Böcker utgivna av Springer Verlag, Singapore

This book gathers research papers and surveys on the latest advances in Schubert Calculus, presented at the International Festival in Schubert Calculus, held in Guangzhou, China on November 6¿10, 2017. With roots in enumerative geometry and Hilbert's 15th problem, modern Schubert Calculus studies classical and quantum intersection rings on spaces with symmetries, such as flag manifolds. The presence of symmetries leads to particularly rich structures, and it connects Schubert Calculus to many branches of mathematics, including algebraic geometry, combinatorics, representation theory, and theoretical physics. For instance, the study of the quantum cohomology ring of a Grassmann manifold combines all these areas in an organic way. The book is useful for researchers and graduate students interested in Schubert Calculus, and more generally in the study of flag manifolds in relation to algebraic geometry, combinatorics, representation theory and mathematical physics.

Pollution is one of the most serious issues facing mankind and other life forms on earth. Environmental pollution leads to the degradation of ecosystems, loss of services, economic losses, and various other problems. The eco-friendliest approach to rejuvenating polluted ecosystems is with the help of microorganism-based bioremediation. Microorganisms are characterized by great biodiversity, genetic and metabolic machinery, and by their ability to survive, even in extremely polluted environments. As such, they are and will remain the most important tools for restoring polluted ecosystems / habitats. This three-volume book sheds light on the utilization of microorganisms and the latest technologies for cleaning up polluted sites. It also discusses the remediation or degradation of various important pollutants such as pesticides, wastewater, plastics, PAHs, oil spills etc. The book also explains the latest technologies used for the degradation of pollutants in several niche ecosystems. Given its scope, the book will be of interest to teachers, researchers, bioremediation scientists, capacity builders and policymakers. It also offers valuable additional reading material for undergraduate and graduate students of microbiology, ecology, soil science, and the environmental sciences.

This book provides a comprehensive overview of carotenoid biosynthesis by different organisms, including bacteria, archaea, fungi, arthropods, and plants. Carotenoids are thought to provide health benefits in areas such as cancer, diabetes, osteoporosis, NAFLD, NASH, obesity, age-related functional decline, and as a result, they have received an increasing amount of attention.With contributions from leading experts in biology, biotechnology, and chemistry of carotenoid research, this volume discusses the biological functions of carotenoids such as astaxanthin, ß-cryptoxanthin, and fucoxanthin, in addition to paprika carotenoids, capsanthin, and capsorubin. It also reveals the technologies behind the commercial production of some functional carotenoids.The book is targeted for academic and industrial readers in biology, biotechnology, nutrient physiology and related fields.

This book covers the fundamentals of bacterial volatile-mediated communication with other organisms, starting with the biosyntheses of volatile organic compounds (VOC), interactions with plants and animals, interactions with microbes, tools for data analysis, and their applications. With this foundation in place, the book subsequently focuses on understanding the effect of bacterial volatiles on plant growth promotion, discusses plant immunity, and lastly shares insights into future research directions. The book is divided into fourteen-in-depth chapters, each of which is designed to enrich readers¿ understanding of bacterial volatile compounds¿ functions and various applications.The pivotal roles of bacterial volatile compounds make this book essential reading for scientists and students of all biological disciplines seeking to fully understand microorganism responses and environmental adaptations. In addition to its value as a fundamental book for graduate students, it offers a clearly structured reference guide for all individuals working in microbiology.

This book provides a comprehensive review of the antioxidant value of widely consumed fruits. Each chapter covers the botanical description, nutritional & health properties of these popular fruits. Fruits are one of the most important indicators of dietary quality and offer protective effects against several chronic diseases such as cardiovascular diseases, obesity, and various types of cancer. In order to effectively promote fruit consumption, it is necessary to know and understand the components of fruits. In addition to underscoring the importance of fruit consumption¿s effects on human diet, the book addresses the characterization of the chemical compounds that are responsible for the antioxidant proprieties of various fruits.Given its scope, the book will be of interest to graduate and post-graduate students, research scholars, academics, pomologists and agricultural scientists alike. Those working in various fruit processing industries and other horticultural departments will also find the comprehensive information relevant to their work.

