Theses on any subject submitted by the academic libraries in the UK and Ireland.

This report considers the biological and behavioral mechanisms that may underlie the pathogenicity of tobacco smoke. Many Surgeon General's reports have considered research findings on mechanisms in assessing the biological plausibility of associations observed in epidemiologic studies. Mechanisms of disease are important because they may provide plausibility, which is one of the guideline criteria for assessing evidence on causation. This report specifically reviews the evidence on the potential mechanisms by which smoking causes diseases and considers whether a mechanism is likely to be operative in the production of human disease by tobacco smoke. This evidence is relevant to understanding how smoking causes disease, to identifying those who may be particularly susceptible, and to assessing the potential risks of tobacco products.

This book presents the application of genomic tools to examine bacterial adaptation. The emphasis is on data analysis and interpretation.

Phosphoinositides play a major role in cellular signaling and membrane organization. During the last three decades we have learned that enzymes turning over phosphoinositides control vital physiological processes and are involved in the initiation and progression of cancer, inflammation, neurodegenerative, cardiovascular, metabolic disease and more. In two volumes, this book elucidates the crucial mechanisms that control the dynamics of phosphoinositide conversion. Starting out from phosphatidylinositol, a chain of lipid kinases collaborates to generate the oncogenic lipid phosphatidylinositol(3,4,5)-trisphosphate. For every phosphate group added, there are specific lipid kinases – and phosphatases to remove it. Additionally, phospholipases can cleave off the inositol head group and generate poly-phosphoinositols, which act as soluble signals in the cytosol. Volume I untangles the web of these enzymes and their products, and relates them to function in health and disease. Phosphoinositide 3-kinases and 3-phosphatases have received a special focus in volume I, and recent therapeutic developments in human disease are presented along with a historical perspective illustrating the impressive progress in the field.

MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are RNA molecules, conserved by evolution, that regulate gene expressions and their recent discovery is revolutionising both basic biomedical research and drug discovery. Expression levels of MiRNAs have been found to vary between tissues and with developmental stages and hence evaluation of the global expression of miRNAs potentially provides opportunities to identify regulatory points for many different biological processes. This wide-ranging reference work, written by leading experts from both academia and industry, will be an invaluable resource for all those wishing to use miRNA techniques in their own research, from graduate students, post-docs and researchers in academia to those working in R&D in biotechnology and pharmaceutical companies who need to understand this emerging technology. From the discovery of miRNAs and their functions to their detection and role in disease biology, this volume uniquely integrates the basic science with industry application towards drug validation, diagnostic and therapeutic development. Forewords by: Sidney Altman, Yale University, Winner of the Nobel Prize in Chemistry, 1989 and Victor R. Ambros, Dartmouth Medical School, Co-discoverer of MicroRNAs

Bioinformatics for Beginners: Genes, Genomes, Molecular Evolution, Databases and Analytical Tools provides a coherent and friendly treatment of bioinformatics for any student or scientist within biology who has not routinely performed bioinformatic analysis. The book discusses the relevant principles needed to understand the theoretical underpinnings of bioinformatic analysis and demonstrates, with examples, targeted analysis using freely available web-based software and publicly available databases. Eschewing non-essential information, the work focuses on principles and hands-on analysis, also pointing to further study options. - Avoids non-essential coverage, yet fully describes the field for beginners - Explains the molecular basis of evolution to place bioinformatic analysis in biological context - Provides useful links to the vast resource of publicly available bioinformatic databases and analysis tools - Contains over 100 figures that aid in concept discovery and illustration