microRNAs (miRNAs) are small non-coding RNAs that regulate various biological phenomena, such as development and homeostasis. The dysregulation of miRNA leads to disease progression, particularly of cancer. In Circulating MicroRNAs: Methods and Protocols, expert researchers in the field detail recent advances in the isolation, purification and analysis of circulating miRNAs from a variety of sources for research. The book is divided into three main topics. The first section involves the study of secretory miRNAs in cell-cell communication, and the second, the study of circulating miRNAs in body fluids. The last describes the novel techniques used to study circulating miRNAs. Written in the highly successful Methods in Molecular BiologyTM series format, chapters include introductions to their respective topics, lists of the necessary materials and reagents, step-by-step, readily reproducible laboratory protocols, and key tips on troubleshooting and avoiding known pitfalls. Authoritative and practical, Circulating MicroRNAs: Methods and Protocols seeks to aid scientists in dealing with the recent advances of RNAi technology from the bench to the bedside.

MicroRNAs as the endogenous mediators of RNA interference have experienced an unprecedented career in recent years, highlighting their pathogenic, diagnostic and potential therapeutic relevance. Beside tissue microRNAs, they are also found in body fluids, most notably in blood. Significant differences of circulating microRNA levels have been found in various diseases, making them candidates for minimally invasive markers of disease, for example tumor malignancy. The book focuses on the potential diagnostic applicability of circulating microRNAs in various diseases and their potential biological significance.

microRNAs (miRNAs) are small non-coding RNAs that regulate various biological phenomena, such as development and homeostasis. The dysregulation of miRNA leads to disease progression, particularly of cancer. In Circulating MicroRNAs: Methods and Protocols, expert researchers in the field detail recent advances in the isolation, purification and analysis of circulating miRNAs from a variety of sources for research. The book is divided into three main topics. The first section involves the study of secretory miRNAs in cell-cell communication, and the second, the study of circulating miRNAs in body fluids. The last describes the novel techniques used to study circulating miRNAs. Written in the highly successful Methods in Molecular BiologyTM series format, chapters include introductions to their respective topics, lists of the necessary materials and reagents, step-by-step, readily reproducible laboratory protocols, and key tips on troubleshooting and avoiding known pitfalls. Authoritative and practical, Circulating MicroRNAs: Methods and Protocols seeks to aid scientists in dealing with the recent advances of RNAi technology from the bench to the bedside.

The discovery of microRNAs and its role as gene expression regulators in human carcinogenesis represents one of the most important scientific achievements of the last decade. More recently, other non-coding RNAs have been discovered and its implications in cancer are emerging as well, suggesting a broader than anticipated involvement of the non-coding genome in cancer. Moreover, completely new and unexpected functions for microRNAs are being revealed, leading to the identification of new anticancer molecular targets. This book represents a comprehensive guide on non-coding RNAs and cancer, spanning from its role as cancer biomarkers, to providing the most useful bioinformatic tools, to presenting some of the most relevant discoveries, which indicates how these fascinating molecules act as fine orchestrators of cancer biology.

MicroRNAs in Medicine provides an access point into the current literature on microRNA for both scientists and clinicians, with an up-to-date look at what is happening in the emerging field of microRNAs and their relevance to medicine. Each chapter is a comprehensive review, with descriptions of the latest microRNA research written by international leaders in their field. Opening with an introduction to what microRNAs are and how they function, the book goes on to explore the role of microRNAs in normal physiological functions, infectious diseases, non-infectious diseases, cancer, circulating microRNAs as non-invasive biomarkers, and finally their potential as novel therapeutics. Including background information on the field as well as reviews of the latest research breakthroughs, MicroRNAs in Medicine is a one-stop source of information to satisfy the specialists and non-specialists alike, appealing to students, researchers, and clinicians interested in understanding the potential of microRNAs in medicine and research.

This volume explores microRNA function in a wide array of human disorders, providing a clinical basis for precision medicine and personalized therapies using these molecules. The twenty-one chapters, all authored by internationally-renowned experts, open with an introduction contextualizing microRNA manipulation within today’s initiatives towards precision medicine. The following chapters explore the clinical role of microRNAs in the diagnosis and treatment of metabolic and cardiovascular disorders, focusing on mitochondrial fitness, arterial hypertension, cardiovascular remodeling, cerebrovascular disease, pulmonary hypertension, diabetic kidney disease, and kidney transplantation. The subsequent chapters discuss the importance of microRNAs in the wound healing process and in skin disease, in the pathogenesis of allergy, in human ovulation, and in infection. The book concludes with chapters which outline the emerging role of microRNAS in doping and detail microRNA profiling. microRNA: Medical Evidence is an ideal companion to both microRNA: Basic Scienceand microRNA: Cancer. Taken together, these three books provide a state-of-the-art overview of this rapidly-expanding and fascinating field, from the molecular level to clinical practice. It will be invaluable to medical students, physicians, and researchers, as a complete and unique guide in the exploration of microRNA in basic science, cancer and clinical practice.

