1st Edition
Water The Forgotten Biological Molecule
The main objective of this book is to bring together multidisciplinary contributions from leading authorities on the properties and roles of water in cell systems which are otherwise dispersed in the literature and difficult to gather. The authors are drawn from areas of physics, chemistry, biology and physiology, where water plays a central role. The book focuses on current research and developments in the theoretical and experimental studies of water in biological systems and compounds, such as interaction with hydrophobic or hydrophilic structures, protein and membrane surfaces. It provides insights into the importance of water in cellular processes and physiology and, ultimately, in life, brain function, and health.
THE STRUCTURE OF THE WATER MOLECULE
The Water Molecule, Liquid Water, Hydrogen Bonds, and Water Networks
Martin Chaplin
WATER AS A SOLVENT
Protein Dynamics and Hydration Water
Marie-Claire Bellissent-Funel
Effect of Hydration on Protein Dynamics
Mikio Kataoka and Hiroshi Nakagawa
Statistical-Mechanics Theory of Molecular Recognition: Water and Other Molecules Recognized by Protein
Norio Yoshida, Yasuomi Kiyota, Thanyada Rungrotmongkol, Saree Phongphanphanee, Takashi Imai, and Fumio Hirata
Hydrophobic Molecules in Water
B. Cabane
WATER AT INTERFACES
How Water Meets a Hydrophobic Interface
Yingxi (Elaine) Zhu
Characteristics of Water Adjacent to Hydrophilic Interfaces
Hyok Yoo, David R. Baker, Christopher M. Pirie, Basil Hovakeemian, and Gerald H. Pollack
WATER AND CELL MEMBRANES
Water and Membranes: Insights from Molecular Dynamics Simulations
Mounir Tarek
Water in Membranes, Water in Cells: Neutrons Reveal Dynamics and Interactions
M. Jasnin, A. M. Stadler, and G. Zaccai
Structure and Inhibitor of Water Channel in Brain
Yukihiro Tanimura, Kazutoshi Tani, Hiroshi Suzuki, Kouki Nishikawa, Akiko Kamegawa, Yoko Hiroaki, and Yoshinori Fujiyoshi
Water, Membranes, and Life Without Water
John H. Crowe
WATER AND CELLULAR STRUCTURE/PHYSIOLOGY
Interfacial Water and Cell Architecture/Function
Frank Mayer
Water-Based Biological Homeostasis in Multiple Fluid-Filled Compartments in the Higher Organisms: Regulation by the Paracellular Barrier–Forming Tight Junctions of Epithelial Cell Sheets
Yuji Yamazaki, Atsushi Tamura, and Sachiko Tsukita
Role of the Septin Cytoskeleton for the Functional Organization of the Plasma Membrane
Makoto Kinoshita
Water Movements Associated with Neuronal Activity Revealed by Optical Methods: Focus on Digital Holographic Microscopy
P. Marquet, P. Jourdain, C. Depeursinge, and P. J. Magistretti
WATER, HEALTH, AND LIFE
Water and the Mind: Role of Water, Cell Membranes, and Diffusion in Brain Function Imaging
Denis Le Bihan
Water and Brain
Hidenao Fukuyama
Water, a Key Molecule for Living, Water in Metabolism and Biodiversity
Gilles Boeuf
Biography
Denis Le Bihan is a member of the French Academy of Sciences and director and founder of NeuroSpin, an ultra-high-field MRI facility (Atomic Energy Commission, Saclay, France).
Hidenao Fukuyama is chairman of the Human Brain Research Center, Kyoto University Graduate School of Medicine, Japan.
"This book offers refreshing new insights into a fundamental problem in biology at the beginning of the 21st century: ‘How does the intricate dance between macromolecules and water molecules control fundamentally important biological processes?’ Lacking basic theoretical understanding at the molecular level, we resort to empirical relationships with limited ability to predict future outcomes in biology, biotechnology, and medicine. The volume pushes the frontier using experimental insights gained from the most recent advances in technology to narrow the search."
- Dr. Gary Fullerton, University of Colorado Denver, USA
"This book courageously confronts the heart of natural science through water, clarifying this mysterious and attractive molecule’s role in life through a trans-disciplinary approach. It will no doubt be the first light of dawn for a new physiology and brain science."
- Dr. Hideaki Koizumi, Fellow, Hitachi, Ltd., Japan
