Notes of an Anatomist

Molecular Cell Biology aims to present the essential elements of genetics, biochemistry, and cell biology. The 1,187-page text attempts to integrate molecular biology with biochemistry, cell biology, and genetics, giving insight into such fascinating problems as development, immunology, and cancer. This 25-chapter college textbook is no more difficult to read than the basic textbooks encountered by undergraduate physics and chemistry students. The book is divided into four parts. Part I provides a clear explanation of how basic biochemical and biological principles relate to the central developing areas of molecular cell biology. Chapter 1 presents some of the key ideas in the history of modern biology. Chapters 2 and 3 deal with the fundamentals of biochemical structure, function, and energetics. Chapters 4, 5, 6, and 7 present cellular polymer synthesis, cell structure and function, and new cell and molecular techniques. Part II (chapters 8 through 13) stresses RNA biosynthesis and gene expression and concentrates on gene transcription and its control. Part III (chapters 14 through 21) presents a detailed discussion of the properties of specific membrane proteins, electrical properties of membranes, cellular movement, cell shape, cell components, organelles, metabolism, and the propagation of nerve impulses. Part IV (chapters 22 through 25) describes advances in understanding several areas of molecular cell biology, including cell function and behavior, the immunologic response, cancer, and cell evolution. In summary, Molecular Cell Biology is principally for students taking a first course in molecular cell biology (undergraduates, graduate students, or medical students). It is a useful text to working scientists in search of a guide to help pick their way through a vast field of knowledge or a good source for important references, since a thorough list of references is provided at the end of each chapter. Readers will find the same thoughtful organization, clarity of writing, and authority that made the now outdated Molecular Biology of the Cell the standard book in the field.