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Bioinformatics for Beginners: Tools and Techniques
(INK FREEDOM PUBLICATION, 2024) Imran Hussain, Ravi K. Deshwal, NaushadAhmad Khan, Mirza Masroor Ali Beg
Bioinformatics for Beginners: Tools and Techniques is a comprehensive guide that introduces readers to the fundamental concepts and techniques in bioinformatics. Covering a broad range of topics, from biological databases and sequence alignment to machine learning applications in bioinformatics, the book is designed to cater to students, educators, and researchers alike. The book is divided into several chapters, each focusing on a key aspect of bioinformatics: Biological Databases: Learn how to access, retrieve, and use nucleotide and protein sequences from prominent databases. Sequence Alignment: Understand the principles of pairwise and multiple sequence alignments, scoring matrices, and algorithms. Gene Prediction and Annotation: Explore tools and approaches to predict genes and annotate genomes. Phylogenetics and Evolution: Dive into the construction and interpretation of phylogenetic trees. Omics Technologies: Gain insights into genomics, transcriptomics, proteomics, and metabolomics, with hands-on examples. Machine Learning: Discover the growing role of machine learning techniques in bioinformatics, including algorithms and tools relevant to the field. Each chapter is enriched with practical examples and illustrations, enabling readers to apply their knowledge in real-world scenarios. This book is an excellent resource for anyone looking to gain foundational knowledge in bioinformatics or broaden their expertise in computational biology.
Impact of Heavy Metals on Plant Health: Exploring Toxicity and Oxidative Stress
(Book Rivers, 2026) Taiba Saeed, Durdana Yasin, Asad Ullah
Heavy metals, naturally occurring elements with high atomic weight and density, pose significant threats to plant health when present in elevated concentrations. This chapter provides the information on the intricate relationship between heavy metals and plants, highlighting the dual challenges of toxicity and oxidative stress. Plants are routinely exposed to heavy metals such as cadmium (Cd), lead (Pb), Copper (Cu), mercury (Hg), arsenic (As), and chromium (Cr) through contaminated soil and water sources. These metals, when absorbed by plant roots, can translocate to aerial parts, disrupting physiological and biochemical processes. Heavy metal toxicity manifests in plants through a variety of detrimental effects, including inhibition of photosynthesis, impaired nutrient uptake, and disruption of cellular structures. A primary consequence of heavy metal exposure is the induction of oxidative stress, a state characterized by the overproduction of reactive oxygen species (ROS) such as superoxide radicals, hydrogen peroxide, and hydroxyl radicals. While ROS are naturally generated in plants during metabolic processes, their levels are tightly regulated by antioxidant defense mechanisms. However, heavy metals disrupt this balance, leading to an excessive accumulation of ROS. This oxidative burst can damage cellular components, including lipids proteins, and DNA, thereby exacerbating the toxic effects of heavy metals. Plants have evolved complex defense strategies to mitigate heavy metal-induced oxidative stress. These include the synthesis of metal-binding proteins like phytochelatins and metallothioneins, the activation of antioxidant enzymes such as superoxide dismutase, catalase, and peroxidases, and the upregulation of non-enzymatic antioxidants like ascorbate and glutathione. Despite these adaptive responses, the efficiency of these mechanisms varies among plant species and is often insufficient to fully counteract heavy metal toxicity under severe contamination.
Role of the Women in the National Development of India
(Bharati Vidyapeeth’s New Law College, Sangli, 2026) Sanjay Aher, Sadaf Khan, Krishna Choudhary, Kavya Maheshwari, Janhavi Nilesh Ghodke
Mechanism-Based Drug Repurposing Strategies for Rheumatoid Arthritis
(Intech Open, 2026) Ambareen Fatima Ahmed, Anas Islam
Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a chronic autoimmune inflammatory disorder characterized by persistent synovial inflammation, progressive joint destruction, and systemic complications. Despite advances in disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs (DMARDs), therapeutic heterogeneity, incomplete response, safety concerns, and high treatment costs continue to limit optimal disease control. This chapter presents a mechanism-based narrative review of drug repurposing strategies in RA, emphasizing the pharmacological rationale for repositioning approved or clinically investigated agents based on shared pathogenic mechanisms. Key inflammatory pathways, including cytokine signaling, JAK–STAT, NF-κB, MAPK, and immunometabolic networks, are critically examined as therapeutic targets. The chapter integrates evidence from pharmacological studies, network pharmacology, molecular docking, multi-omics approaches, and translational clinical research to evaluate repurposing candidates originating from oncology, metabolic, cardiovascular, anti-infective, and neuropharmacological indications. Clinically supported therapies are distinguished from exploratory candidates supported primarily by preclinical or computational evidence. Major translational barriers, including inconsistent clinical validation, safety concerns, economic constraints, and regulatory challenges, are discussed. The importance of biomarker-guided patient stratification, precision rheumatology, and integrated multi-omics approaches is highlighted to improve translational success. Although mechanism-based repurposing offers considerable promise in RA, robust experimental and clinical validation remains essential before computational predictions can be translated into meaningful therapeutic outcomes.
The Legal Mosaic of Humanity: A Rights-Based Approach to the Human Genome
(Bloomsbury Publishing India Pvt. Ltd, 2026) Mirza Juned Beg, Mohd Sufiyan Khan