Hellmut G. Augustin - Böcker

The field of angiogenesis is one of the most exciting fields in contemporary biomedical research. Angiogenesis in the healthy adult is primarily associated with pathological conditions such as tumor growth, inflammation, ischemia, and retinopathies. Physiological angiogenesis in the healthy adult is restricted to the organs of the female reproductive system where it occurs cyclically as well as during pregnancy. The importance of vascular morphogenetic events in the female reproductive system is increasingly being recognized. For example, it has a vital role in normal ovarian function, endometriosis and placental function as well as being important in reproductive tumors of the mammary gland, ovary and uterus. The insights gained from studying this system have a more general interest too since they help shed light on the fundamental characteristics and components involved in the formation of the vascular system and blood vessels during development, and during tumorigenesis. This is the first book that reviews and presents recent advances in the emerging field of reproductive vascular biology.It is divided into four parts reflecting the four female reproductive organs (breast, ovary, uterus, and placenta) and the authors cover both the basic biological processes involved and also stress their clinical significance. The book will interest vascular and reproductive biologists as well as cell and developmental biologists interested in angiogenesis and vasculogenesis.

The overall scope of this new series will be to evolve an understanding of the genetic basis of (1) how early mesoderm commits to cells of a heart lineage that progressively and irreversibly assemble into a segmented, primary heart tube that can be remodeled into a four-chambered organ, and (2) how blood vessels are derived and assembled both in the heart and in the body. Our central aim is to establish a four-dimensional, spatiotemporal foundation for the heart and blood vessels that can be genetically dissected for function and mechanism. Since Robert DeHaan's seminal chapter "Morphogenesis of the Vertebrate Heart" published in Organogenesis (Holt Rinehart & Winston, NY) in 1965, there have been surprisingly few books devoted to the subject of cardiovascular morpho­ genesis, despite the enormous growth of interest that occurred nationally and inter­ nationally. Most writings on the subject have been scholarly compilations of the proceedings of major national or international symposia or multi authored volumes, without a specific theme. What is missing are the unifying concepts that can often make sense out of a burgeoning database of facts. The Editorial Board of this new series believes the time has come for a book series dedicated to cardiovascular mor­ not only as an important archival and didactic reference phogenesis that will serve source for those who have recently come into the field but also as a guide to the evo­ lution of a field that is clearly coming of age.