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Library | Item Barcode | Call Number | Material Type | Item Category 1 | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Searching... | 30000010229213 | QH506 S63 2005 | Open Access Book | Book | Searching... |
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Summary
Summary
Tools developed by statistical physicists are of increasing importance in the analysis of complex biological systems. Physics in Molecular Biology, first published in 2005, discusses how physics can be used in modeling life. It begins by summarizing important biological concepts, emphasizing how they differ from the systems normally studied in physics. A variety of topics, ranging from the properties of single molecules to the dynamics of macro-evolution, are studied in terms of simple mathematical models. The main focus of the book is on genes and proteins and how they build systems that compute and respond. The discussion develops from simple to complex systems, and from small-scale to large-scale phenomena. This book will inspire advanced undergraduates and graduate students in physics to approach biological subjects from a physicist's point of view. It is self-contained, requiring no background knowledge of biology, and only familiarity with basic concepts from physics, such as forces, energy, and entropy.
Author Notes
Kim Sneppen is Professor of Biophysics at the Nordic Institute for Theoretical Physics (NORDITA), and Associate Professor at the Niels Bohr Institute, Copenhagen
Giovanni Zocchi is Assistant Professor of Physics at the University of California, Los Angeles
Reviews 1
Choice Review
Because physics is the fundamental science involved with all forms of matter, science students and academics should welcome this book by two researchers familiar with both physics and biology. Nine chapters discuss the physics of polymers and mathematical modeling of genes and protein structures, assuming some familiarity with statistics. The book focuses on the physics of simple and complex molecular biological systems. Sneppen (Nordic Institute for Theoretical Physics; Niels Bohr Institute, Copenhagen) and Zocchi (Univ. of California, Los Angeles) start with a short overview of fundamental ideas in biology and then discuss genetic regulation using E. coli as an example. Each chapter comes with references and suggestions for further reading. There is a very useful appendix on statistical physics. A glossary of biological terms and an index also come in handy. Excellent diagrams elucidate the analysis. The book is aimed at classroom use and has questions and problems at the end of sections; students would have welcomed answers or hints to the solutions. ^BSumming Up: Recommended. Upper-division undergraduates through professionals. N. Sadanand Central Connecticut State University
Table of Contents
| Preface | p. vii |
| Introduction | p. 1 |
| 1 What is special about living matter? | p. 4 |
| 2 Polymer physics | p. 8 |
| 3 DNA and RNA | p. 44 |
| 4 Protein structure | p. 77 |
| 5 Protein folding | p. 95 |
| 6 Protein in action: molecular motors | p. 127 |
| 7 Physics of genetic regulation: the [lambda]-phage in E. coli | p. 146 |
| 8 Molecular networks | p. 209 |
| 9 Evolution | p. 245 |
| Appendix Concepts from statistical mechanics and damped dynamics | p. 280 |
| Glossary | p. 297 |
| Index | p. 308 |