Surface bio-contamination has become a severe problem that contributes to outbreaks of community acquired and nosocomial infections through contiguous fomite transmission of diseases. Every year, thousands of patients die due to nosocomial infections by pathogens. It is therefore essential to develop novel strategies to prevent or improve the treatment of biomaterial concomitant infections. The concept of antimicrobial materials is becoming increasingly important not only in the hospital and healthcare environments, but also for laboratories, home appliances, and certain industrial applications. Materials are now being developed to prevent the buildup, spread and transfer of harmful microbes, and to dynamically deactivate them. Drawing on research and examples from around the world, this book highlights the latest advances in, and applications of, antibacterial biomaterials for biomedical devices, and focuses on metals with antibacterial coatings/surfaces, antibacterial stainless steels and other commonly used antibacterial materials. It also discusses the role of innovative approaches and provides a comprehensive overview of cutting-edge research on the processing, properties and technologies involved in the development of antimicrobial applications. Given its scope, the book will be of interest to researchers and policymakers, as well as undergraduate and graduate students of biochemistry, microbiology, and environmental chemistry

Surface bio-contamination has become a severe problem that contributes to outbreaks of community acquired and nosocomial infections through contiguous fomite transmission of diseases. Every year, thousands of patients die due to nosocomial infections by pathogens. It is therefore essential to develop novel strategies to prevent or improve the treatment of biomaterial concomitant infections. The concept of antimicrobial materials is becoming increasingly important not only in the hospital and healthcare environments, but also for laboratories, home appliances, and certain industrial applications. Materials are now being developed to prevent the buildup, spread and transfer of harmful microbes, and to dynamically deactivate them. Drawing on research and examples from around the world, this book highlights the latest advances in, and applications of, antibacterial biomaterials for biomedical devices, and focuses on metals with antibacterial coatings/surfaces, antibacterial stainless steels and other commonly used antibacterial materials. It also discusses the role of innovative approaches and provides a comprehensive overview of cutting-edge research on the processing, properties and technologies involved in the development of antimicrobial applications. Given its scope, the book will be of interest to researchers and policymakers, as well as undergraduate and graduate students of biochemistry, microbiology, and environmental chemistry

This book sheds new light on ways to alleviate biotic and abiotic stress in plants, using signaling molecules of plant growth promotory rhizobacteria. Further, it elaborates on the different types of stress and strategies used by plants under various stress conditions. The respective sections describe the importance of the microbiome for the overall health of plants and how exploring plant-microbe communication and signaling pathways could offer a promising avenue for future research. The book also discusses how rhizobacteria could be exploited in stress alleviation and sustainable agriculture, and addresses omics strategies for stress response and mitigation. Thanks to clearly annotated references, the book also supports and encourages readers to further explore the topics discussed.

This book sheds new light on ways to alleviate biotic and abiotic stress in plants, using signaling molecules of plant growth promotory rhizobacteria. Further, it elaborates on the different types of stress and strategies used by plants under various stress conditions. The respective sections describe the importance of the microbiome for the overall health of plants and how exploring plant-microbe communication and signaling pathways could offer a promising avenue for future research. The book also discusses how rhizobacteria could be exploited in stress alleviation and sustainable agriculture, and addresses omics strategies for stress response and mitigation. Thanks to clearly annotated references, the book also supports and encourages readers to further explore the topics discussed.

Converting biomass to biofuels involves hydrolyzing cellulose to sugars using cost-intensive commercial enzymes ¿ an expensive step that makes large-scale production economically non-viable. As such, there is a need for low-cost bioprocessing.This book critically evaluates the available bioprocessing technologies for various biofuels, and presents the latest research in the field. It also highlights the recent developments, current challenges and viable alternative approaches to reduce the overall cost of producing biofuels.

Achieving zero hunger and food security is a top priority in the United Nations Development Goals (UNDGs). In an era characterized by high population growth and increasing pressure on agricultural systems, efficiency in the use of natural resources has become central to sustainable agricultural practices. Fundamentally speaking, eco-efficiency is about maximizing agricultural outputs, in terms of quantity and quality, using less land, water, nutrients, energy, labor, or capital. The concept of eco-efficiency involves both the ecological and economic aspects of sustainable agriculture. It is therefore essential to understand the interaction of ecosystem constituents within the extensive agricultural landscape, as well as farmers¿ economic needs.This book examines the latest eco-efficient practices used in agro-systems. Drawing upon research and examples from around the world, it offers an up-to-date overview, together with insights into directly applicable approaches for poly-cropping systems and landscape-scale management to improve the stability of agricultural production systems, helping achieve food security. The book will be of interest to educators, researchers, climate change scientists, capacity builders and policymakers alike. It can also be used as additional reading material for undergraduate and graduate courses on agriculture, forestry, soil science, and the environmental sciences.

