The Immortal Germline, Volume 135 in the Current Topics in Developmental Biology series, highlights new advances in the field, with this new volume presenting interesting chapters on a variety of topics, including Balbiani body, germ plasm and polarity, Wolbachia and the germline, Human germ line biology, Reproduction/immunity and sperm success, Mammalian spermatogenesis, Reproduction/regeneration and germ cells in planarians, Germline stem cell homeostasis, Germline soma interactions/sex determination, Reconstituting the mouse germ-cell specification pathway in vitro, Maternal Germ line inheritance of mitochondria, Transposon strategies, and more. - Provides the authority and expertise of leading contributors from an international board of authors - Presents the latest release in the Current Topics in Developmental Biology series - Includes the latest information on germ cells

Scientists investigating germ cells have, over the past 15 years, originated discoveries and innovations that give us valuable insights into the mechanisms that regulate not just stem cell function, but human development in its widest sense. With contributions from some of the leading researchers in the field, Male Germline Stem Cells: Developmental and Regenerative Potential assesses the implications of these discoveries for understanding the fundamental biology of germline stem cells as well as their potential for human stem cell-based therapies. This monograph covers many of the fundamental issues now being explored by today’s generation of stem cell researchers, including the field’s potential for regenerative medicine. Ranging from an assessment of the pluripotency of primordial germ cells and their possible applications in treating testicular cancer, to the recovery of once-mordant fertilization-competent sperm, this volume has it all. It is a reference point for any scientist involved in related research as well as being a timely summation of what could prove to be a hugely exciting and very fruitful area of inquiry.

They mastermind our lives, shaping our features, our health, and our behavior, even in the sacrosanct realms of love and sex, religion, aging, and death. Yet we are the ones who house, perpetuate, and give the promise of immortality to these biological agents, our genetic gods. The link between genes and gods is hardly arbitrary, as the distinguished evolutionary geneticist John Avise reveals in this compelling book. In clear, straightforward terms, Avise reviews recent discoveries in molecular biology, evolutionary genetics, and human genetic engineering, and discusses the relevance of these findings to issues of ultimate concern traditionally reserved for mythology, theology, and religious faith. The book explains how the genetic gods figure in our development--not just our metabolism and physiology, but even our emotional disposition, personality, ethical leanings, and, indeed, religiosity. Yet genes are physical rather than metaphysical entities. Having arisen via an amoral evolutionary process--natural selection--genes have no consciousness, no sentient code of conduct, no reflective concern about the consequences of their actions. It is Avise's contention that current genetic knowledge can inform our attempts to answer typically religious questions--about origins, fate, and meaning. The Genetic Gods challenges us to make the necessary connection between what we know, what we believe, and what we embody. Table of Contents: Preface Prologue 1. The Doctrines of Biological Science 2. Geneses 3. Genetic Maladies 4. Genetic Beneficence 5. Strategies of the Genes 6. Genetic Sovereignty 7. New Lords of Our Genes? 8. Meaning Epilogue Notes Glossary Index Reviews of this book: Our genes, [Avise] says, are responsible not only for how we got here and exist day to day, but also for the core of our being--our personalities and morals. It is our genetic make-up that allows for and formulates our religious belief systems, he argues. Avise does not eschew spirituality but seeks a more informed, less confrontational approach between science and the pulpit. --Science News Reviews of this book: For the general scientific reader, the book is an excellent distillation of a broad and increasingly important field, a course of causation that cannot be ignored. From advising expectant parents to getting innocent people off death row, genetics increasingly dominates our lives. The sections on genetics are expertly written, particularly for those readers without in-depth knowledge. The author explains slowly and carefully just how genetics operates, using multiple metaphors. His genetic discourse proceeds in a neighborly fashion, as one might tell stories while sitting in a rocking chair at a country store. He seems to be invigorated by genes and just can't wait to tell about them. --David W. Hodo, Journal of the American Medical Association Reviews of this book: As a whole, this book is quite informative and stimulating, and sections of it are beautifully written. Indeed, Professor Avise has a real gift for prose and scientific expositions, and I would suspect that he must be a formidable lecturer...At its core, [The Genetic Gods] is a survey, and a very nice one at that, of evolutionary genetics, the field of the author's major research interests. There is a strong sociobiological cast to the arguments, and the work and ideas of E. O. Wilson figure prominently. The presentation of evolutionary genetics is imbedded in a more general discussion of modern human and molecular genetics...However, this book is, most of all, a philosophical treatise that attempts, admittedly with the bias of a biologist, to examine the intersection of the fundamental premises of evolution and religion. Professor Avise has given us plenty to think about in this book [and]...it was a real pleasure to wrestle with the ideas he was presenting. I would suggest that other readers give it a try. --Charles J. Epstein, Trends in Genetics Reviews of this book: [Avise's] account of the role genes play in shaping the human condition is wholly involving, paying particular attention to issues of reproduction, aging and death. In addition to presenting ample biological information in a form accessible to the nonspecialist, Avise does a superb job of discussing many of the ethical implications that have arisen from our growing knowledge of human genetics. Just a few of the topics covered are genetic engineering, the patenting of life, genetic screening, abortion, human cloning, gene therapy and insurance-related controversies. --Publishers Weekly Reviews of this book: Avise explains thoroughly how evolution operates on a genetic level. His goal is to show that humans can look to this information as a way to answer fundamental questions of life instead of looking to traditional religious beliefs...Avise includes some very interesting discussions of ethical concerns related to genetic issues. --Eric D. Albright, Library Journal This is a splendid account of a subject that affects us all: the breathtaking increase in understanding of human genetics and the insight it provides into human evolution. John Avise speaks with authority of molecular evolutionary genetics and with affecting compassion of what it might mean. --Douglas J. Futuyma, State University of New York at Stony Brook The Genetic Gods is many things. It is a wonderful introduction to modern molecular biology, by a man who knows his subject backwards. It is a stimulating account of the ways in which genetics impinges on human nature--our thinking and our behavior. It is a remarkably level-headed and sympathetic account of the implications of our new findings for traditional and not-so-traditional issues in philosophy and religion. In an age of genetic counseling, cloning, construction of new life forms, the book is worth its weight in gold for this alone. But most of all, it is a huge amount of fun to read--you want to applaud or argue with the author on nigh every page. Highly recommended! --Michael Ruse, University of Guelph The Genetic Gods makes a valuable contribution to the on-going task of sorting out the implications of evolutionary biology and genetics for human self-understanding. Avise addresses, with authority and grace, the most consequential intellectual issues of our time. A challenging and insightful book. --Loyal Rue, Harvard University A wonderfully informative and engaging book. Avise offers a lucid, accessible primer on our genes, angelic and demonic, and examines religious and ethical issues, all too human, now confronted by genetic science. He makes a compelling case that anyone seeking to 'Know Thyself' should study the DNA molecular scriptures, our most ancient and universal legacy. --Dudley Herschbach, Harvard University, Nobel Laureate in Chemistry

