The critically acclaimed laboratory standard, Methods in Enzymology, is one of the most highly respected publications in the field of biochemistry. Since 1955, each volume has been eagerly awaited, frequently consulted, and praised by researchers and reviewers alike. The series contains much material still relevant today - truly an essential publication for researchers in all fields of life sciences.
C. Harry Arsenis
This book is part of a long and successful series of volumes on the methodologies associated with enzymes and their actions. Although the specific topic of this book has been dealt with before in books and reviews, the idea of making the same subject a two-volume edition in this successful series is a good idea. This volume is a series of short articles describing the methods for the generation and determination of various oxygen radical species and antioxidant actions. Several articles are devoted to the study of these products on various cellular components. The specific purpose is to describe the experimental procedures for assaying the production of oxygen radicals and related species and measure the effects of these biological agents under various conditions. The objectives, as stated, are important in view of the significance of oxygen radicals in the pathogenesis of several diseases. The author's objectives have been met by compiling an extensive array of methods associated with these important biological agents. The book is targeted for researchers and analysts involved in establishing the actions of these highly reactive species and the implications these actions have in health and disease. The book follows the customary and successful format established by a large number of similar volumes in the same series dealing with methodology for the generation and assay of oxygen radicals. The subjects of the many articles are well chosen and representative of the current status of the field. The appearance of the book follows the high standard established by previous publications of the same series. Recently, the methodology associated with the production and effects of oxygen radicalshas acquired greater significance because of the role these agents play in major health problems created, in part, by the changing environment of the industrialized world. Consequently, a book dealing with such a subject should be considered useful in the research or the analytical laboratory.