Microbial biotechnology is an emerging field with applications in a broad range of sectors involving food security, human nutrition, plant protection and overall basic research in the agricultural sciences. The environment has been sustaining the burden of mankind from time immemorial, and our indiscriminate use of its resources has led to the degradation of the climate, loss of soil fertility, and the need for sustainable strategies. The major focus in the coming decades will be on achieving a green and clean environment by utilizing soil and plant-associated beneficial microbial communities. Plant-microbe interactions include the association of microbes with plant systems: epiphytic, endophytic and rhizospheric. The microbes associated with plant ecosystems play an important role in plant growth, development, and soil health. Moreover, soil and plant microbiomes help to promote plant growth, either directly or indirectly by means of plant growth-promoting mechanisms, e.g. the release of plant growth regulators; solubilization of phosphorus, potassium and zinc; biological nitrogen fixation; or by producing siderophores, ammonia, HCN and other secondary metabolites. These beneficial microbial communities represent a novel and promising solution for agro-environmental sustainability by providing biofertilizers, bioprotectants, and biostimulants, in addition to mitigating various types of abiotic stress in plants. This book focuses on plant-microbe interactions; the biodiversity of soil and plant microbiomes; and their role in plant growth and soil health. Accordingly, it will be immensely useful to readers working in the biological sciences, especially microbiologists, biochemists and microbial biotechnologists.

Microbial biotechnology is an emerging field with applications in a broad range of sectors involving food security, human nutrition, plant protection and overall basic research in the agricultural sciences. The environment has been sustaining the burden of mankind from time immemorial, and our indiscriminate use of its resources has led to the degradation of the climate, loss of soil fertility, and the need for sustainable strategies. The major focus in the coming decades will be on achieving a green and clean environment by utilizing soil and plant-associated beneficial microbial communities. Plant-microbe interactions include the association of microbes with plant systems: epiphytic, endophytic and rhizospheric. The microbes associated with plant ecosystems play an important role in plant growth, development, and soil health. Moreover, soil and plant microbiomes help to promote plant growth, either directly or indirectly by means of plant growth-promoting mechanisms, e.g. the release of plant growth regulators; solubilization of phosphorus, potassium and zinc; biological nitrogen fixation; or by producing siderophores, ammonia, HCN and other secondary metabolites. These beneficial microbial communities represent a novel and promising solution for agro-environmental sustainability by providing biofertilizers, bioprotectants, and biostimulants, in addition to mitigating various types of abiotic stress in plants. This book focuses on plant-microbe interactions; the biodiversity of soil and plant microbiomes; and their role in plant growth and soil health. Accordingly, it will be immensely useful to readers working in the biological sciences, especially microbiologists, biochemists and microbial biotechnologists.

The sustainable development of the agriculture sector is the only option to meet the demands of increased and economically viable production in a changing climate. This means there is a need to introduce the latest technologies to enhance production, and also help policymakers make decisions for the future. Geospatial technologies & tools, such as remote sensing, geographical information systems (GIS), global positioning systems (GPS), and mobile & web applications, provide unique capabilities to analyze multi-scale, multi-temporal datasets, and support decision-making in sustainable agriculture development and natural resources management. Further, the availability of reliable and timely geospatial information on natural resources and environmental conditions is essential for sustainable agricultural development and food security. Since remote sensing solutions are fast, non-destructive and have large spatial coverage, they can play a significant role in the identification, inventory, and mapping of land resources. Over the past four decades, remote sensing has proved to be a cost-effective and powerful tool to assess crop and soil properties in varying spatial and temporal scales using both visual and digital techniques. Satellite remote sensing coupled with GIS & mobile-app based positional information has emerged as an efficient tool for optimizing input resources, and minimizing cost of production and risk of biotic/ abiotic factors nature to promote sustainable agriculture. This book comprehensively documents the applications of space-based technologies for crop and soil assessments for the sustainable development of agriculture.

This book provides up-to-date information on bioinformatics tools for the discovery and development of new drug molecules. It discusses a range of computational applications, including three-dimensional modeling of protein structures, protein-ligand docking, and molecular dynamics simulation of protein-ligand complexes for identifying desirable drug candidates. It also explores computational approaches for identifying potential drug targets and for pharmacophore modeling. Moreover, it presents structure- and ligand-based drug design tools to optimize known drugs and guide the design of new molecules. The book also describes methods for identifying small-molecule binding pockets in proteins, and summarizes the databases used to explore the essential properties of drugs, drug-like small molecules and their targets. In addition, the book highlights various tools to predict the absorption, distribution, metabolism, excretion (ADME) and toxicity (T) of potential drug candidates. Lastly, it reviews in silico tools that can facilitate vaccine design and discusses their limitations.