Page 25
Page 25
Ecology of Social Evolution
This book brings together renowned researchers working on sociality in different animals. For the first time, they compile the evidence for the importance of ecological factors in the evolution of social life, ranging from invertebrate to vertebrate social systems, and evaluate its importance versus that of relatedness. Answers are given to important questions such as: - Which factors favour group living in social invertebrates and vertebrates? - Are there general differences in the evolutionary forces promoting social life in social insects versus cooperatively breeding vertebrates? - Why are there only so few eusocial vertebrates? - Can relatedness within social groups be a by-product arising from the fact that neighbours are generally kin?
Ecology of Riparian Forests in Japan : Disturbance, Life History, and Regeneration
It presents the dynamics and mechanisms that govern the coexistence of riparian tree species, tree demography, the response to water stress of trees, and the conservation of endangered species, and focuses on natural disturbances, life-history strategies, and the ecophysiology of trees. Because many riparian landscapes have been degraded and are disappearing at an alarming rate, the regeneration of the remaining riparian ecosystems is urgent. With contributions by more than 20 experts in diverse fields, this book offers useful information for the conservation, restoration, and rehabilitation of riparian ecosystems that remain in world streams and rivers.
Ecology of Harmful Algae
Harmful algal blooms are one of the consequences of the human impact on aquatic ecosystems, particularly the process of eutrophication. They can cause a variety of deleterious effects, including the poisoning of fish and shellfish, habitat disruptions for many organisms, water discolouration, beach fouling, and even toxic effects for humans. This volume is a comprehensive synthesis of the latest research achievements concerning harmful algae (HA) ecology. International experts provide an in-depth analysis of HA topics including: global distribution, ecology of major HA groups, ecology and physiology of HA, HA and the food web, studying and mitigating HA, the human impact on HA and HA impact on human activity. This volume is an invaluable source of information for researchers in HA ecology as well as for advanced students, lecturers, and environmental managers.
Ecology of Baltic Coastal Waters
The Baltic Sea is one of the most investigated water bodies in the world. For decades, the many highly industrialised nations around the Baltic have financed basic and applied investigations, as well as the building and development of research stations and vessels. After World War II, research in the Baltic Proper was intensified and investi- tions became much more international. The main goals of such investigations were analysis of the eutrophication and pollution of the Baltic Sea, and development of mitigating strategies (e.g. the HELCOM-Program). In contrast, research into the coastal zones was carried out mainly under national sovereignty by individual governments due to differing political regimes. Consequently, there was a lack of international collaboration and publications regarding these regions. This changed following the collapse of the former socialist governments. Nevertheless, research activities in the coastal regions still lag behind those in the Baltic Proper. A general description is further hampered by the great variety of coastal water ecosystems. The aim of this book is to overcome this lack by presenting the important Baltic coastal zones in the form of “ecological case studies”. In this way the book rep- sents an important supplement to literature concerning the Baltic Proper.
Ecology and Conservation of Neotropical Montane Oak Forests
Covers the range of natural and managed oak forests in the highlands of tropical America. Providing an understanding of ecological patterns and processes that determine the structure and functioning of these forests, this volume aims to serve as a basis for sustainable forest management and biodiversity conservation.
Ecology and Behaviour of Mesozoic Reptiles
Our knowledge of extinct animals depends almost entirely upon the study of fossils. This richly illustrated book clothes the skeletons of dinosaurs and other Mesozoic reptiles with flesh, and shows how these fascinating animals evolved and probably lived. Expert provides an interesting synthesis of current views on their ecology, physiology and behaviour, and outlines the various hypotheses that have been proposed to explain their extinction.
Ecological Responses to the 1980 Eruption of Mount St. Helens
The eruption of Mount St. Helens on May 18, 1980, had a momentous impact on the fungal, plant, animal, and human life from the mountain to the far reaches of the explosion's ash cloud and mudflows. Although this intense natural event caused loss of substantial life and property, it also created a unique opportunity to examine a huge disturbance of natural systems and their subsequent responses. Based on one of the most studied areas of volcanic activity, this book synthesizes the ecological research that has been conducted for twenty-five years since the eruption.
Ecological Effects of Water-Level Fluctuations in Lakes
It presents selected papers on the ecological effects of WLF in lakes, resulting from a workshop at the University of Konstanz in winter 2005. Issues addressed here include the extent of WLF, and analyses of their effects on different groups of biota from microorganisms to vertebrates. Applied issues include recommendations for the hydrological management of regulated lakes to reduce negative impacts, and a conceptual framework is delivered by an extension of the floodpulse concept for lakes. Current impacts on water use, including increasing demands on drinking and irrigation water, hydropower etc., and climate change effects on WLF make this book an essential resource for aquatic ecologists, engineers, and decision-makers dealing with the management of lake ecosystems and their catchments.
Ecological and Genetic Implications of Aquaculture Activities
Aquaculture is a rapidly growing industry and aquaculture practices can directly interact with and depend upon the surrounding environment. Therefore, the effects of all types of aquaculture on living natural resources and ecosystems are of significant and increasing national and international interest. In Ecological and Genetic Implications of Aquaculture Activities, numerous nationally and internationally prominent aquaculture researchers contribute 27 chapters that comprise overviews of aquaculture effects on the environment, discussions of genetic considerations, thorough documentation of aquaculture effects and their solutions specific to countries, and approaches toward environmentally sustainable aquaculture. Together, these chapters comprise a comprehensive synthesis of many ecological and genetic problems implicated in the practice of aquaculture and of many proven, attempted, or postulated solutions to those problems. Many chapters can serve as benchmark documentations of specific aquaculture effects on biodiversity at different levels.
