Enzyme inhibitors play a pivotal role in pharmaceutical and nutraceutical industries. The primary understanding of the action of inhibitors helps pharmacologists during the design process for developing new therapeutic drugs. Most drugs treat various chronic and life threatening diseases owing to their specificity and the potency of enzymes which they can inhibit. Enzyme inhibitors are used to screen various levels of diseases which propel the growth of inhibitors. The potential for enzyme inhibitors in the therapeutics market is very high as the biochemical properties and classes of enzyme inhibiting products are readily available. The other broad aspect of enzyme inhibition is their application in analytical sensors. These sensors assist in monitoring various environmental factors. Understanding the mechanism of inhibition and regeneration of enzymes is a general problem of great importance for many biochemists and biotechnologists especially when using immobilized enzymes. This reference compiles applied information about enzyme inhibitors used in medicine and environmental monitoring applications. Chapters presented in this volume cover special topics including biosensors, crop improvements in agriculture, biofuel production, pesticide and heavy metal detection, and drug therapy for human diseases such as breast cancer, neurological diseases and viral infections. The collection of topics in this volume makes it an informative resource for readers at all academic levels on the applications of enzyme inhibitors in medicine and environmental sciences.

Methods to Determine Enzymatic Activity is a textbook about industrial enzymes. The book features definitions, classifications and applications of selected enzymes important in industry and in biotechnological processes. Analytical methods for these enzymes are also included in the text. The main objective of this textbook is to provide readers information focused on the current analysis methods of enzymatic activity at qualitative and quantitative levels. Each chapter is about one specific enzyme and contains information about its substrate and some biochemical properties. The methodologies are presented as an experimental protocol allowing interested readers to reproduce the experimental methods detailed within the textbook. These protocols contain the principle of the technique, materials, methods, and all steps necessary for the determination of enzyme activity and interpretation of results. Each methodology is illustrated with photos and schemes for a better and clear understanding. This book, therefore, uniquely brings modern analysis techniques of industrial enzymes in a single easy to understand volume. This textbook is suitable for undergraduate enzymology courses and advanced industrial biotechnology and microbiology courses.

This book presents information about the high enzymatic reactivity of reactive oxygen species. Chapters in the book cover several aspects of the topic such as the sources, formation mechanisms, reaction centers, oxidation-reduction reactions, cellular respiration chemistry, enzymatic kinetics, mitochondrial and plastid electron transport chains, oxidation-reduction potential, reaction constants, reaction velocity and reaction mechanisms involved, cellular cytotoxicity, antioxidant defense mechanisms in plants and animals, response of plants to conditions of environmental stress, xenobiotics, and the thermodynamics inherent to oxygen metabolism. The book also features a chapter on flavonoids which highlights a paradoxical facet of the affinity of reactive oxygen species for enzymes. Flavonoids are mainly antioxidant molecules as they act as trappers of reactive oxygen species. The chapter informs readers about the metabolic pathways mediated by enzymes through wich flavonoids become promoters of these same reactive oxygen species. All chapters present the subject in a simple, analytical format, while highlighting the scientific evidence gathered by researchers so far. The volume is an interesting reference for scholars learning about the biochemistry and enzymology of oxygen and its free radical derivatives.

Ypt/Rab GTPases form the largest branch of the Ras-related small GTPase superfamily and regulate intracellular membrane trafficking in all eukaryotes. Since their discovery over two decades ago, a wealth of information has accumulated about the roles that Ypt/Rab proteins play in vesicular transport steps, including vesicle budding, movement, and fusion. In recent years, Ypt/Rab GTPases and membrane trafficking have been discovered to play an important role in other cellular processes, such as signal transduction, cell growth and differentiation. Additionally, Rab GTPases have been implicated in various human diseases, ranging from diabetes to cancer. This e-book provides a timely update on the rapidly developing field and discusses all functional aspects of Ypt/Rab GTPases. The 12 chapters cover well-characterized Ypts/Rabs involved in both exocytic and endocytic pathways as well as newly identified and uncharacterized Rab GTPases. A comprehensive picture about how each Ypt/Rab controls multiple vesicular trafficking steps via interactions with multiple effectors is conveyed to the reader’s mind. This e-book is the first ever volume focused on the Ypt/Rab GTPases and should provide a useful resource for researchers, students and teachers interested in the field.