This book looks at both the past and the future of the debate over whether there are moral limits to scientific progress and what life will look like in the genetic age.

Just as the health costs of aging threaten to bankrupt developed countries, this book makes the scientific case that a biological "bailout" could be on the way, and that human aging can be different in the future than it is today. Here 40 authors argue how our improving understanding of the biology of aging and selected technologies should enable the successful use of many different and complementary methods for ameliorating aging, and why such interventions are appropriate based on our cu...

New discoveries in the field of stem cell research have frequently appeared in the news and in scientific literature. Research in this area promises to lead to new therapies for cancer, heart disease, diabetes, and a wide variety of other diseases. This two-volume reference integrates this exciting area of biology, combining the prerequisites for a general understanding of adult and embryonic stem cells, the tools, methods, and experimental protocols needed to study and characterize stem c...

Most of the antibiotics now in use have been discovered more or less by chance, and their mechanisms of action have only been elucidated after their discovery. To meet the medical need for next-generation antibiotics, a more rational approach to antibiotic development is clearly needed.Opening with a general introduction about antimicrobial drugs, their targets and the problem of antibiotic resistance, this reference systematically covers currently known antibiotic classes, their m...

Cutting-edge coverage of stem cell biology and applicationsFeaturing contributions from leading global experts, this authoritative volume addresses all major areas of stem cell biology and their potential therapeutic applications. The first part of the book covers embryonic stem cells and contains details on the emerging field of embryonic stem cell-based drug screening platforms. The second part deals with multipotent adult stem cells from different tissue types, and covers uniq...

This is the thirteenth volume in a series which presents current understanding of stem cells and cancer stem cells. This book presents many relevant topics including the different sources of cancer stem cells: the features, roles and clinical potential of stem cells emerge from engaging with this comprehensive work. Chapters explore molecular mechanisms underlying human somatic cell reprogramming to generate induced pluripotent stem cells and provide expert discussion of the advantages and...

Drawing on startling new evidence from the mapping of the genome, an explosive new account of the genetic basis of race and its role in the human storyFewer ideas have been more toxic or harmful than the idea of the biological reality of race, and with it the idea that humans of different races are biologically different from one another. For this understandable reason, the idea has been banished from polite academic conversation. Arguing that race is more than jus...

The book addresses controversies related to the origins of cancer and provides solutions to cancer management and prevention. It expands upon Otto Warburg's well-known theory that all cancer is a disease of energy metabolism. However, Warburg did not link his theory to the "hallmarks of cancer" and thus his theory was discredited. This book aims to provide evidence, through case studies, that cancer is primarily a metabolic disease requring metabolic solutions for its management and preven...

For thirty years, Peter Singer's Practical Ethics has been the classic introduction to applied ethics. For this third edition, the author has revised and updated all the chapters and added a new chapter addressing climate change, one of the most important ethical challenges of our generation. Some of the questions discussed in this book concern our daily lives. Is it ethical to buy luxuries when others do not have enough to eat? Should we buy meat from intensively reared animals? Am I doin...

The most trusted all-in-one overview of the biomedical and environmental aspects of toxicology--NOW more complete, up-to-date, and in full colorThe world's leading and most authoritative textbook on poisons has more to offer students,toxicologists, and pharmacologists than ever before. Now in full color, and thoroughly revised, the eighth edition of Casarett & Doull's TOXICOLOGY: The Basic Science of Poisons not only delivers a comprehensive review of the essential compo...

The promise of a regenerative medicine -- the regrowth of lost limbs and organs, new hope for patients with Alzheimer's or multiple sclerosis, the "cellular fountain of youth" -- sounds like science fiction, but it's real and on the cutting edge of medicine. Veteran medical journalist Karen van Kamped looks at this new technology through the stories of the scientists who are creating it and the ethical and legal questions with which they must deal. Many companies and universities in Canada...

Virtually any disease that results from malfunctioning, damaged, or failing tissues may be potentially cured through regenerative medicine therapies, by either regenerating the damaged tissues in vivo, or by growing the tissues and organs in vitro and implanting them into the patient. Principles of Regenerative Medicine discusses the latest advances in technology and medicine for replacing tissues and organs damaged by disease and of developing therapies for previously untreatable conditio...