This book provides an update on the latest development in the field of microRNAs in cancer research with an emphasis on translational research. Since the early 2000s, microRNAs have been recognized as important and ubiquitous regulators of gene expression. Soon it became evident that their deregulation can cause human diseases including cancer. This book focuses on the emerging opportunities for the application of microRNA research in clinical practice. In this context, computer models are presented that can help to identify novel biomarkers, e.g. in circulating microRNAs, and tools that can help to design microRNA-based therapeutic interventions. Other chapters evaluate the role of microRNAs in immunotherapy, immune responses and drug resistance. Covering key topics on microRNAs in cancer research this book is a valuable resource for both emerging and established microRNA researchers who want to explore the potential of microRNAs as therapeutic targets or co-adjuvants in cancer therapies.

During the past decade it has become evident that microRNAs regulate gene expressions and control many developmental and cellular processes in eukaryotic organisms. Recent studies suggest that microRNAs play an important role in toxicogenomics and are likely to play an important role in a range of human diseases including cancer. microRNAs in Toxicology and Medicine is a comprehensive and authoritative compilation of up-to-date developments in this emerging research area, presented by internationally recognized investigators. It focuses on the role of microRNA in biology and medicine with a special emphasis on toxicology. Divided into six parts, topics covered include: microRNA and toxicology – including environmental toxicants and perturbation of miRNA signaling; microRNA, and Disease States featuring microRNAs in drug-induced liver toxicity, microRNAs and Inflammation the regulatory role of microRNA in mutagenesis, microRNAs and cancer, and the role of microRNAs in tumor progression and therapy, as well as current understanding of microRNAs as therapeutic targets in cancer microRNAs and disease states microRNAs and stem cells microRNAs and genomics microRNAs and epigenomics microRNAs and biomarkers – including body fluid microRNAs as toxicological biomarkers, cell-free microRNAs as biomarkers in human diseases, and circulating microRNAs as biomarkers of drug-induced pancreatitis microRNAs in Toxicology and Medicine is an essential insight into the current trends and future directions of research in this rapidly expanding field for investigators, toxicologists, risk assessors, and regulators in academia, medical settings, industry, and government.

As clinical management of inherited metabolic diseases (IMDs) has improved, more patients affected by these conditions are surviving into adulthood. This trend, coupled with the widespread recognition that IMDs can present differently and for the first time during adulthood, makes the need for a working knowledge of these diseases more important than ever. Inherited Metabolic Disease in Adults offers an authoritative clinical guide to the adult manifestations of these challenging and myriad conditions. These include both the classic pediatric-onset conditions and a number of new diseases that can manifest at any age. It is the first book to give a clear and concise overview of how this group of conditions affects adult patients, a that topic will become a growing imperative for physicians across primary and specialized care.

This book presents an overview of the diagnostic performance of non- or semi-invasive tests for endometriosis in peripheral blood, endometrium, saliva, peritoneal fluid and urine. The value of existing and emerging systems biology technologies for biomarker development is addressed in several chapters on genetics, microarrays, proteomics and metabolomics. Although tests with high sensitivity and acceptable specificity have been developed, sometimes validated in independent populations and seem promising, more research is needed to translate these data into clinical benefit for patients and coordinate efforts internationally to standarize analysis, reports and operating procedures. The gold standard to diagnose endometriosis is currently through laparoscopic inspection with histological confirmation, a surgical procedure with rare but significant potential risks for the patients. A non-invasive test for endometriosis would be critical for the early detection of endometriosis of symptomatic women with pelvic pain and/or subfertility with normal ultrasound. This would include nearly all cases of minimal-mild endometriosis, some cases of moderate-severe endometriosis without a clearly visible ovarian endometrioma and cases with pelvic adhesions and/or other pelvic pathology, who might benefit from surgery to improve pelvic pain and/or subfertility. Such a test would also be useful in symptomatic women with ultrasound imaging suspicious for endometriosis, since it may be difficult to differentiate an ovarian endometrioma from other ovarian cysts and since the quality of ultrasound imaging is highly variable worldwide.