Book Description

Molecular Zoology Advances, Strategies, and Protocols Edited by Joan D. Ferraris and Stephen R. Palumbi Contemporary tools of molecular biology continue to open new areas of biological research and to provide important answers to classic problems. Zoological questions of mating strategies, physiological adaptation, genetic exchange between populations, cell lineages during development, and many others are now being powerfully addressed using tools from the molecular arsenal. To provide broad access to these tools requires an authoritative reference that highlights recent advances, lays out future strategies, and provides working protocols to a wide audience of zoological scientists. Molecular Zoology: Advances, Strategies, and Protocols outlines the core concepts of these critical molecular techniques and provides specific instructions for their use. The book is divided into two main parts: Research Strategies and Protocols. The first section features detailed descriptions of the research approaches that incorporate molecular tools in the study of developmental, physiological, ecological, and evolutionary processes. In addition to charting recent advances, this section shows how to interpret results and describes the advantages and disadvantages of alternative approaches. These chapters function as entry points to molecular zoology for broadly trained zoologists without formal molecular training, graduate students, and molecular biologists in other fields. The second section is a compilation of over 60 protocols which have been developed, tested, and perfected by leading researchers in the field. It provides step-by-step coverage of each protocol, featuring for each a summary of its underlying rationale, a list of necessary reagents and solutions, and a discussion of potential obstacles to a particular technique. Specific techniques covered in the book include: * Applications of parametric bootstrapping in molecular phylogenetics * Microsatellite analysis of genetic mating systems and genetic relatedness * Use of RAPD-PCR markers in genetic structure and genealogies * PCR-based cloning across large taxonomic distances * Cell lineage analysis using retroviral vectors * Osmoregulatory gene characterization and expression * Regulatory element identification and transcription factor analysis * Protocols for in situ hybridization, DNA footprinting, gene knockout, ribonuclease protection assay, and coupled transcription/translation reactions. Molecular Zoology: Advances, Strategies, and Protocols is an authoritative resource designed to provide both basic and in-depth explanations of molecular investigation procedures for research scientists in all areas of organismal and integrative biology, including zoology, marine biology, and ecology. With its extensive coverage of molecular protocols, graduate students in biology will also find this book to be an indispensable manual for laboratory work.