Much of our knowledge of stem cells has been inferred from studies of remarkable few species. The ability to manipulate stem cells in “model” organisms such as the mouse and a few other vertebrate species has driven our understanding of basic biology of stem cells. The power and efficiency of studying model organisms, however, comes at a cost since a few species, obviously, do not reflect nature ́s true diversity. Unfortunately, although all multicellular organisms seem to rely on stem cells, and although this seems to be a question of key importance for understanding the evolution of animal life, little is known about stem cells in early-branching taxa. “Stem Cells: From Hydra to Man” illustrates that there is more than human and mouse stem cells to learn from. Reflecting an enormous growth in the knowledge of stem cells in various organisms, the book presents the conceptual language and the nature of questions, as well as a summary of the advances in our understanding of stem cells from a comparative point of view that has resulted from the development of new technology and the development of novel model organisms over the past few decades. As such this book is largely a horizon analysis of a frontier rather than a retrospective. It presents an integrative approach to animal stem cells and covers the major contributions, tools and trends in a newly emerging field: comparative stem cell biology.

Pharmacoepigenetics provides a comprehensive volume on the role of epigenetics and epigenomics in drug discovery and development, providing a detailed, but accessible, view of the field, from basic principles, to applications in disease therapeutics. Leading international researchers from across academia, clinical settings and the pharmaceutical industry discuss the influence of epigenetics and epigenomics in human pathology, epigenetic biomarkers for disease prediction, diagnosis, and treatment, current epigenetic drugs, and the application of epigenetic procedures in drug development. Throughout the book, chapter authors offer a balanced and objective discussion of the future of pharmacoepigenetics and its crucial contribution to the growth of precision and personalized medicine. - Fully examines the influence of epigenetics and epigenomics in human pathology, epigenetic biomarkers for disease prediction, diagnosis, treatment, current epigenetic drugs and the application of epigenetic procedures in drug development - Features chapter contributions from leading international researchers in academia, clinical settings and the pharmaceutical industry - Instructs researchers, students and clinicians on how to better interpret and employ pharmacoepigenetics in drug development, efficiency and safety - Provides a balanced and objective discussion of the future of pharmacoepigenetics and its crucial role in precision medicine

