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Soil salinity is a key abiotic-stress and poses serious threats to crop yields and quality of produce. Owing to the underlying complexity, conventional breeding programs have met with limited success. Even genetic engineering approaches, via transferring/overexpressing a single ‘direct action gene'per event did not yield optimal results. Nevertheless, the biotechnological advents in last decade coupled with the availability of genomic sequences of major crops and model plants have opened new vistas for understanding salinity-responses and improving salinity tolerance in important glycophytic crops. Our goal is to summarize these findings for those who wish to understand and target the molecular mechanisms for producing salt-tolerant and high-yielding crops. Through this 2-volume book series, we critically assess the potential venues for imparting salt stress tolerance to major crops in the post-genomic era. Accordingly, perspectives on improving crop salinity tolerance by targeting the sensory, ion-transport and signaling mechanisms were presented in Volume 1. Volume 2 now focuses on the potency of post-genomic era tools that include RNAi, genomic intervention, genome editing and systems biology approaches for producing salt tolerant crops.

This book examines how post-transcriptional mechanisms control endocrine function. This includes newly identified regulatory mechanisms involved in hormone biosynthesis, control of hormone receptors and the outputs of hormone mediated signal transduction. Chapters address endocrine hormones including protein peptide/peptide, steroid, and non-steroidal hormones. The impacts of these mechanisms on disease and health are covered, providing a novel update to the scientific literature. Post-transcriptional regulatory mechanisms play an essential role in controlling dynamic gene expression. The outcome of this regulation includes control of the amount, timing, and location of protein expression. Regulation is mediated by cis-acting RNA sequences and structures and transacting RNA binding proteins and non-coding RNAs, including microRNAs. Recent advances in characterization of these regulatory factors have revealed enormous regulatory potential.

RNAi technology is used for large-scale screens that systematically shut down each gene in the cell, which can help identify the components necessary for a particular cellular process or an event such as cell division. Exploitation of the pathway is also a promising tool in biotechnology and medicine. Introducing new technology in the study of RNA

MicroRNAs (miRNAs), endogenous noncoding regulatory mRNAs of around 22-nucleotides long, have rapidly emerged as one of the key governors of the gene expression regulatory program in cells of varying species, with ever-increasing implications in the control of the fundamental biological processes and in the pathogenesis of adult humans. The exciting findings in this field have inspired us with a premise and a promise that miRNAs will ultimately be taken to the heart for therapy of human disease. While miRNAs have been considered potential therapeutic targets for disease treatment, it remains obscured what strategies we can use to achieve the goal. In the past years, we have witnessed a rapid evolving of many creative, innovative, inventive strategies and methodologies pertinent to miRNA research and applications. These technologies have convincingly demonstrated their efficacy and reliability in producing gain-of-function or loss-of-function of miRNAs through targeting miRNA expression/biogenesis/function, providing new tools for elucidating miRNA functions and opening up a new avenue for the development of new agents targeting miRNAs for therapeutic aims. The present book provides comprehensive descriptions of these technologies and their applications to miRNA research and to new drug design for miRNA-related diseases. It starts with an overview of up-to-date knowledge of miRNA biology and the potential of miRNAs as therapeutic targets for human disease, followed by an introduction of the new concept of miRNA interference (miRNAi) and the perspectives of miRNAi technologies in general terms. In the following, each chapter introduces one of the miRNAi technologies with detailed descriptions of state-of-the-art design, procedures, principles and applications to basic research, R and D and clinical therapy.

One of the major recent discoveries in molecular and cellular biology is that small double-stranded RNA molecules selectively turn off gene expression in all types of cell, a phenomenon known as RNA silencing. This discovery led to the development of RNA interference (known as RNAi) as a powerful research tool in the functional study of individual genes and their products, and in functional genomics. In RNAi, specific small double-stranded RNA molecules (small interfering RNAs or siRNAs) are introduced into cells to selectively silence certain genes.RNAi covers the basic concepts and mechanisms of RNAi, transfection of cells with siRNAs, the design and validation of RNAi reagents, RNAi techniques in different organisms, large-scale RNAi screening, applications of RNAi in drug discovery, and potential uses of RNAi as a therapeutic agent. A key feature of RNAi is the highlighting of the pitfalls that can occur and how to minimize them. The book also contains a complete list of abbreviations.

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.RNA Interference will cover RNAi in non-vertebrates (plants, C. elegans, drosophila, and S. pombe), and Mammalian systems (human and non-human cells). This volume discusses extensive methodology related to delivery methods high throughput strategies and prospects as a human therapy agent.• One of the most highly respected publications in the field of biochemistry since 1955 • Frequently consulted, and praised by researchers and reviewers alike • Truly an essential publication for anyone in any field of the life sciences

The past decade has witnessed a true revolution in our understanding of how RNA molecules can reduce or silence gene expression, a process that holds great promise in basic research and for antiviral and anticancer applications. In RNA Silencing: Methods and Protocols, many of the most notable and distinguished researchers in the field describe in step-by-step detail their best methods for the design, preparation, and use of RNAs to reduce gene expression in cells and organisms. The techniques range widely and include methods addressing the biochemical aspects of the silencing machinery, RNA silencing in non-mammalian organisms, and the in vivo delivery of siRNAs and silencing vectors. There are also techniques for designing, preparing, and using RNAs to silence gene expression, for fine-tuning regulation by targeting specific isoforms of a given gene, and for the study and use of microRNAs. The protocols follow the successful Methods in Molecular Biology series format, each offering step-by-step laboratory instructions, an introduction outlining the principle behind the technique, lists of the necessary equipment and reagents, and tips on troubleshooting and avoiding known pitfalls. Comprehensive and state-of-the-art, RNA Silencing: Methods and Protocols offers today's laboratory investigators a host of optimized and validated techniques to study RNA silencing and translate its concepts into successful practical applications.

Maximizing the potential of RNA interference in functional genomics - as well as in the development of therapeutics - continues to be at the forefront of biomedical research. Unlike journal articles, Gene Silencing by RNA Interference: Technology and Application combines essential background to the RNAi field with practical techniques designed by r

This hands-on guide to RNA interference brings the power of targeted gene silencing to any laboratory with the basic equipment for handling nucleic acids. In easy-to-follow, step-by-step protocols you will learn • how RNAi works in worms, flies and mammals, • how to design the most efficient RNAi constructs, • how to achieve transient, stable and conditional RNAi in cell cultures, • how to determine the efficiency of an RNAi experiment, • and how to use RNAi for gene therapy. All the protocols have been thoroughly tested in the author's own laboratory, and she provides examples of successful experiments and troubleshooting hints to help in establishing your own successful RNAi experiments. Also includes a list of suppliers for RNAi reagents and equipment as well as a glossary of terms.