BSL3 and BSL4 Agents

Unique coverage of proteomic and glycomic approaches to better distinguish highly dangerous pathogens, as well as using these to explore novel treatment and prevention options. The editors and authors are either part of a specialized European network initiated to develop fast and reliable detection and therapy options, or are associated with the core military research complex of the United States. With its description of the methods, their advantages and limitations, as well as the principle outcomes, this is a must-have resource for all professionals dealing with BSL3 and/or BSL 4 agents.

By integrating knowledge from pharmacology, microbiology, molecular medicine, and engineering, researchers from Europe, the U.S. and Asia cover a broad spectrum of current and potential antimicrobial medications and treatments. The result is a comprehensive survey ranging from small-molecule antibiotics to antimicrobial peptides and their engineered mimetics, from enzymes to nucleic acid therapeutics, from metallic nanoparticles to photo- and sonosensitizers and to phage therapy. In each case, the therapeutic approaches are compared in terms of their mechanisms, likelihood to induce resistance, and their efficiency in a global healthcare context. Unrivaled knowledge for professionals in fundamental research, pharmaceutical development and clinical practice.

The book focuses on mobile agents, which are computer programs that can autonomously migrate between network sites. This text introduces the concepts and principles of mobile agents, provides an overview of mobile agent technology, and focuses on applications in networking and distributed computing.

Lipids and essential oils have strong antimicrobial properties – they kill or inhibit the growth of microbes such as bacteria, fungi, or viruses. They are being studied for use in the prevention and treatment of infections, as potential disinfectants, and for their preservative and antimicrobial properties when formulated as pharmaceuticals, in food products, and in cosmetics. Lipids and Essential Oils as Antimicrobial Agents is a comprehensive review of the scientific knowledge in this field. International experts provide summaries on: the chemical and biological properties of lipids and essential oils use of lipids and essential oils in pharmaceuticals, cosmetics and health foods antimicrobial effects of lipids in vivo and in vitro antimicrobial lipids in milk antimicrobial lipids of the skin antibacterial lipids as sanitizers and disinfectants antibacterial, antifungal, and antiviral activities of essential oils antimicrobial lipids in milk antimicrobial lipids of the skin antibacterial lipids as sanitizers and disinfectants antibacterial, antifungal, and antiviral activities of essential oils Lipids and Essential Oils as Antimicrobial Agents is an essential guide to this important topic for researchers and advanced students in academia and research working in pharmaceutical, cosmetic and food sciences, biochemistry and natural products chemistry, microbiology; and for health care scientists and professionals working in the fields of public health and infectious diseases. It will also be of interest to anyone concerned about health issues and particularly to those who are conscious of the benefits of health food and natural products.

The term «unconventional virus» refers to virus-like agents that differ from conventional viruses in significant respects–resistance to agents that inactivate normal viruses, for example. Certain rare and fatal neurological disorders, such as the Creutzfeldt-Jacob syndrome and the Gerstmann-Straussler syndrome, are clearly produced by virus-like infectious agents, but the nature of these agents is not understood. This volume brings together the latest information on one such disease: Scrapie, a disease occurring in sheep. It discusses the nature of this infectious agent and insights gained through new techniques in molecular genetics. The work as a whole focuses on the implications of animal data for research on human disorders, such as the possible connection between unconventional viruses and Alzheimer's Disease. The discussions represent the work of specialists from a broad spectrum of fields including virology, neuropathology, and molecular biology.

Antibacterial agents act against bacterial infection either by killing the bacterium or by arresting its growth. They do this by targeting bacterial DNA and its associated processes, attacking bacterial metabolic processes including protein synthesis, or interfering with bacterial cell wall synthesis and function. Antibacterial Agents is an essential guide to this important class of chemotherapeutic drugs. Compounds are organised according to their target, which helps the reader understand the mechanism of action of these drugs and how resistance can arise. The book uses an integrated “lab-to-clinic” approach which covers drug discovery, source or synthesis, mode of action, mechanisms of resistance, clinical aspects (including links to current guidelines, significant drug interactions, cautions and contraindications), prodrugs and future improvements. Agents covered include: agents targeting DNA – quinolone, rifamycin, and nitroimidazole antibacterial agents agents targeting metabolic processes – sulfonamide antibacterial agents and trimethoprim agents targeting protein synthesis – aminoglycoside, macrolide and tetracycline antibiotics, chloramphenicol, and oxazolidinones agents targeting cell wall synthesis – β-Lactam and glycopeptide antibiotics, cycloserine, isonaizid, and daptomycin Antibacterial Agents will find a place on the bookshelves of students of pharmacy, pharmacology, pharmaceutical sciences, drug design/discovery, and medicinal chemistry, and as a bench reference for pharmacists and pharmaceutical researchers in academia and industry.

