Force Microscopy describes the molecular machinery and mechanism of cell secretion and membrane fusion in cells, using approaches that combine AFM, electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction, photon correlation spectroscopy, molecular biology, biochemistry, and electrophysiology.

Features:

• Identification of the "porosome" in the growth hormone secreting cell of the pituitary gland
• Probing the structural and physical properties of microbial cell surfaces
• Scanning probe microscopic characterization of the higher plant cell wall and its components
• Case studies of nano drug delivery systems using engineered dendrimers
• AFM techniques for studying living cells
• Investigating the intermolecular forces of leukocyte adhesion molecules
• Protein-protein interactions
• Micromechanical properties of lipid bilayers and vesicles

Contents

1. Porosome: The Universal Secretory Machinery in Cells
2. Molecular Mechanism of SNARE-Induced Membrane Fusion
3. Molecular Mechanism of Secretory Vesicle Content Expulsion During Cell Secretion
4. Fusion Pores in Growth-Hormone-Secreting Cells of the Pituitary Gland: An AFM Study
5. Properties of Microbial Cell Surfaces Examined by Atomic Force Microscopy
6. Scanning Probe Microscopy of Plant Cell Wall and Its Constituents
7. Cellular Interactions of Nano Drug Delivery Systems
8. Adapting AFM Techniques for Studies on Living Cells
9. Intermolecular Forces of Leukocyte Adhesion Molecules
10. Mechanisms of Avidity Modulation in Leukocyte Adhesion Studied by AFM
11. Resolving the Thickness and Micromechanical Properties of Lipid Bilayers and Vesicles Using AFM
12. Imaging Soft Surfaces by SFM
13. High-Speed Atomic Force Microscopy of Biomolecules in Motion
14. Atomic Force Microscopy in Cytogenetics
15. Atomic Force Microscopy in the Study of Macromolecular Interactions in Hemostasis and Thrombosis: Utility for Investigation of the Antiphospholipid Syndrome

Index

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