In the four years since the first edition of this book was published, the molecular revolution has continued. DNA has been named by Time maga zine as the Molecule of the Year, a Nobel Prize has been awarded to a young man for the invention of the polymerase chain reaction, and televi sion viewers have learned of the DNA fingerprint. Molecular technology in medicine is increasing. The availability of DNA probes for cancer suscepti bility is stressing our system of insurance, testing our ideas about medical ethics, and teaching us new things about cancer. In this edition, I have added a number of new sections, as well as a new chapter. New examples of molecular medicine have been added to demonstrate current applications of this technology. The basic concepts of molecular biology remain the basis for the first three chapters of the book. The excitement surrounding molec ular medicine that I mentioned in the preface to the first edition continues. It is now tinged with a touch of awe and a little bit of fear at the changes that recombinant DNA technology has brought to our society. v Preface to the First Edition This book describes the discoveries that have created a field called molecu lar medicine. The use of recombinant DNA technology in medical research and most recently in medical practice constitutes a revolutionary tool in our study of disease.

An Introduction to Molecular Medicine and Gene Therapy Edited by Thomas F. Kresina, Ph.D. Gene therapy, or the use of genetic manipulation for disease treatment, is derived from advances in genetics, molecular biology, clinical medicine, and human genomics. Molecular medicine, the application of molecular biological techniques to disease treatment and diagnosis, is derived from the development of human organ transplantation, pharmacotherapy, and elucidation of the human genome. An Introduction to Molecular Medicine and Gene Therapy provides a basis for interpreting new clinical and basic research findings in the areas of cloning, gene transfer, and targeting; the applications of genetic medicine to clinical conditions; ethics and governmental regulations; and the burgeoning fields of genomics, biotechnology, and bioinformatics. By dividing the material into three sections - an introduction to basic science, a review of clinical applications, and a discussion of the evolving issues related to gene therapy and molecular medicine-this comprehensive manual describes the basic approaches to the broad range of actual and potential genetic-based therapies. In addition, An Introduction to Molecular Medicine and Gene Therapy: * Covers new frontiers in gene therapy, animal models, vectors, gene targeting, and ethical/legal considerations * Provides organ-based reviews of current studies in gene therapy for monogenetic, multifactoral or polygenic disorders, and infectious diseases * Includes bold-faced terms, key concepts, summaries, and lists of helpful references by subject in each chapter * Contains appendices on commercial implications and a review of the history of gene therapy This textbook offers a clear, concise writing style, drawing upon the expertise of the authors, all renowned researchers in their respective specialties of molecular medicine. Researchers in genetics and molecular medicine will all find An Introduction to Molecular Medicine and Gene Therapy to be an essential guide to the rapidly evolving field of gene therapy and its applications in molecular medicine.

Molecular medicine is the application of gene or DNA based knowledge to the modern practice of medicine. This book provides contemporary insights into how the genetic revolution is influencing medical thinking and practice on a broad front including clinical medicine, innovative therapies and forensic medicine. Extensively revised just after the completion of the Human Genome Project, it provides the latest in molecular medicine developments The only book in Molecular Medicine that has undergone three editions Current practice as well as future developments identified Extensive tables, well presented figures - resources for further understanding

Easy to read, yet comprehensive, this is the perfect introduction into the molecular basis of disease and the novel treatment options that have become available. The authors, Jens Kurreck and Cy Stein, have both long-standing teaching experience on the subject, one from a biologist's angle, the other with a medical background. Together, they have produced a modern textbook for courses in Molecular Medicine that incorporates modules from immunology to signaling, from virology to gene therapy, and the latest development in personalized medicine.

