In 2006, the term ‘Patho-biotechnology’ was coined to describe the exploitation of pathogens, or pathogen derived factors, for beneficial applications in biotechnology, food and medicine.

This concept encompasses three broad areas:

i. The first approach (outlined in Chapters 1-10) involves the use of selected pathogens as effective prophylactic and/or therapeutic agents by replacement technology. The rationale for this “fighting fire with fire” approach being that for most species the strongest niche competitors are often the same or closely related species.

ii. The second approach (outlined in Chapters 11-14) involves the isolation and purification of pathogen-specific immunogenic proteins for direct application, thus removing the necessity for potentially harmful bacterial carrier platforms.

iii. The third approach (outlined in Chapter 15) provides an alternative to either (i) or (ii) above. This approach involves equipping non-pathogenic bacteria with the genetic elements necessary to survive the many stresses encountered outside the host as well as the myriad of antimicrobial hurdles faced during host transit and/or colonisation.

The objective of this book is to provide up-to-date coverage of some of the emerging developments in the field of integrated DNA biochips. It will prove a useful source of information for researchers in the this field and for those who are just entering the field of biochip research.

Following its inception in the 1950s, cell-free protein synthesis made a tremendous impact on the basic life sciences. The use of cell-free systems was key to understanding molecular mechanisms underlying one of the most complicated processes found in nature: protein translation. Since this time, aggressive cutting-edge research and stiff commerical competition have driven the development of a variety of systems with increased productivity, improved protein quality and relatively low production costs. As a result, technology has generated myriad applications that have enabled advances in fields as diverse as systems biology, structural biology, and drug discovery. Cell-Free Protein Expression describes and expands upon many of these applications. The volume has been divided into six main sections. In the first section, many of the most popular sources of cell-free lysates are introduced. The second section focuses on extraordinary advances made in the Escherichia coli-based systems that have enabled reconstitution of the entire translational process, incorporation of post-translational modifications, yield increase, and production of functional membrane proteins. This progress extends the usefulness of cell-free systems into structural biology applications described in the third section and high-content platforms like protein microarrays discussed in the fourth section. The final two sections cover the use of cell-free protein expression technologies in the rational design and directed evolution of proteins within the scientific community.

In this book, an ensemble of examples is provided to illustrate the diversity of approaches and applications to which the multi-enzyme catalysis is currently applied. Enzymes act in living beings as extremely complex, network mixtures that are supportive of all the biochemical transformations on which the life is based. In the biotechnological context, many of the enzymatic processes performed in vitro at both small and industrial scales lie on the enzymatic transformation of a single molecular species for the generation of a product and as catalyzed by a single enzyme. However, the number of technological applications for which cell-free enzyme mixtures are required is increasing and the science of how to combine individual reactions in complex processes is under speedy development. Obviously, any of the current in-progress multi-enzyme processes is fully mimicking the complexity of a living cell or cell community. However, the refined combination of selected enzymes and substrates is offering a new technological approach that is supporting the development of new or improved products in many fields such as food, leather and pharmaceutical industries. This book is unique and presents selective examples of each of these processes have been incorporated in this book by experts in their respective areas.

Tissue Repair, Contraction and the Myofibroblast summarizes the most recent findings concerning the biology of the myofibroblast, a cell involved in the evolution and contraction of granulation tissue and of fibrotic changes. This recent work shows that the myofibroblast is responsible for the development of pathological situations such as hypertrophic scars, pulmonary and renal fibrosis and bronchial asthma.

Biotechnological Applications of Photosynthetic Proteins: Biochips, Biosensors and Biodevices provides an overview of the recent photosystem II research and the systems available for the bioassay of pollutants using biosensors that are based on the photochemical activity. The data presented in this book serves as a basis for the development of a commercial biosensor for use in rapid pre-screening analyses of photosystem II pollutants, minimising costly and time-consuming laboratory analyses.

One of Nature’s most important talents is evolutionary development of systems capable of molecular recognition: distinguishing one molecule from another. Molecular recognition is the basis for most biological processes, such as ligandreceptor binding, substrate-enzyme reactions and translation and transcription of the genetic code and is therefore of universal interest. Over the past four decades, researchers have been inspired by Nature to produce biomimetic materials with molecular recognition properties, by design rather than by evolution. A particularly exciting area of biomimetics is Molecular Imprinting, which can be defined as process of template-induced formation of specific recognition sites (binding or catalytic) in a material where the template directs the positioning and orientation of the material’s structural components by a self-assembling mechanism. The material itself could be oligomeric (the typical example is DNA replication process), polymeric (organic MIPs and inorganic imprinted silica gels) or 2-dimensional surface assembly (grafted monolayers). Essentially the current progress in the field of molecular imprinting is a result of fundamental achievements made by more than a hundred groups working in the areas of non-covalent and reversible covalent imprinting. The goal of this title is to capture this momentum and publish a new book that will reflect the current situation in this rapidly evolving technology. Very few of the tens of reviews already published on this subject present a critical analysis of the technological aspects of molecular imprinting. Leaders in this field have been approached with requests to provide their views and analyses of specific areas of design, characterization and application of these polymers. The main body of Molecular Imprinting of Polymers starts with chapters covering polymer design, synthesis, and characterization that are prepared by well-recognized experts such as Andrew Mayes and Natalia Perez-Moral, Claudio Baggiani, Naonobu Katada and Miki Niwa and Franz Dickert. The key part of this book, dedicated to MIP technology, is prepared by MIP pioneers and practitioners who are now at the forefront of the practical application of MIPs: Lars Andersson, Mathias Ulbricht, Borje Sellergren, Michael Whitcombe, Alessandra Bossi, Pier Giorgio Righetti and Staffan Nilsson, Chris Allender, David Spivak, and the editors. The last, but by no means least, part of the book is dedicated to often overlooked associated aspects of MIPs such as commercialization strategy and IPR, prepared by Peter Leverkus and Jeffrey McIntyre.