Morphogenesis is the set of processes that generate shape and form in the embryo--an important area within developmental biology. An exciting and up-to-the-minute account of the very latest research into the factors that create biological form, Mechanisms of Morphogenesis, second edition is a text reference on the mechanisms of cell and tissue morphogenesis in a diverse array of organisms, including prokaryotes, animals, plants and fungi. By combining hard data with computer modeling, Mechanisms of Morphogenesis, second edition equips readers with a much broader understanding of the scope of modern research than is otherwise available. The book focuses on the ways in which the genetic program is translated to generate cell shape, to direct cell migration, and to produce the shape, form and rates of growth of the various tissues. Each topic is illustrated with experimental data from real systems, with particular reference to gaps in current knowledge and pointers to future - Includes over 200 four-color figures - Offers an integrated view of theoretical developmental biology and computer modelling with laboratory-based discoveries - Covers experimental techniques as a guide to the reader - Organized around principles and mechanisms, using them to integrate discoveries from a range of organisms and systems

This series was established to create comprehensive treatises on specialized topics in developmental biology. Such volumes are especially vital in develop mental biology, since it is a very diverse field that receives contributions from a wide variety of disciplines. This series is a meeting-ground for the various practitioners of this science, facilitating an integration of heterogeneous infor mation on. specific topics. Each volume is intended to provide the conceptual basis for a comprehen sive understanding of its topic as well as an analysis of the key experiments upon which that understanding is based. The specialist in any aspect of devel opmental biology should understand the experimental background of the field and be able to place that body of information in context to ascertain where additional research would be fruitful. At that point, the creative process takes over, and new experiments are designed. This series is intended to be a vital link in that ongoing process of learning and discovery. If it facilitates schol arship, it will serve an important function.

The study of plant development in recent years has often been concerned with the effects of the environment and the possible involvement of growth substances. The prevalent belief that plant growth substances are crucial to plant development has tended to obscure rather than to clarify the underlying cellular mechanisms of development. The aim in this book is to try to focus on what is currently known, and what needs to be known, in order to explain plant development in terms that allow further experimentation at the cellular and molecular levels. We need to know where and at what level in the cell or organ the critical processes controlling development occur. Then, we will be better able to under stand how development is controlled by the genes, whether directly by the continual production of new gene transeripts or more indirectly by the genes merely defining self-regulating systems that then function autonomously. This book is not a survey of the whole of plant development but is meant to concentrate on the possible component cellular and molecular processes involved. Consequently, a basic knowledge of plant structure is assumed. The facts of plant morphogenesis can be obtained from the books listed in the General Reading seetion at the end of Chapter 1. Although references are not cited specifically in the text, the key references for each section are denoted by superscript numbers and listed in the Notes section at the end of each chapter.

Reviews recent experimental findings and current thinking on epithelial appendage morphogenesis. Contains sections on overview, morphogenesis of epithelial appendages on the body surface and within the body, molecular mechanisms, models, and approaches. Specific subjects include early molecular events in feather morphogenesis, evolutionarily conserved gene interactions, and molecular biology of anhidrotic ectodermal dysplasia. Many chapters contain summary diagrams of the formative process of organs, with cellular and molecular explanations. Annotation copyrighted by Book News, Inc., Portland, OR

This book, first published in 1990, provides an overview of the events and mechanisms of morphogenesis.

This book vividly describes how complex and integrated movements can arise from the properties and behaviors of biological molecules. It provides a uniquely integrated account in which the latest findings from biophysics and molecular biology are put into the context of living cells. This second edition is updated throughout with recent advances in the field and has a completely revised and redrawn art program. The text is suitable for advanced undergraduates, graduate students, and for professionals wishing for an overview of this field.

A central goal of biology is to decode the mechanisms that underlie the processes of morphogenesis and pattern formation. Concerned with the analysis of those phenomena, this book integrates experimental and theoretical aspects of biology for the construction and investigation of models of complex processes. It offers an interdisciplinary approach to the pattern formation problems and provides a scope of forthcoming integrated biology including experiments and theories.

Branching morphogenesis, the creation of branched structures in the body, is a key feature of animal and plant development. This book brings together, for the first time, expert researchers working on a variety of branching systems to present a state-of-the-art view of the mechanisms that control branching morphogenesis. Systems considered range from single cells, to blood vessel and drainage duct systems to entire body plans, and approaches range from observation through experiment to detailed biophysical modelling. The result is an integrated overview of branching.

The shoot apex, although tiny and enclosed in the apical bud, forms the whole of the shoot system of plants and has a key role in producing leaves and flowers. An appreciation of how it functions is essential to an understanding of plant growth. In this book, the questions of the manner and the speed at which the shoot apex grows, and the likely cellular processes that are involved in the formation of leaves and flowers, are examined at the biochemical, physiological, biophysical, molecular, and genetic levels. This book is the only one currently available that is wholly devoted to the growth and physiology of the shoot apex and its key role in the formation of leaves and flowers.