Angiogenesis From The Molecular To Integrative Pharmacology, Vol. 476 Book

Proceedings of the 5th Biannual International Meeting on Angiogenesis: From the Molecular to Integrative Pharmacology, held July 1-7, 1999, in Crete, Greece.
Angiogenesis, as a vastly complex biological process, has challenged researchers from all basic scientific disciplines, including pharmacology, biochemistry, physiology, embryology and anatomy. The significance of this phenomenon for the study of disease states has also interested clinicians from a number of specialist fields. This multidisciplinary work reflects the growth of awareness of concepts such as angiogenesis based therapy, the enormous therapeutic and commercial potential of which has attracted major research and investment in recent years. This volume, which aims to bridge the gap between basic and clinical methodology and understanding, presents the most up-to-date developments in this field.

Eugene A. Davidson

This volume represents the proceedings of a meeting held in 1999. The purpose is to publish the data presented at the meeting. The topic is of wide current interest in areas as diverse as cardiac function and tumor control. Accordingly, this update on work from more than 2O leading investigators is a timely contribution. This volume will be of interest to research workers in the areas affected by the biological process of blood vessel formation -- a key process in development as well as a threat in tumor growth. The volume is organized into several sections on receptors and angiogenic factors, regulation of angiogenesis, factors in the extracellular matrix, and use of inhibitors, especially in cancer therapy. The focus in the presentations is on work in the laboratories of the investigators. The presentations tend to be relatively short with limited bibliographic citations (and no uniform format). Lacking is any genomic coverage, an area of growing importance in this field where many factors and receptors are involved in this complex process. A major caveat is that methods in this field are far from validated and the lack of a well-defined, reproducible, quantitative assay renders much of the material descriptive in nature. The volume itself suffers from an apparent lack of editorial oversight resulting in numerous spelling and usage errors.