The Machinery of Life
:
David S. Goodsell
:
The Machinery of Life
:
Copernicus
:
9780387849256
:
2
:
CHF 33.20
:
:
Biochemie, Biophysik
:
English
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174
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Wasserzeichen/DRM
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PC/MAC/eReader/Tablet
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PDF
Imagine that we had some way to look directly at the molecules in a living organism. An x-ray microscope would do the trick, or since we're dreaming, perhaps an Asimov-style nanosubmarine (unfortunately, neither is currently feasible). Think of the wonders we could witness firsthand: antibodies atta- ing a virus, electrical signals racing down nerve fibers, proteins building new strands of DNA. Many of the questions puzzling the current cadre of sci- tists would be answered at a glance. But the nanoscale world of molecules is separated from our everyday world of experience by a daunting million-fold difference in size, so the world of molecules is completely invisible. I created the illustrations in this book to help bridge this gulf and allow us to see the molecular structure of cells, if not directly, then in an artistic rendition. I have included two types of illustrations with this goal in mind: watercolor paintings which magnify a small portion of a living cell by one million times, showing the arrangement of molecules inside, and comput- generated pictures, which show the atomic details of individual molecules. In this second edition of The Machinery of Life, these illustrations are presented in full color, and they incorporate many of the exciting scientific advances of the 15 years since the first edition.
Dr. David S. Goodsell is Associate Professor in the Department of Molecular Biology at The Scripps Research Institute, La Jolla, CA, USA. His illustrations have become well known and now appear in many publications as the primary demonstration of the crowded nature of cells. He has also provided expertise and illustrations to many science museums, most recently acting as a 'thinking partner' for a new multi-site nanotechnology initiative headed in part by the Exploratorium in San Francisco.
The Machinery of Life
2
Preface
8
Contents
10
Introduction
13
A Matter of Scale
15
The Molecular World
16
Molecular Machines
20
Nucleic Acids
24
Proteins
28
Lipids
30
Polysaccharides
34
The Strange World of Molecules in Cells
36
The Processes of Living
39
Building Molecules
40
Harnessing Energy
50
Protection and Perception
55
Molecules in Cells: Escherichia coli
62
The Protective Barrier
63
Building New Proteins
68
Powering the Cell
72
Cellular Propellers
74
Molecular Warfare
76
A Human Cell: The Advantages of Compartments
79
The Human Body: The Advantages of Specialization
91
Infrastructure and Communication
92
Muscle
95
Blood
103
Nerves
109
Life and Death
117
Ubiquitin and the Proteasome
118
DNA Repair
120
Telomeres
124
Programmed Cell Death
124
Cancer
126
Aging
128
Death
132
Viruses
135
Poliovirus and Rhinovirus
137
Influenza Virus
140
Human Immunodeficiency Virus
141
Vaccines
143
You and Your Molecules
148
Vitamins
149
Broad-Spectrum Poisons
153
Bacterial Toxins
155
Antibiotic Drugs
157
Drugs and Poisons of the Nervous System
161
You and Your Molecules
163
Atomic Coordinates
164
Additional Reading
166
Index
168