Molecular medicine is an applied science focused on human genes/transcripts, proteins, metabolites, and metabolic networks that describes molecular and cellular processes of health and disease onset and progression. Molecular medicine-based integrative identification and characterization of biomarker targets and their clinical translations is essential to explain/decipher the mechanism(s) underlying physiological pathways and pathological conditions, and acquire cell-targeted early interventional and therapeutic strategies in the context of precision medicine and public health. Principally, Molecular Medicine provides an overview of the latest headlines/developments of systems and molecular medicine, highlighting the emerging high-throughput technologies, promising potential applications, and progress in biomedical research and development strategies.

Within the framework of clinical internal medicine, they will gain critical knowledge of the many powerful molecular biology-based developments now so rapidly enhancing our understanding of the pathophysiology of disease, improving the feasibility and accuracy of diagnostic testing, and opening novel therapeutic avenues, including gene therapy. Readers will also gain a fuller understanding of the role played by genetic defects in a host of diseases, among them peripheral neuropathies, Alzheimer's disease, arrhythmias, leukemias and lymphomas, cystic fibrosis, hepatitis, HIV, autoimmune disorders, polycystic kidney disease, schizophrenia, affective disorders, alcoholism, Huntington's disease, and many more.

The concept of molecular medicine dates back to Linus means that there are many new opportunities and challenges Pauling, who in the late 1940s and early 1950s generalized for clinical medicine. One of the effects of the completion of from the ideas that came from the study of the sickle cell the Human Genome Project is the increasing application of hemoglobin molecule. With the first cloning of human genes the fields of molecular biology and genetics to the und- about 1976, molecular genetics took the molecular perspec- standing and management of common diseases. Assimi- tive on disease to the level of DNA. The term molecular tion of the new developments since the first edition has been medicine achieved wide currency in the 1980s with the ably accomplished by Drs. Runge and Patterson with the assignment of this designation to journals, at least one soci- help of their many knowledgeable authors. ety, institutes, and academic divisions of departments of in- As was evident in the first edition, molecular genetics is ternal medicine. Undoubtedly, molecular medicine has been involved in every specialty of medicine. A recurrent theme abetted by the Human Genome Project, which has aided in that edition, perhaps even more striking in the present one, greatly in the molecular characterization of disease.

The molecular age has brought about dramatic changes in medical microbiology, and great leaps in our understanding of the mechanisms of infectious disease. Molecular Medical Microbiology is the first book to synthesise the many new developments in both molecular and clinical research in a single comprehensive resource. This timely and authoritative three-volume work is an invaluable reference source of medical bacteriology. Comprising more than 100 chapters, organized into 17 major sections, the scope of this impressive work is wide-ranging. Written by experts in the field, chapters include cutting-edge information, and clinical overviews for each major bacterial group, in addition to the latest updates on vaccine development, molecular technology and diagnostic technology. Topics covered include bacterial structure, cell function, and genetics; mechanisms of pathogenesis and prevention; antibacterial agents; and infections ranging from gastrointestinal to urinary tract, centrtal nervous system, respiratory tract, and more. - The first comprehensive and accessible reference on molecular medical microbiology - Full color presentation througout - In-depth discussion of individual pathogenic bacteria in a system-oriented approach - Includes a clinical overview for each major bacterial group - Presents the latest information on vaccine development, molecular technology, and diagnostic technology - More than 100 chapters covering all major groups of bacteria - Written by an international panel of authors who are experts in their respective disciplines

Clinical Molecular Medicine: Principles and Practice presents the latest scientific advances in molecular and cellular biology, including the development of new and effective drug and biological therapies and diagnostic methods. The book provides medical and biomedical students and researchers with a clear and clinically relevant understanding on the molecular basis of human disease. With an increased focus on new practice concepts, such as stratified, personalized and precision medicine, this book is a valuable and much-needed resource that unites the core principles of molecular biology with the latest and most promising genomic advances. Illustrates the fundamental principles and therapeutic applications of molecular and cellular biology Offers a clinically focused account of molecular heterogeneity Includes comprehensive coverage of many different disorders, including growth and development, cardiovascular, metabolic, skin, blood, digestive, inflammatory, neuropsychiatric disorders, and many more