Vertebrate Endocrinology: Fundamentals and Biomedical Implications, Volume 4, Part A: Reproduction provides information pertinent to the structure and function of the vertebrate reproductive endocrinology. This book deals with a variety of subjects, including oocyte maturation, gestation, ovulation, vitellogenesis, spermatogenesis, and the maturation and aging of the reproductive system. Organized into seven chapters, this volume starts with an overview of the reproductive mechanisms and their underlying bases, with focus on the similarities between species. This book then discusses the factors of reproductive failure in many species, including failure of ovulation, abnormal fertilization, failure of fertilization, and failure of implantation. Other chapters explore the cellular, endocrinological, and molecular mechanisms that regulate oocyte maturation in mammals, which is directly stimulated by the need to improve human fertility and fecundity in domestic mammals. The final chapter deals with the aging of the brain–pituitary–gonadal axis in vertebrates. Reproductive endocrinologists and developmental neuroendocrinologists will find this book extremely useful.
