Molecular Diagnostics: Promises and Possibilities

Molecular Diagnostics: Promises and Possibilities
Author: Mousumi Debnath
Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media
Total Pages: 527
Release: 2010-01-29
Genre: Medical
ISBN: 9048132614

A rapid development in diverse areas of molecular biology and genetic engineering resulted in emergence of variety of tools. These tools are not only applicable to basic researches being carried out world over, but also exploited for precise detection of abnormal conditions in plants, animals and human body. Although a basic researcher is well versed with few techniques used by him/her in the laboratory, they may not be well acquainted with methodologies, which can be used to work out some of their own research problems. The picture is more blurred when the molecular diagnostic tools are to be used by physicians, scientists and technicians working in diagnostic laboratories in hospitals, industry and academic institutions. Since many of them are not trained in basics of these methods, they come across several gray areas in understanding of these tools. The accurate application of molecular diagnostic tools demands in depth understanding of the methodology for precise detection of the abnormal condition of living body. To meet the requirements of a good book on molecular diagnostics of students, physicians, scientists working in agricultural, veterinary, medical and pharmaceutical sciences, it needs to expose the reader lucidly to: Give basic science behind commonly used tools in diagnostics Expose the readers to detailed applications of these tools and Make them aware the availability of such diagnostic tools The book will attract additional audience of pathologists, medical microbiologists, pharmaceutical sciences, agricultural scientists and veterinary doctors if the following topics are incorporated at appropriate places in Unit II or separately as a part of Unit-III in the book. Molecular diagnosis of diseases in agricultural crops Molecular diagnosis of veterinary diseases. Molecular epidemiology, which helps to differentiate various epidemic strains and sources of disease outbreaks. Even in different units of the same hospital, the infections could be by different strains of the same species and the information becomes valuable for infection control strategies. Drug resistance is a growing problem for bacterial, fungal and parasitic microbes and the molecular biology tools can help to detect the drug resistance genes without the cultivation and in vitro sensitivity testing. Molecular diagnostics offers faster help in the selection of the proper antibiotic for the treatment of tuberculosis, which is a major problem of the in the developing world. The conventional culture and drug sensitivity testing of tuberculosis bacilli is laborious and time consuming, whereas molecular diagnosis offers rapid drug resistant gene detection even from direct clinical samples. The same approach for HIV, malaria and many more diseases needs to be considered. Molecular diagnostics in the detection of diseases during foetal life is an upcoming area in the foetal medicine in case of genetic abnormalities and infectious like TORCH complex etc. The book will be equally useful to students, scientists and professionals working in the field of molecular diagnostics.

Food Safety Handbook

Food Safety Handbook
Author: Ronald H. Schmidt
Publisher: John Wiley & Sons
Total Pages: 866
Release: 2005-03-11
Genre: Science
ISBN: 047143227X

As with the beginning of the twentieth century, when food safety standards and the therapeutic benefits of certain foods and supplements first caught the public’s attention, the dawn of the twenty-first century finds a great social priority placed on the science of food safety. Ronald Schmidt and Gary Rodrick’s Food Safety Handbook provides a single, comprehensive reference on all major food safety issues. This expansive volume covers current United States and international regulatory information, food safety in biotechnology, myriad food hazards, food safety surveillance, and risk prevention. Approaching food safety from retail, commercial, and institutional angles, this authoritative resource analyzes every step of the food production process, from processing and packaging to handling and distribution. The Handbook categorizes and defines real and perceived safety issues surrounding food, providing scientifically non-biased perspectives on issues for professional and general readers. Each part is divided into chapters, which are then organized into the following structure: Introduction and Definition of Issues; Background and Historical Significance; Scientific Basis and Implications; Regulatory, Industrial, and International Implications; and Current and Future Implications. Topics covered include: Risk assessment and epidemiology Biological, chemical, and physical hazards Control systems and intervention strategies for reducing risk or preventing food hazards, such as Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point (HACCP) Diet, health, and safety issues, with emphasis on food fortification, dietary supplements, and functional foods Worldwide food safety issues, including European Union perspectives on genetic modification Food and beverage processors, manufacturers, transporters, and government regulators will find the Food Safety Handbook to be the premier reference in its field.

