This revised and renamed volume reflects a number of important changes in content and emphasis since this field was first surveyed in Complex carbohydrates of nervous tissue in 1979. A third of the chapters did not appear in the predecessor volume, and more than half have new authors. In this expand

This book draws together for the first time contributions from carbohydrate research in the areas of neurobiology, neuropathology, and neuropharmacology, highlighting the importance of carbohydrates in the understanding of neurobiology, the development of neuropathology and the commercialisation of neuropharmacological agents. Glycobiology is a relatively new field emerging in importance both in research institutes and industry. The chapters in this book focus on aspects of the present and future application of the study of glycobiology to brain biochemistry, from basic research on glycoconjugates to practical identification of carbohydrates in neuropathological studies and the relevance of structural studies in a pharmacological perspective.

Contents include: 'Biochemistry and molecular biology of neural lipids', 'Advances in lipid analysis/lipidomics', 'Metabolism and enzymology of glycerolipids', 'Lipid metabolism in brain development and aging', 'Cellular and subcellular localization of neural lipids', and much more.

A reader friendly overview of the structure and functional relevance of natural glycosylation and its cognate proteins (lectins), this book is also one of the few books to cover their role in health and disease. Edited by one of the pioneering experts in the field and written by a team of renowned researchers this resource is a perfect introduction for all students in life and medical sciences, biochemistry, chemistry and pharmacy. Website: WWW.WILEY-VCH.DE/HOME/THESUGARCODE

This comprehensive volume is a contribution to a new se ries initiated by the NATO Panel on "Gell to Gell Signals in Plants and Animals". The book reflects the outcome of an NATO work shop and bri ngs to mi nd two im portant questions: consideri ng the mass of relevant I iteratu reavai- able, is there any necessity for a new series of books - and considering the flood of compa rable meetings - is there any point in workshops of this nature and their publication? In order to deal with such questions adequately, much more space would be needed than is available in a foreword. Thus, the answers must remain rather superficial and, of course, rather subjective. To simplify the issue, the question of publication can be narrowed down to two fac tors - the financial risk, undertaken by the publisher, and the scientific risk, borne by the editor. If the book is good (with respect to lay-out and content) it will be a success - nothing will be lost the people involved will enhance their reputation! We are left with the question of the usefulness of workshops. Without doubt, it is indeed a useful procedure for experts to come together, in an atmosphere of harmony, and freedom from external pressures and time limitations, to discuss a well-defined theme. Wether in agreement or disagreement, a fair and open forum can be expectet for a variety of contributions.

This volume of the Handbook of Neurochemistry and Molecular Biology focuses on molecular events involved in synapse formation, synaptic plasticity and ongoing neural activity. The volume explores axonal growth cones, synapse development, and mechanisms of LTP and LTD, and calcium dynamics. Particular attention is given to function and trafficking of membrane proteins including various ion channels, aquaporines, gap junctions.

Carbohydrates play a major role in brain function. In the past decade, tremendous progress has been made in understanding their structure and function within the nervous system. This book presents a state of the art account of this rapidly expanding field.