Medical Biochemistry

837 Pages·2008·6.89 MB·English

MEDICAL
BIOCHEMISTRY
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Copyright © 2006, 2002 New Age International (P) Ltd., Publishers
Published by New Age International (P) Ltd., Publishers
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ISBN : 978-81-224-2300-6
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PREFACE TO THE SECOND EDITION
I attempted to provide essential information on molecular basis of health and disease
that is mainly related to life of surviving cell(s) in the first edition of the book. However life
cycle of cell(s) includes cell(s) birth and cell(s) death apart from survival. For the last couple
of years these frontier areas are advancing rapidly which is viewed by many as good sign
for development of :
(a) new therapy or therapeutics for cancer
(b) immortalized cells.
The latter fuels growth of biotechnology and pharmaceutical industries also. Hence, in
the second edition two chapters—1. Biochemistry of cell cycle (cell birth) 2. Biochemistry of
apoptosis (cell death) are added.
As living organisms evolved from simple unicellular to highly complex multicellular
mammals, several new systems and organs were developed. For example, blood which acts
as vehicle or communication between various locations of body, immune system which
protects body from intruders or foreign organisms.
Parkinsonism, psychosis, depression, Schizophrenia, loss of taste and olfaction are due
to disturbances in nervous, taste and olfactory systems. Various organs present in body
perform several organ specific functions which are essential for life. If functions of these
organs are disturbed, diseases in which may culminate in death. So, in this edition biochemistry
of blood including immune response in Chapter-32; molecular and cellular mechanism of
learning, memory, behaviour, taste and olfactory in biochemical communications Chapter;
tests, procedures that are done in hospital biochemistry laboratory to assess functions of
liver, kidney in Chapter-33 and thyroid in Chapter-29 are detailed.
Depending on disease a particular constituent of blood is either elevated or lowered.
Diagnosis and prognosis of disease usually involves detection and measurement of various
blood constituents in hospital biochemistry laboratory. Therefore advanced techniques like
high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC), affinity chromatography, and general
techniques like centrifugation and dialysis, instruments from spectrophotometer to auto
analyzer and methods used for detection and quantitation of blood constituents like
carbohydrates, proteins, lipids, nucleic acids, enzymes, electrolytes etc., in health and disease
are detailed in Chapter-34.
Humans and other mammals are able to remove waste products, toxins, foreign
compounds from blood and organs in the form of urine. In disease, composition of urine
varies from that of healthy state. So, detection, quantitation of various constituents of urine
is carried out in hospital biochemistry laboratory to confirm diagnosis of diseases. In Chapter-
(vii)
(viii)
34, methods for detection and estimation of urine constituent under normal and diseased
conditions are also detailed.
Most striking feature in this edition of the book is inclusion of biochemical aspects of
diseases or disease causing organisms common to tropical countries like malaria, tuberculosis,
peptic ulcer or gastritis, pneumonia, leishmaniasis, giardiasis, trypanosomiasis etc. Since
most of the organisms are developing resistance to the existing drugs, there is need for
development of new drugs which requires thorough biochemical knowledge of these diseases
as well as disease causing organisms. Apart from adding new chapters, all existing chapters
have been updated by adding new subject matter. References of each chapter updated by
including reviews, books, research articles etc. Further, number of unsolved problems have
been increased in most of the chapters.
I hope this edition will be well received by teachers and students of various medical,
dental, pharmacy, biotechnology, physiotherapy, medical laboratory technology, biomedical
engineering, life sciences under graduate and post graduate courses, Suggestions or comments
from teachers and students are welcome. I am grateful to Sri. R.K. Gupta, Chairman; Sri
Saumya Gupta, Managing Director of New Age International, New Delhi, for publishing
second edition.
N. MALLIKARJUNA RAO
PREFACE TO THE FIRST EDITION
This book explains the fundamentals of biochemical (molecular) bases of health and
disease. Hence it meets medical and allied health sciences student’s needs. As a teacher of
medical, dental, pharmacy, biomedical engineering and science students for the last two
decades, I know the problems faced by students in mastering (conceptualizing) the subject
within a limited time. Most of these students need a book for their routine day-to-day study
which contains only the necessary information in a simple and concise way. Therefore, this
book is written in simple language in such a way that a student with very little chemistry
or biology background can easily follow the various aspects of biochemistry that are presented.
This book is also useful for those who are specializing in biochemistry (M.Sc. or M.D.)
because advances in frontier areas of biochemistry are presented in a systemic way. Of
course advances in other areas that are relevant to medical students are also included to
a limited extent. An interesting feature of this book is that the medical and biological
importance of each chapter is highlighted in simple numbered statements. Further, in some
chapters, diseases, drugs (treatments) or toxins of particular subject matter are described
under medical importance heads. Further, each chapter’s text is designed to facilitate easy
flow of information in an interesting, thought provoking and logical manner. Exercises
(cases) given at the end of each chapter help in mastering of the subject by student and
utilization of biochemical principles by the student in solving health problems. To enthusiastic
students, references given at the end of each chapter provide additional information.
There are 29 chapters in the book. First six chapters deal with the composition, structure,
function and life cycle of cells and the goal of biochemistry; occurrence, chemistry, structure
and functions of biomolecules like amino acids, peptides, proteins, enzymes, carbohydrates
and lipids. This is then followed by chapters 7 and 8 that deal with membrane structure,
various transporters that move biomolecules across membrane and disintegration of complex
molecules of food and absorption of resulting products, respectively.
Chapters 9-12 deal with the production and utilization of energy in various pathways of
carbohydrate, lipid and aminoacid metabolisms. Regulatory mechanisms of some of the
important pathways are also outlined. Further synthesis of biologically (medically) important
compounds including non-essential amino acids is detailed. In chapter 11 the ultimate way
of producing energy from all energy yielding compounds in the respiratory chain is described.
Changes in the flow of metabolites into various pathways of carbohydrate, lipid and protein
metabolism that occur among tissues in well fed state, diabetes and starvation are described
in chapter 13.
Fundamentals of molecular biology i.e., occurrence, chemistry, structure, functions,
metabolism of nucleotides, nucleic acids and control of gene expression as well as applied
molecular biology i.e., recombinant DNA technology are detailed in chapters 14-20. Biomedical
(ix)