Ecdysone is the steroidal prohormone of the major insect moulting hormone 20-hydroxyecdysone. It groups with its homologues the steroidal molting hormones in arthropods, but they also occur in other phyla where they can play different roles. Besides ecdysteroids appear in many plants mostly as protection agents (toxins or antifeedants) against herbivorous insects. The important developments and achievements in modern ecdysone science since the first edition in 1989 by J. Koolman have led to this new revised, expanded and retitled reference work. New chapters in this edition include RNA interference, the ecdysone receptor crystal structures and structure activity relationships, etc. Each article may also be read independently, as a review of that particular subject. Complete up-to-date coverage of many important topics - the book is divisible into five conceptual areas: (1) Distribution and diversity of ecdysteroids in the two kingdoms is still basis, (2) In the post-genomic era, ecdysteroid genetic hierarchies in insect growth and reproduction, (3) Role of cross talk of genes and growth factors in ecdysteroid titers and signaling, (4) Ecdysteroids function through nuclear and membrane receptors, and (5) Ecdysteroids in modern agriculture, medicine, doping and ecotoxicology. Each of the 23 chapters is written by scientists active in the reviewed research area and a truly distinguished international team of contributors has been chosen. Ecdysone, Structures and Functions will be of immense use and contains essential information for scientists, students, and professionals alike in entomology, endocrinology, physiology, chemistry, and agricultural, plant, biomedicine and environmental sciences.

The future of insect control looked very bright in the 1950s and 1960s with new insecticides constantly coming onto the market. Today, however, whole classes of pesticide chemistry have fallen by the wayside due to misuse which generated resistance problems reaching crisis proportions, severe adverse effects on the environment, and public outcry that has led to increasingly stricter regulation and legislation. It is with this background, demanding the need for safer, environmentally friendly pesticides and new strategies to reduce resistance problems, that this book was written. The authors of the various chapters have a wealth of experience in pesticide chemistry, biochemical modes of action, mechanism of resistance and application, and have presented concise reviews. Each is actively involved in thedevelopment of new groups of pesticide chemistry which led to the development of novel insecticides with special impact in controlling agricultural pests. Emphasis has been given to insecticides with selective properties, such as insect growth regulators hormone mimics, ecdysone agonists), (chitin synthesis inhibitors, juvenile chloronicotinyl insecticides (imidacloprid, acetamiprid), botanical insecticides (neem, plant oils), pymetrozine, diafenthiuron, pyrrole insecticides, and others. The importance of these compounds, as components in integrated pest management programs and in insecticide resistance management strategies, is discussed. The data presented are essential in establishing new technologies and developing novel groups of compounds which will have impact on our future agricultural practices.

Although insect endocrinology is one of the oldest and most active branches of insect physiology, its classic general texts are long out of date, while its abundant primary literature provides little biological context in which to make sense of the discipline as a whole. In this book, H. Frederik Nijhout's goal is to provide a complete, concise, and up-to-date source for students and nonspecialists seeking an overview of the dynamic and wide-ranging science that insect endocrinology has become since its beginnings nearly eighty years ago in the study of insect metamorphosis. The author offers a comprehensive survey of the many roles that hormones play in the biology of insects. Among the topics discussed are the control of molting, metamorphosis, reproduction, caste determination in social insects, diapause, migration, carbohydrate and lipid metabolism, diuresis, and behavior. The account features a summary of the most current and accurate thinking on the complex roles of ecdysone and juvenile hormone in the control of metamorphosis, a process still misunderstood and misrepresented in biological textbooks and many professional reviews. Throughout, the book's emphasis is on the biology of the organism and the ways in which physiological and developmental regulatory mechanisms are integrated into the insect's life cycle.

The publication of the extensive 7-volume work Comprehensive Molecular Insect Science provided library customers and their end-users with a complete reference encompassing important developments and achievements in modern insect science, including reviews on the ecdysone receptor, lipocalins, and bacterial toxins. One of the most popular areas in entomology is pharmacology, and this derivative work, Insect Pharmacology, taps into a previously unapproached market – the end user who desires to purchase a comprehensive yet affordable work on important aspects of this topic. Contents will include timeless articles covering sodium channels, spider toxins and their potential for insect control, insect transformation for use in control, amino acid and neurotransmitter transporters, and more. New summaries for each chapter will give an overview of developments in the related article since its original publication. - Articles selected by the known and respected editor-in-chief and co-editor of the original MRW - The articles are classic reviews offering broad coverage of essential topics in pharmacology, with special addenda including author notes on the chapter since its original publication - Introduction by the editor puts the selected body of work in context for this volume, highlighting the need for entomologists, pharmacologists and related researchers to have these reviews in their personal collection

