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About this book
Excluding the biological polymers proteins, lipids and nucleic acids, modified tetrapyrroles are the biological molecules that have had the greatest impact on the evolution of life over the past 4 billion years. They are involved in a wide variety of fundamental processes that underpin central primary metabolism in all kingdoms of life, from photosynthesis to methanogenesis. Moreover, they bring colour into the world and it is for this reason that these compounds have been appropriately dubbed the ‘pigments of life’. To understand how and why these molecules have been so universally integrated into the life processes one has to appreciate the chemical properties of the tetrapyrrole scaffold and, where appropriate, the chemical characteristics of the centrally chelated metal ion. This book addresses why these molecules are employed in Nature, how they are made and what happens to them after they have finished their usefulness.
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Table of contents (25 chapters)
Authors and Affiliations
Bibliographic Information
Book Title: Tetrapyrroles
Book Subtitle: Birth, Life and Death
Authors: Martin J. Warren, Alison G. Smith
Series Title: Molecular Biology Intelligence Unit
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-0-387-78518-9
Publisher: Springer New York, NY
eBook Packages: Biomedical and Life Sciences, Biomedical and Life Sciences (R0)
Copyright Information: Springer-Verlag New York 2009
Hardcover ISBN: 978-0-387-78517-2Published: 14 January 2009
Softcover ISBN: 978-1-4419-2691-3Published: 03 February 2011
eBook ISBN: 978-0-387-78518-9Published: 21 December 2009
Series ISSN: 1431-0414
Edition Number: 1
Number of Pages: XX, 406
Number of Illustrations: 155 b/w illustrations, 2 illustrations in colour
Topics: Plant Sciences