Mycotoxins in Food

Mycotoxins in Food
Author: N Magan
Publisher: Woodhead Publishing
Total Pages: 492
Release: 2004-07-16
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN: 9781855737334

Full text, included in Knovel Library within the subject area of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering.

Enzyme Immunoassays

Enzyme Immunoassays
Author: S.S. Deshpande
Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media
Total Pages: 488
Release: 1996-06-30
Genre: Medical
ISBN: 9780412056017

This unique reference provides a pragmatic approach to the development of successful commercial immunodiagnostic products based on enzyme immunoessay technology. Presenting both the basic and applied principles, Enzyme Immunoassays gathers information on all aspects of this process, from the initial conceptualization to the introduction of the product to the market.

Wood Production, Wood Technology, and Biotechnological Impacts

Wood Production, Wood Technology, and Biotechnological Impacts
Author: Ursula Kües
Publisher: Universitätsverlag Göttingen
Total Pages: 646
Release: 2007
Genre: Forest products industry
ISBN: 3940344117

In the year 2001, Prof. Dr. Ursula Kües was appointed at the Faculty of Forest Sciences and Forest Ecology of the Georg-August-University Göttingen to the chair Molecular Wood Biotechnology endowed by the Deutsche Bundesstiftung Umwelt (DBU). Her group studies higher fungi in basic and applied research. Research foci are on mushroom development and on fungal enzymes degrading wood and their applications in wood biotechnology. This book has been edited to thank the DBU for all support given to the chair Molecular Wood Biotechnology. Contributions to the book are from scientists from Göttingen recognised in different fields of forestry and wood science. Chapters presented by members of the group Molecular Wood Biotechnology introduces into their areas of research. The book is designed for interested students of wood biology and wood technology but will also address scientists in the field.

Polymer Science Dictionary

Polymer Science Dictionary
Author: Mark Alger
Publisher: Springer
Total Pages: 1012
Release: 2017-06-19
Genre: Technology & Engineering
ISBN: 9402408932

The 3rd edition of this important dictionary offers more than 12,000 entries with expanded encyclopaedic-style definitions making this major reference work invaluable to practitioners, researchers and students working in the area of polymer science and technology. This new edition now includes entries on computer simulation and modeling, surface and interfacial properties and their characterization, functional and smart polymers. New and controlled architectures of polymers, especially dendrimers and controlled radical polymerization are also covered.

Foodborne Pathogens

Foodborne Pathogens
Author: Clive de W. Blackburn
Publisher: McGraw Hill Professional
Total Pages: 552
Release: 2002
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN: 9781855734548

As trends in foodborne disease continue to rise, the effective identification and control of pathogens becomes ever more important for the food industry. With its distinguished international team of contributors, Foodborne pathogens provides an authoritative and practical guide to effective control measures and how they can be applied in practice to individual pathogens. Part One looks at general techniques in assessing and managing microbiological hazards. After a review of analytical methods, there are chapters on modelling pathogen behaviour and carrying out a risk assessment as the essential foundation for effective food safety management. The following chapters then look at good management practice in key stages in the supply chain, starting with farm production. There are chapters on hygienic plant design and sanitation, and safe process design and operation which provide the foundation for a discussion of what makes for effective HACCP systems implementation. There is also a chapter on safe practices for consumers and food handlers in the retail and catering sectors.This discussion of pathogen control then provides a context for Part Two which looks at what this means in practice for key pathogens such as E. coli, Salmonella, Listeria and Campylobacter. Each chapter discusses pathogen characteristics, detection methods and control procedures. Part Three then looks at non-bacterial hazards such as viruses and parasites, as well as emerging potential 'hazards' such as Mycobacterium paratuberculosis and the increasingly important area of chronic disease. Foodborne pathogens will be widely welcomed as an essential and authoritative guide to successful pathogen control in the food industry.