Wiley-Blackwell The Encyclopedia of Cell Technology: 2 Volume Set (Wiley Biotechnology Encyclopaedias)

Brings together up–to–date information on all key aspects of plant and animal cell technology in a single resource. Covers scientific, historical, and ethical aspects of biotechnology. Synthesizes a wealth of information in a valuable one–stop resource. Invaluable to researchers working animal or plant cell technology. Review "...this book has many features that recommend its purchase...a fine example of an extensive...collection of review articles..." (Choice, Vol. 39, No. 5, January 2002) "This work is the most up–to–date reference on both animal and plant cell science and technology." (American Reference Books Annual, Vol. 33) Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved. Preface The Wiley Biotechnology Encyclopedias, composed of the Encyclopedia of Molecular Biology; the Encyclopedia of Bioprocess Technology. Fermentation, Biocatalysis, and Bieseparation; the Encyclopedia of Cell Technology; and the Encyclopedia of Ethical, Legal, and Policy Issues in Biotechnology cover very broadly four major contemporary themes in biotechnology. The series comes at a fascinating time in that, as we move into the twenty-first century, the discipline of biotechnology is undergoing striking paradigm changes. Biotechnology is now beginning to be viewed as an informational science. In a simplistic sense there are three types of biological information. First, there is the digital or linear information of our chromosomes and genes with the four-letter alphabet composed of G, C, A, and T (the bases guanine, cytosine, adenine, and thymine). Variation in the order of these letters in the digital strings of our chromosomes or our expressed genes (or mRNAs) generates information of several distinct types: genes, regulatory machinery, and information that enables chromosomes to carry out their tasks as informational organelles (e.g., centromeric and telomeric sequences). Second, there is the three-dimensional information of proteins, the molecular machines of life. Proteins are strings of amino acids employing a 20-letter alphabet. Proteins pose four technical challenges: (1) Proteins are synthesized as linear strings and fold into precise three- dimensional structures as dictated by the order of amino acid residues in the string. Can we formulate the rules for protein folding to predict three-dimensional structure from primary amino acid sequence? The identification and comparative analysis of all human and model organism (bacteria, yeast, nematode, fly, mouse, etc.) genes and proteins will eventually lead to a lexicon of motifs that are the building block components of genes and proteins. These motifs will greatly constrain the shape space that computational algorithms must search to successfully correlate primary amino acid sequence with the correct three-dimensional shapes. The protein-folding problem will probably be solved within the nex! t 10-15 years. (2) Can we predict protein function from knowledge of the three-dimensional structure? Once again the lexicon of motifs with their functional as well as structural correlations will play a critical role in solving this problem. (3) How do the myriad of chemical modifications of proteins (e.g., Phosphorylation, acetylation, etc.) alter their structures and modify their functions? The mass spectrometer will Play a key role in identifying secondary modifications. (4) How do proteins interact with one another and/or with other macromolecules to form complex molecular machines (e.g., the ribosomal subunits)? If these functional complexes can be isolated, the mass spectrometer, coupled with a knowledge of all protein sequences that can be derived from the complete genomic sequence of the organism, will serve as a powerful tool for identifying all the components of complex molecular machines. The third type of biological information arises from complex biological systems and networks. Systems information is four dimensional because it varies with time. F