Comparative Endocrinology Aubrey Gorbman, Walton W. Dickhoff, Steven R. Vigna, Nancy B. Clark & Charles L. Ralph Keenly sensitive to the needs and capabilities of today’s undergraduate, this textbook provides a broadly comparative approach to vertebrate endocrinology which is not confined to the study of mammals but compares and relates all vertebrate groups. The mechanism of hormonal action is considered as a general phenomenon and specifically with respect to each of the vertebrate hormones. The book’s initial gland-by-gland approach permits a rapid review of the entire endocrine system and of the linkages between environmental changes and hormonally regulated adaptive changes. Gradually, the book’s emphasis shifts from glands and their hormones to chemically modulated phenomena of increasing complexity. Thus, the relatively simpler process of integumentary pigment control and its regulation is discussed before calcium metabolism. Other multihormonally regulated phenomena like osmoregulation, and the highly complex subject of intermediary metabolism are discussed in stages throughout the work before being presented in their own right in later chapters. The book’s comparative approach gives way in Chapter 13 to the examination of endocrine-regulated reproduction in mammals, particularly in man. This departure is due primarily to the well-recognized difficulty of generalizing from one animal group to another in light of the highly adaptive quality of vertebrate reproduction. The book, at this point, limits the range of discussion on the comparative aspects of reproductive endocrinology by choosing to present the best understood species—the rat and man—as the principal models for study of the phenomenon. As an instructional tool, Comparative Endocrinology is unsurpassed in its clarity. The use of all technical terms is preceded or accompanied by explanations for those terms. The most lavishly illustrated endocrinology text available, the book contains numerous summary diagrams to permit students to organize complex interrelationships visually. Photographs and electron micrographs are drawn from the vast body of original literature to provide outstanding illustrations of morphological features.

Handbook of Hormones: Comparative Endocrinology for Basic and Clinical Research, Second Edition presents a catalog of fundamental information on the structure and function of hormones from basic biology to clinical use, offering a rapid way to obtain specific facts about the chemical and molecular characteristics of hormones, their receptors, signaling pathways, and the biological activities they regulate. The book's stellar editorial board, affiliated with the Japan Society for Comparative Endocrinology, brings together authors that present a compelling structure of each hormone with a consistent presentation that provides a primer surrounding the plethora of hormones that now exist. Comparative endocrinology continues to rapidly expand and new information about hormones is being produced almost daily, making it important to stay up-to-date. Hormone, paracrine, and autocrine factors have been identified as key players in a range of different systems, including immune, musculoskeletal and cardiovascular. Frontiers between disciplines are being blurred and many scientists in fields other than endocrinology are interested in hormones. Scientists now have the unprecedented opportunity to look from invertebrates to vertebrate and identify novel regulatory factors and understand their function and how they determine an organism’s physiology and survival. Presents hormones in groups according to their origin so that readers can easily understand their inter-relation Includes 47 new hormones, such as neuropeptides, cytokines, growth hormones, biogenic amines and amino acids that are important for cell to cell communication via endocrine, paracrine and neurotransmitter signaling Summarizes the current knowledge of hormone evolution based on comparative genome resources, such as synteny, genome sequence and comprehensive phylogeny Covers a wide range of information on hormones, from basic information on structure and function across vertebrate and invertebrate phyla to clinical applications Collates key information on 259 hormones and 47 groups/families

General and Comparative Endocrinology: An Integrative Approach, takes a holistic approach to endocrinology, introducing students to the diverse facets of this interdisciplinary science ranging from the medical to comparative domains, while also exploring evolutionary, environmental, and conservation specializations within the field. The textbook is founded on the principle that students interested in the health sciences will benefit from understanding how proficiency in endocrine function among a diversity of organisms contributes to advances in modern medicine. Likewise, students intrigued by comparative physiology will benefit from the wealth of knowledge derived from medical/clinical endocrinology, the historical bedrock of the field. This textbook represents the modern field of endocrinology in its totality by addressing topics and recent advances not currently discussed in other introductory endocrinology textbooks. Key Features Introduces the broad and interdisciplinary scope of endocrinology. Provides clear chapter objectives and key concepts. Includes summary and synthesis questions for each chapter that are suitable for exams and quizzes. Includes a chapter devoted to endocrine-disrupting chemicals. Describes the roles played by the endocrine system in important health challenges related to appetite regulation, obesity, diabetes, and other diseases stemming from ‘mismatches to modernity’. Integrates evolutionary and comparative approaches to hormones and health.