Stands as the most comprehensive guide to the subject-covering every essential topic related to DNA damage identification and repair. Covering a wide array of topics from bacteria to human cells, this book summarizes recent developments in DNA damage repair and recognition while providing timely reviews on the molecular mechanisms employe

We have taught plant molecular biology and biotechnology at the undergraduate and graduate level for over 20 years. In the past few decades, the field of plant organelle molecular biology and biotechnology has made immense strides. From the green revolution to golden rice, plant organelles have revolutionized agriculture. Given the exponential growth in research, the problem of finding appropriate textbooks for courses in plant biotechnology and molecular biology has become a major challenge. After years of handing out photocopies of various journal articles and reviews scattered through out the print and electronic media, a serendipitous meeting occurred at the 2002 IATPC World Congress held in Orlando, Florida. After my talk and evaluating several posters presented by investigators from my laboratory, Dr. Jacco Flipsen, Publishing Manager of Kluwer Publishers asked me whether I would consider editing a book on Plant Organelles. I accepted this challenge, after months of deliberations, primarily because I was unsuccessful in finding a text book in this area for many years. I signed the contract with Kluwer in March 2003 with a promise to deliver a camera-ready textbook on July 1, 2004. Given the short deadline and the complexity of the task, I quickly realized this task would need a co-editor. Dr. Christine Chase was the first scientist who came to my mind because of her expertise in plant mitochondria, and she readily agreed to work with me on this book.

This book is a comprehensive review of the detailed molecular mechanisms of and functional crosstalk among the replication, recombination, and repair of DNA (collectively called the "3Rs") and the related processes, with special consciousness of their biological and clinical consequences. The 3Rs are fundamental molecular mechanisms for organisms to maintain and sometimes intentionally alter genetic information. DNA replication, recombination, and repair, individually, have been important subjects of molecular biology since its emergence, but we have recently become aware that the 3Rs are actually much more intimately related to one another than we used to realize. Furthermore, the 3R research fields have been growing even more interdisciplinary, with better understanding of molecular mechanisms underlying other important processes, such as chromosome structures and functions, cell cycle and checkpoints, transcriptional and epigenetic regulation, and so on. This book comprises 7 parts and 21 chapters: Part 1 (Chapters 1–3), DNA Replication; Part 2 (Chapters 4–6), DNA Recombination; Part 3 (Chapters 7–9), DNA Repair; Part 4 (Chapters 10–13), Genome Instability and Mutagenesis; Part 5 (Chapters 14–15), Chromosome Dynamics and Functions; Part 6 (Chapters 16–18), Cell Cycle and Checkpoints; Part 7 (Chapters 19–21), Interplay with Transcription and Epigenetic Regulation. This volume should attract the great interest of graduate students, postdoctoral fellows, and senior scientists in broad research fields of basic molecular biology, not only the core 3Rs, but also the various related fields (chromosome, cell cycle, transcription, epigenetics, and similar areas). Additionally, researchers in neurological sciences, developmental biology, immunology, evolutionary biology, and many other fields will find this book valuable.