The FactsBook Series has established itself as the best source of easily accessible and accurate facts about protein groups. They use an easy-to-follow format and are researched and compiled by experts in the field. This Factsbook is devoted to nuclear receptors. The first section presents an introduction and describes the mode of action of the receptors in general. The second section of the book contains detailed entries covering each type of receptor. Entries provide information on: Nomenclature and structure, Isolation, DNA binding properties, Ligands, Expression, Target genes, Knockouts, Disease association, Gene structure, promoter and isoforms, Chromosomal location, Amino acid sequences, Key references

The publication of the extensive 7-volume work Comprehensive Molecular Insect Science has provided library customers and their end-users with a complete reference encompassing important developments and achievements in modern insect science including reviews on the ecdysone receptor, lipocalins, and bacterial toxins. This derivative from the major reference work, Insect Development: Metamorphosis, Molting and Morphogenesis, presents a new opportunity for the end user who desires to purchase a comprehensive yet affordable work on these important aspects of insect development. Timeless articles by a host of respected contributors in the field cover such topics as embryonic development, hormonal control of form and function of the nervous system, programmed cell death, organization of the endocrine system, and much more. Articles specially selected by the known and respected editor-in-chief of the original major reference work Classic reviews offer essential coverage of development as it relates to metamorphosis, molting and morphogenesis Introduction by the editor puts the selected body of work in context, highlighting the need for entomologists, developmental biologists and related researchers to have these valuable reviews in their personal collection

Insects are more similar in structure and physiology to mammals than plants or fungi. Consequently, insecticides are often of greater toxicity to mammals than herbicides. This is particularly the case with neurotoxins. However, some insecticides are targeted at structures or hormonal systems specific to insects (insect growth regulators/chitin synthesis inhibitors) so are less harmful but can still be mildly haematotoxic. There are, therefore, issues specific to insecticides, which do not occur with other pesticides - hence the need for a book specifically on insecticide toxicology in mammals. The book starts with general issues relating to the mammalian toxicity of insecticides, including target/non-target specificity, nomenclature and metabolism of insecticides. It then goes on to discuss specific types of insecticides including: organochlorines; anticholinesterases; pyrethrum and synthetic pyrethroids; nicotine and the neonicotinoids; insect growth regulators/ecdysone agonists/chitin synthesis inhibitors; insecticides of natural origin; biological insecticides; and insecticides used in veterinary medicine.

This is the first and only book, so far, to deal with the causal basis of evolution from an epigenetic view. By revealing the epigenetic "user" of the "genetic toolkit", this book demonstrates the primacy of epigenetic mechanisms and epigenetic information in generating evolutionary novelties. The author convincingly supports his theory with a host of examples from the most varied fields of biology, by emphasizing changes in developmental pathways as the basic source of evolutionary change in metazoans. - Original and thought provoking--a radically new theory that overcomes the present difficulties of the theory of evolution - Is the first and only theory that uses epigenetic mechanisms and principles for explaining evolution of metazoans - Takes an integrative approach and shows a wide range of learning

There is no multicellular animal whose genetics is so well understood as Drosophila melanogaster. An increasing number of biologists have, therefore, turned to the fruitfly in pursuit of such diverse areas as the molecular biology of eukaryotic cells, development and neurobiology. Indeed there are signs that Dro sophila may soon become the most central organism in biqlogy for genetic analysis of complex problems. The papers in this collection were presented at a conference on Development and Behavior of Drosophila held at the Tata Insti tute of Fundamental Research from 19th to 22nd December, 1979. The volume reflects the commonly shared belief of the participants that Drosophila has as much to contribute to biology in the future as it has in the past. We hope it will be of interest not merely to Dro sophilists but to all biologists. We thank Chetan Premani, Anil Gupta, K.S. Krishnan, Veronica Rodrigues, Hemant Chikermane and K. Vijay Raghavan for help with recording and transcription of the proceedings and Vrinda Nabar and K.V. Hareesh for editorial assistance. We thank Samuel Richman, Thomas Schmidt-Glenewinkel and T.R. Venkatesh for their valuable assistance in proofreading the manuscripts, and we also thank Patricia Rank for her excellent effort in the preparation of the final manuscripts. The conference was supported by a grant from Sir Dorabji Tata Trust.

Our highly seasonal world restricts insect activity to brief portions of the year. This feature necessitates a sophisticated interpretation of seasonal changes and enactment of mechanisms for bringing development to a halt and then reinitiating it when the inimical season is past. The dormant state of diapause serves to bridge the unfavourable seasons, and its timing provides a powerful mechanism for synchronizing insect development. This book explores how seasonal signals are monitored and used by insects to enact specific molecular pathways that generate the diapause phenotype. The broad perspective offered here scales from the ecological to the molecular and thus provides a comprehensive view of this exciting and vibrant research field, offering insights on topics ranging from pest management, evolution, speciation, climate change and disease transmission, to human health, as well as analogies with other forms of invertebrate dormancy and mammalian hibernation.