Dialogue management technology has developed rapidly over the years resulting in real-time applications like telephony directories, timetable enquiries, and in-car applications. However, the current technology is still largely based on models that use rigid command language type interactions, and the users need to adapt their human communication strategies to the needs of the technology. As an increasing number of interactive ubiquitous applications will appear, challenges for interaction technology concern especially natural, more human-friendly communication. Recent research has focused on developing speech-based interactive systems that aim to increase the system’s communicative competence. By including aspects of interaction beyond simple speech recognition and question-answer based interaction, applications with more conversational interfaces have become possible. New dialogue management technology needs to address the challenges in human-technology interaction, so that smart environments should not only enable user-controlled command interfaces but equip applications with a capability that affords easy and friendly interactions with the user. Dialogue Modelling: Speech Interaction and Rational Agents provides an overview of the current dialogue technology and research trends in spoken dialogue systems, presenting a coherent perspective of AI-based cooperative interaction management. The book complements existing research regarding human-computer interfaces, speech and language technology, and communication studies in general, bringing different view-points together and integrating them into a single point of reference. Constructive Dialogue Modelling: Presents a guide to spoken dialogue technology and current research trends. Provides an overview of human factors in dialogue systems and delivers a new metaphor for human-computer interaction and computer as agent. Explains the architecture of dialogue systems using examples from systems such as Interact and DUMAS Offers a comprehensive overview of original research into the new trends in speech dialogue technology in light of innovations such as ubiquitous computing. This book will provide essential reading for industrial designers and interface engineers, university researchers and teachers, computer scientists, human communication researchers, speech and language technologists, cognitive engineers/cognitive scientists, as well as social and media researchers, and psychologists. Advanced students and researchers in computer science, speech and language technologies, psychology and communication research will find this text of interest.

Diazonium compounds are employed as a new class of coupling agents to link polymers, biomacromolecules, and other species (e. g. metallic nanoparticles) to the surface of materials. The resulting high performance materials show improved chemical and physical properties and find widespread applications. The advantage of aryl diazonium salts compared to other surface modifiers lies in their ease of preparation, rapid (electro)reduction, large choice of reactive functional groups, and strong aryl-surface covalent bonding. This unique book summarizes the current knowledge of the surface and interface chemistry of aryl diazonium salts. It covers fundamental aspects of diazonium chemistry together with theoretical calculations of surface-molecule bonding, analytical methods used for the characterization of aryl layers, as well as important applications in the field of electrochemistry, nanotechnology, biosensors, polymer coatings and materials science. Furthermore, information on other surface modifiers (amines, silanes, hydrazines, iodonium salts) is included. This collection of 14 self-contained chapters constitutes a valuable book for PhD students, academics and industrial researchers working on this hot topic.

Emerging Infectious Diseases offers an introduction to emerging and reemerging infectious disease, focusing on significant illnesses found in various regions of the world. Many of these diseases strike tropical regions or developing countries with particular virulence, others are found in temperate or developed areas, and still other microbes and infections are more indiscriminate. This volume includes information on the underlying mechanisms of microbial emergence, the technology used to detect them, and the strategies available to contain them. The author describes the diseases and their causative agents that are major factors in the health of populations the world over. The book contains up-to-date selections from infectious disease journals as well as information from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the World Health Organization, MedLine Plus, and the American Society for Microbiology. Perfect for students or those new to the field, the book contains Summary Overviews (thumbnail sketches of the basic information about the microbe and the associated disease under examination), Review Questions (testing students' knowledge of the material), and Topics for Further Discussion (encouraging a wider conversation on the implications of the disease and challenging students to think creatively to develop new solutions). This important volume provides broad coverage of a variety of emerging infectious diseases, of which most are directly important to health practitioners in the United States.

The use of oligonucleotides as therapeutic agents rests upon their ability to interfere, in a sequence-specific manner, with the fundamental machinery of protein synthesis either by binding to the mRNAs transcribed from a gene or by binding directly to a target gene. This approach can be used not only for inhibition of the synthesis of host proteins but also of those required by invading pathogens. Potential therapeutic applications are enormous, ranging over hypertension, cardiovascular disease, autoimmune disease, vital and other parasitic infections (especially HIV), and cancer. This book discusses the chemistry and pharmacokinetics of oligonucleotides and their analogues, and surveys the results of structure-activity studies and current clinical trials. It also critically reviews the problems with antisense therapy, such as the enzymatic destruction of oligonucleotides, the doses required for a therapeutic response, the difficulty in directing oligonucleotides to particular target tissues and cells, the need for parenteral administration, and doubts concerning the mechanism of action (especially problems associated with non-specific binding to proteins) and long-term effects.