In recent times, the boundary between living and non-living has been blurred by advances in genomics, cell biology, and molecular neuroscience, whereby humans are repaired, enhanced, or made anew. Scientists and physicians are now able to keep cells, organs, and bodies alive indefinitely and can return cells or DNA to our bodies and make new cells for the purpose of treating disease or growing new tissue. Meanwhile, transhuman technologies create illusions of immortality. Immortal: Our Cells, DNA, and Bodies synthesizes what we know about life and death from a genetic, molecular, and cellular perspective, demarcates limits of knowledge, and poses new questions. Award-winning researcher and writer David Goldman examines in-depth three keys to understanding the nature and continuity of life: 1) epigenetic (ephemeral) vs genetic (durable) transgenerational memory; 2) life's cellular nature, and the ability to make bodies from cells; and 3) the distinction between bodies and persons. Grounded in recent scientific evidence and real-life cases that test our historical understanding of life and death, Goldman probes the nature of molecular continuity in the face of mortal extinction, encompassing how changes to the DNA code can be both long-lasting and transgenerational, and the continuous nature of cellular and molecular information transmission. In tying these themes together, Immortal asks us to apply fresh scientific concepts to examine, for ourselves, the continuity of being in the face of mortality. Applies recent genetic, molecular and cellular findings to examine the boundaries between living and non-living, and between person and non-person Examines the significance of epigenetic memory and transgenerational inheritance and their uses in molecular and precision medicine Written by a thought-leader in genetic and molecular medicine

In this comprehensive and cutting-edge book, leading experts explore the parameters that define germline stem cells and the mechanisms that regulate the cell behavior in order to better isolate, characterize and maintain them. The volume begins by providing protocols for germline stem cell identification and regulation in model organisms, and concludes with detailed chapters covering current techniques involving in vitro culture and the applications of the cells.

This book provides an overview of the role and function of regulatory RNAs that lack protein-coding potential in key reproductive tissues. This includes the role of small interfering RNAs (siRNAs), microRNAs (miRNAs), PIWI-interacting RNAs (piRNAs), small nucleolar RNAs (snoRNAs) and long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs). Through clear, detailed and comprehensive debate, international leading experts discuss the role these novel regulators in normal development of sexual dimorphisms, including the differentiation of ovaries and testes, the genital tract including prostate, epididymis and uterus, as well as mammary glands. In addition, particular attention is paid on their role in pathophysiological processes within the reproductive tract. The power of next generation sequencing has proved to be an invaluable tool to discover new non-coding RNAs. While the identification of non-coding RNA is relatively easy, analysing their function represents still a challenge today. In this book, authors present historical and conceptual background information, highlight the ways in which non-coding RNAs function is analysed and present their vision of the future research in their key research area.

A Best Book of 2021 by Bloomberg BusinessWeek, Time, and The Washington Post The bestselling author of Leonardo da Vinci and Steve Jobs returns with a “compelling” (The Washington Post) account of how Nobel Prize winner Jennifer Doudna and her colleagues launched a revolution that will allow us to cure diseases, fend off viruses, and have healthier babies. When Jennifer Doudna was in sixth grade, she came home one day to find that her dad had left a paperback titled The Double Helix on her bed. She put it aside, thinking it was one of those detective tales she loved. When she read it on a rainy Saturday, she discovered she was right, in a way. As she sped through the pages, she became enthralled by the intense drama behind the competition to discover the code of life. Even though her high school counselor told her girls didn’t become scientists, she decided she would. Driven by a passion to understand how nature works and to turn discoveries into inventions, she would help to make what the book’s author, James Watson, told her was the most important biological advance since his codiscovery of the structure of DNA. She and her collaborators turned a curiosity of nature into an invention that will transform the human race: an easy-to-use tool that can edit DNA. Known as CRISPR, it opened a brave new world of medical miracles and moral questions. The development of CRISPR and the race to create vaccines for coronavirus will hasten our transition to the next great innovation revolution. The past half-century has been a digital age, based on the microchip, computer, and internet. Now we are entering a life-science revolution. Children who study digital coding will be joined by those who study genetic code. Should we use our new evolution-hacking powers to make us less susceptible to viruses? What a wonderful boon that would be! And what about preventing depression? Hmmm…Should we allow parents, if they can afford it, to enhance the height or muscles or IQ of their kids? After helping to discover CRISPR, Doudna became a leader in wrestling with these moral issues and, with her collaborator Emmanuelle Charpentier, won the Nobel Prize in 2020. Her story is an “enthralling detective story” (Oprah Daily) that involves the most profound wonders of nature, from the origins of life to the future of our species.