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Biochemical transparency of the human body is at the doorstep of advanced technology. Toward this goal the book describes relevant isotopic tracer techniques of nuclear medicine. It deals with quantitatively measuring in vivo biochemical reactions as they occur within homeostatic circuits under control by genes and protein interactions. The text indicates how nuclear medicine can aid clinical researchers and practitioners, human geneticists and pharmacologists in understanding (and affecting) gene-phenotype relationships. Experts give background, techniques and examples in an interdisciplinary approach to regional imaging and in vitro analyses of biochemical reactions.

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I Primary Topics.- 1 Measurements of Biochemical Reactions in Vivo.- 2 The Human Genome and Disease.- 3 Functional Genomics and Proteomics: Basics, Opportunities and Challenges.- 4 How Proteins Speak with One Another in Cell Signaling.- 5 Labeled Agents as Tracers and Carriers: Theory and Practice.- 6 Instrumentation for Measuring Metabolism.- 7 Modelling Metabolite and Tracer Kinetics.- 8 Compound Delivery and Local Blood Flows.- II Whole Body Processes.- 9 Endothelium and Compound Transfer.- 10 Coagulation and Peripheral Vascular Disease.- 11 Molecular Imaging of Infection and Inflammation.- 12 Element Metabolism and Body Composition.- 13 The Biology of Aging and Related Nuclear Medicine Studies.- 14 In Vitro Indicators of Metabolism of Natural Compounds.- III Organ Systems.- 15 Endocrinology.- 16 Noninvasive Assessment of Inherited Cardiac Disease Using Positron Emission Tomography.- 17 Molecular Background of 18F-2-deoxy-D- glucose (FDG) Uptake in the Ischemic Heart.- 18 Imaging Studies in Substance Abuse.- 19 Imaging of Cerebral Metabolism in Huntington´s Disease.- 20 Monoamine Oxidase: Radiotracer Development and Human Studies.- 21 Amino Acid Transport Studies in Brain Tumors.- 22 Lung.- 23 Functional Genomics and the Liver.- 24 Molecular Gastrointestinal Scintigraphy.- 25 The Kidney and Genital System.- 26 Biomolecular Magnification Imaging of Musculoskeletal Diseases.- IV Tumors.- 27 Molecular Imaging in Oncology.- 28 Nuclear (PET/SPECT) Imaging of Gene Expression: Methods and Applications.- 29 Development of DNA-based Radiopharma- ceuticals Carrying Auger-Electron Emitters for Anti-gene Radiotherapy.- V Special Topics.- 30 The Role of Nuclear Medicine in Relation to Alternative Modalities.- 31 MR Contrast Agents for Molecular and Cellular Imaging.- 32 Magnetic and Optical Molecular Imaging. Live Cell and Tissue Fluorescence: Imaging Techniques and Methods.- 33 Biological Effects of Low Doses of Ionizing Radiation: Damage versus Protection.

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From the reviews:

"The editors...have brilliantly analyzed [the revolution in Nuclear Medicine] by gathering an impressive set of data on genomics and proteomics... The book´s emphasis on the potential applications of nuclear medicine hints at the complete transformaiton that will face this specialty in the near future...this [book] should be carefully read by all specialists and researchers in nuclear medicine and by clinicians in other fields who may find in it new fields of research or applications of their own discoveries or a way to solve clinical problems. What is more, decision makers will benefit from learning about the potential of this specialty and its future role in clinical medicine and biology." -- NEJM, April 2004

"With few exceptions, everything in nuclear medicine is molecular medicine. ... In other words: what is new? The answer is this book, which focusses especially on molecular nuclear imaging and draws attention to our ability, knowledge and expertise ... . This beautifully produced hard-bound volume contains carefully assembled data and in-depth discussion of the major fields of nuclear medicine. ... Suffice to say that this book will remain on my desk for a long time to come." (E.K.J. Pauwels, European Journal of Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging, Vol. 31(5), 2004)

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