Reproduction in Mammals Series – serie

Reproduction in Mammals is intended to meet the needs of undergraduates reading zoology, biology, biochemistry, physiology, medicine, veterinary science and agriculture, and to be a source of information for advanced students and research workers. It is published as a series of small textbooks dealing with all major aspects of mammalian reproduction. Each of the component books is designed to cover independently fairly distinct subdivisions of the subject, so that readers can select texts relevant to their particular interests and needs. This volume consists of a series of thought-provoking essays by people with a number of very different backgrounds, including biology, comparative anatomy, psychology, psychiatry and moral philosophy. They discuss the physiology mechanisms, adaptive significance, clinical picture and social impact of a variety of patterns of human sexual behaviour, thereby providing a balanced and informative account of a highly sensitive and emotive subject.

In this, our Second Edition of Reproduction in Mammals, we are responding to numerous requests for a more up-to-date and rather more detailed treatment of the subject. The First Edition was accorded an excellent reception, but the first five books were written ten years ago and inevitably there have been advances on many fronts since then. As before, the manner of presentation is intended to make the subject matter interesting to read and readily comprehensible to undergraduates in the biological sciences, and yet with sufficient depth to provide a valued source of information to graduates engaged in both teaching and research. Our authors have been selected from among the best known in their respective fields. This volume discusses the manifold ways in which hormones control the reproductive processes in male and female mammals. The hypothalamus regulates both the anterior and posterior pituitary glands, whilst the pineal can exert a modulating influence on the hypothalamus. The pituitary gonadotrophins regulate the endocrine and gametogenic activities of the gonads, and there are important local feedback effects of hormones within the gonads themselves. Non-pregnant females display many different types of oestrous or menstrual cycles, and there are likewise great species differences in the endocrinology of pregnancy. But the hallmark of mammals is lactation, and this also exerts a major control on subsequent reproductive activity.

Reproduction in Mammals is intended to meet the needs of undergraduates reading zoology, biology, biochemistry, physiology, medicine, veterinary science and agriculture, and to be a source of information for advanced students and research workers. It is published as a series of small textbooks dealing with all major aspects of mammalian reproduction. Each of the component books is designed to cover independently fairly distinct subdivisions of the subject, so that readers can select texts relevant to their particular interests and needs. This volume consists of a series of thought-provoking essays by people with a number of very different backgrounds, including biology, comparative anatomy, psychology, psychiatry and moral philosophy. They discuss the physiology mechanisms, adaptive significance, clinical picture and social impact of a variety of patterns of human sexual behaviour, thereby providing a balanced and informative account of a highly sensitive and emotive subject.

In this, our second edition of Reproduction in Mammals, we are responding to numerous requests for a more up-to-date and rather more detailed treatment of the subject. The first edition was accorded an excellent reception, but Books 1 to 5 were written some 14 years ago and inevitably there have been many advances on many fronts since then. As before, the manner of presentation is intended to make the subject matter interesting to read and readily comprehensible to undergraduates in the biological sciences, and yet with sufficient depth to provide a valued source of information to graduates engaged in both teaching and research. Our authors have been selected from among the best known in their respective fields. Book 5 is concerned with the many ways in which we can now manipulate reproductive processes in animals and humans, thanks to our new understanding of hormone action and improved control over early developmental events. We have at our disposal a whole array of synthetic hormone agonists, antagonists and antibodies that can be used at will to stimulate or inhibit fertility in animals and humans alike, so that productivity in livestock can be promoted according to plan and child-bearing becomes more a matter of choice than chance. We can compensate for infertility by in vitro fertilization and embryo transfer, and overcome inherent deficiencies by techniques involving embryo manipulation. Existing barriers to the dissemination and application of this new-found knowledge are discussed in some detail, since it is becoming increasingly clear that improvements in the quality of life for people in many developing countries will be long delayed unless they can meet essential needs and call a halt to runaway population growth.