher et al. 2006), the formation of kidney-stones, the calcification of arteries, the speciation exposure pathways and pathological effects of heavy metal contaminants (Reeder et al. 2006; Plumlee et al. 2006), the transport and fate of prions and pathological viruses in the environment (Schramm et al. 2006), the possible environmental-genetic link in the occurrence of neurodegenerative diseases (Perl and Moalem 2006), the design of biocompatible, bioactive ceramics for use as orthopaedic and dental implants and related tissue engineering applications (Cerruti and Sahai 2006) and the use of oxide-encapsulated living cells for the development of biosensors (Livage and Coradin 2006).