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Volume 6 of Biomembranes covers transmembrane receptors and channels. A particularly important role for the membrane is that of passing messages between a cell and its environment. Part I of this volume covers receptors for hormones and growth factors. Here, as in so many other areas of cell biology, the application of the methods of molecular biology have led to the recognition of a number of families of receptors. Typically, such receptors contain an extracellular ligand binding domain, a transmembrane domain, and an intracellular catalytic domain whose activation, as a result of ligand binding, leads to generation of second messengers within the cell and stimulation of a range of cytosolic enzymes. An alternative signaling strategy, exploited in particular in the nervous system, is to use ion channels to allow controlled movement of monovalent (Na+, K+) or divalent (Ca2+) cations in or out of the cell, resulting in changes in membrane potential or alterations in the intracellular concentration of Ca2+. Part II of this volume is concerned with these ion channels and with other, often simpler, ion channel systems whose study can throw light on channel mechanism.
This book addresses a wide range of basic and clinical issues in the physiology and pharmacology of growth hormone. The volume is organized like a textbook. It begins with factors contributing to GH gene expression, the functional relationships of the GH receptor, molecular biological analysis of the GH-GH receptor complex and proceeds to describe the insulin-like growth factor axis. Transgenic models are discussed for analysis of discrete effects. These discussions provide a bridge to clinically oriented discussions of growth abnormalities in GH deficient children, GH insensitivity due to deficiency of the GH receptor, and the concept of aging as a GH/IGF-I deficiency state. Discussions also include the immune system as a source and a responder to GH, GHRH, IGF-I and the effects of GH excess.
Where does Japanese come from? The linguistic origin of the Japanese language is among the most disputed questions of language history. One current hypothesis is that Japanese is an Altaic language, sharing a common ancestor with Korean, Tungusic, Mongolic and Turkic. But, the opinions are strongly polarized. Especially the inclusion of Japanese into this classification model is very much under debate. Given the lack of consensus in the field, this book presents a state of the art for the etymological evidence relating Japanese to Korean, Tungusic, Mongolic and Turkic. The different Altaic etymologies proposed in the scholarly literature are gathered in an etymological index of Japanese appended to this book. An item-by-item sifting of the evidence helps to hold down borrowings, universal similarities and coincidental look-alikes to a small percentage. When the remaining core-evidence is screened in terms of phonological regularity, the answer to the intriguing question is beginning to take shape.
Laron Syndrome (LS) is a disease characterized by resistance to growth hormone (GH) and caused by molecular defects of the GH receptor, leading to a deficiency of insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-1) and a significant impairment of growth. The syndrome is a unique human model of a peptide hormone receptor defect and GH-IGF-1 interaction. It offers the opportunity to study the consequences of long-term IGF-1 deficiency and the role of IGF-1 in growth and metabolism. With the recent biosynthesis of IGF-1 and the initiation of IGF-1 therapy, a whole new world of basic biological interactions is opening up. This volume brings together leading researchers in genetics, endocrinology, pediatrics, biochemistry, physiology and pharmacology to summarize what is now known about LS, and to discuss the lessons learned from studying and treating this disease since its initial description in 1966. Special features include the demography of LS, and the first data on the long-term IGF-1 treatment of a large group of patients.
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Recent Progress in Hormone Research, Volume 48 provides information pertinent to endocrine research dealing with all aspects of biological organization. This book covers a variety of topics, including differentiation of the embryo, development and growth at puberty, maintenance of adult well-being, and aging. Organized into 29 chapters, this volume begins with an overview of the role of oncogenes in fetal development. This text then compares the molecular descriptions of the genes for growth hormone and prolactin receptors to receptors for s variety of other hormones, peptide, and growth factors. Other chapters consider the three-dimensional structure of the growth hormone receptor. This book discusses as well the conventional and nonconventional uses of human growth hormone, with emphasis on the wide availability of protein that is possible only through molecular biology. The final chapter deals with the effect of hormones on primate behavior. This book is a valuable resource for geneticists and biologists.