Echinodermata
Members of the phylum Echinodermata are among the most familiar marine invertebrates. Forms such as the sea star have become virtually a symbol of sea life. Used in ancient oriental medicine as a source of bioactive compounds, sea cucumbers, sea stars and sea urchins are now used for the extraction and purification of cytotoxic, haemolytic, antiviral, antifungal, antifouling, antimicrobial and even anti-tumoural activities.
Early Life Origins of Health and Disease
Early Life Origins of Health and Disease is a new book which presents and discusses the many factors that may have impact on normal development. In a concise and readable manner, the authors consider both the proven and suggestive evidence that the high prevalence of hypertension, diabetes, obesity and, in some populations, kidney disease, may not be all due to genetics or adult environment alone. There is good evidence that stress and more subtle dietary deficiencies, as well as placental malfunction, may increase the risk that the offspring will develop these problems in later life. Finally, new and emerging evidence for other areas of human health and disease such a motor control and mental health is critically reviewed for the first time. The book is a ‘must’ for all scientists interested in researching these areas, as there is a critical evaluation of the methodology used and suggestions for the ‘optimal’ way in which to investigate these phenomena.
Early Development of the Human Pelvic Diaphragm
A sound and detailed knowledge of the anatomy of the pelvic floor is of the utmost importance to gynecologists, obstetricians, surgeons, and urologists, since they all share the same responsibility in treating patients with different pathological conditions caused by pelvic floor dysfunction. The most common clinical expressions of pelvic floor dysfunction are urinary incontinence, anal incontinence, and pelvic organ prolapse. Most often these clinical expressions are found in women, and they are briefly discussed below based on the outline presented in the Third International Consultation on Incontinence, a joint effort of the International Continence Society and the World Health Organization.
Dryland Ecohydrology
By combining the analysis of biotic and abiotic components of terrestrial ecosystems, this volume provides a synthesis of material on arid and semiarid landscapes, which is currently scattered in a number of books and journal articles. The focus on water-limited ecosystems is motivated by their high sensitivity to daily, seasonal, and decadal perturbations in water availability, and by the ecologic, climatic, and economic significance of most of the world's drylands. Conceived as a tool for scientists working in the area of the earth and environmental sciences, this book presents the basic principles of eco-hydrology as well as a broad spectrum of topics and advances in this research field.
Drugs of abuse : Body fluid testing
The authors discuss the various body fluid specimens suitable for testing for illicit drugs describe the structural and manufacturing aspects of on-site testing devices based on lateral flow immunoassay, and detail the pitfalls sometimes encountered when using these specimens. They also discuss in detail the problem of sample adulteration and its detection. Political, social, and legal issues are also considered in articles on privacy, the use of drug testing in courts, and the problem of sample adulteration.
Drugs for Relapse Prevention of Alcoholism
whet there ought to be a reasonable hope that pharmacological drugs will be developed that interfere with an addiction memory, and as a result, finally lead to a cure? In this book, leading preclinical and clinical experts in the field of alcohol relapse prevention strive to furnish an answer to this question. None of the researchers or clinicians believes in a magic bullet that will be of help to all alcoholic patients in overcoming this disease. However, there is now convi- ing evidence demonstrating that specific subpopulations of alcoholic patients experience satisfactory benefit from currently available treatments.
Drugs Affecting Growth of Tumours
During recent years the field of effective anticancer agents has substantially increased. The use of chemotherapy has been accepted as a standard therapy for an expanding number of tumour types and stages, while many new agents are being investigated when standard therapy is lacking or failing. Apart from new targets for anticancer agents, attention is also focused on improving efficacy and tolerability of existing compounds. This topical volume provides an up-to-date overview of clinically relevant data on anticancer agents, and is not only intended for those working as a medical doctor with cancer patients, but also for medical researchers and students. The different classes of anticancer drugs are described by international authorities on the various topics.
Drug Targets in Kinetoplastid Parasites
The book contains 12 chapters contributed by eminent scientists working in this field. The articles deal mainly with two aspects: visual identification of targets and identification of therapeutic agents.Several targets like kDNA replication machinery, purine salvage pathway, purine and pyrimidine biosynthetic pathway, histone deacetylase, DNA topoisomerases, membrane transporter proteins, glycoproteins and glycolipids are discussed in this book. Since current treatments for kinetoplastid parasitic diseases are far from ideal, there is an urgent and genuine need to develop newer compounds as antiparasitic drug candidates. Therefore evelopment of some lead compounds against these parasites as well as drug resistance are also included in this book. Moreover the vast amount of information generated after publication of the "Trytrip" genome sequence now makes possible several new approaches for target identification and discovery of therapeutic agents. This book is an outcome of the contributions of many scientists working in this important area.
Drug Metabolism: Current Concepts
The user-friendly text focuses on concepts rather than extraneous details and is supported by many illustrated examples of biotransformations as well as frequent references to current critical reviews and articles highlighting the nature of research objectives in this vibrant area of medicinal development.
Drug Discovery and Evaluation : Safety and Pharmacokinetic Assays
This book is a landmark in the continuously changing world of drugs. It is essential reading for scientists and managers in the pharmaceutical industry who are involved in drug finding, drug development and decision making in the development process.
Drug Discovery and Evaluation
The 3rd edition of this successful reference book contains an updated selection of the most frequently used assays for reliably detecting the pharmacological effects of potential drugs. Effects covered include cardiovascular, analgesic, endocrine, psychotropic, respiratory, renal, and immunomodulatory activities. Each of the more than 1000 assays comprises a detailed protocol outlining the purpose and rationale of the method, a critical assessment of the results and their pharmacological and clinical relevance. In addition, animal models of rare diseases are described.
