Release Date: February, 2003
Hardcover
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From the New England Journal of Medicine, November 27, 2003
Since its publication in 1987, Lauri Saxen's superb monograph Organogenesis of the Kidney (Cambridge, United Kingdom: Cambridge University Press) has been the benchmark by which other books in the field have been judged. The past 15 years have witnessed an explosion in our knowledge of how the kidney develops, fueled to no small extent, in particular recently, by advances in comparative genomics and in numerous techniques for genetic manipulation of lower organisms. The molecular and cellular events that characterize kidney development are beginning to be unraveled; functional as well as developmental studies of the kidney in model organisms have been begun, and the molecular basis of many congenital urogenital disorders is being deciphered. These topics and others are nicely covered and well integrated in this new monograph. The vertebrate kidney is a unique organ from a developmental perspective: two embryonic kidneys (the pronephros and mesonephros) precede the formation of the adult (metanephric) kidney in reptiles and humans, whereas the mesonephros is the adult kidney in fish and amphibians. Can a study of these early structures (especially in model organisms) shed light on the organogenesis of the adult kidney? The answer turns out to be an overwhelming yes, as shown by the finding that similar sets of genes have regulatory roles. This thread runs through the book. The book is logically divided into three sections. The first section, which is on embryonic kidneys and model organisms, begins with a description of tubule development in an invertebrate (Drosophila melanogaster), which is followed by three chapters on the pronephric tubules, the nephric duct, and the pronephric glomus and vasculature. Mesonephric development is discussed in the next two chapters. Chapters on the molecular basis of pronephric development and on embryologic, genetic, and molecular techniques for studying embryonic kidney development wrap up this section. Section II is focused on the metanephric kidney. The presentations in this section parallel those in section I, starting with anatomical descriptions of the development of components that lead to the formation of the adult kidney -- the development of the ureteric bud and collecting system, the condensation of the metanephric mesenchyma, the formation of the nephron and of epithelial polarity, and the development of the glomeruli and vessels. The section concludes with chapters on developmental renal physiology and experimental methods for studying urogenital development and a review of the molecular program that underlies kidney development. Section III, on congenital diseases, starts with an overview of urogenital malformations and then proceeds to chapters on specific genes (WT1, PAX2) and specific diseases (e.g., cystic disorders, renal cancer, tubulopathies, and proteinuric states). A chapter on gene- and cell-based therapies for congenital diseases concludes the book. The book is well organized, lucidly written, and superbly illustrated. The writing style conveys a healthy excitement. The primary audience for this book will be serious students of kidney development, who will enjoy this comprehensive compendium and will profitably mull over the unanswered questions nicely posed at the end of many of the chapters. Developmental biologists in general will enjoy the book as well, because it does a fine job of emphasizing that the kidney is a wonderful system in which to study many critical issues in cellular and developmental biology (e.g., mechanisms of apoptosis, commitment, cell movement, mesenchymal-to-epithelial conversion, development of epithelial-cell polarity, and so on). Clinicians who desire an update on the genetic basis of hereditary and congenital renal disorders will also find the book useful, though the section on this subject may soon become outdated, given the current pace of discovery of genes with effects that lead to disease. In biology, structure often dictates function. Ultimately, how the human kidney converts "with infinite artfulness, the red wine of Shiraz into urine" (as Isak Dinesen wrote in Seven Gothic Tales) is better comprehended if we understand the structural complexity of the kidney and place this organ in an evolutionary context. For this purpose, The Kidney is a welcome addition to the literature and a worthy successor to Saxen's classic monograph. Vikas P. Sukhatme, M.D., Ph.D.
Copyright © 2003 Massachusetts Medical Society. All rights reserved. The New England Journal of Medicine is a registered trademark of the MMS.
American Journal of Kidney Diseases, August 2003
"...an excellent point of departure [for those] who may want to catch up on the fundamentals of renal development..."
Review
"well organized and well written...an outstanding reference for clinical pediatric nephrologists and urologists."
- Sandeep Soman, TRENDS IN ENDOCRINOLOGY AND METABOLISM (August 2004)
"...an excellent point of departure [for those] who may want to catch up on the fundamentals of renal development..."
-AMERICN JOURNAL OF KIDNEY DISEASES (August 2003)
"The book is well organized, lucidly written, and superbly illustrated."
-THE NEW ENGLAND JOURNAL OF MEDICINE (November 2003)
"Recommended for medical and academic libraries and renal specialists."
-E-STREAMS (September 2003)
"...this book is an excellent point of departure for labratory trainees, as well as more senior scientists..."
-KIDNEY INSTITUTE, UNIVERSITY OF KANSAS MEDICAL CENTER
E-Streams, September 2003
"Recommended for medical and academic libraries and renal specialists."
Review
"...an excellent point of departure [for those] who may want to catch up on the fundamentals of renal development..."
-AMERICN JOURNAL OF KIDNEY DISEASES (August 2003)
"The book is well organized, lucidly written, and superbly illustrated."
-THE NEW ENGLAND JOURNAL OF MEDICINE (November 2003)
"Recommended for medical and academic libraries and renal specialists."
-E-STREAMS (September 2003)
"...this book is an excellent point of departure for labratory trainees, as well as more senior scientists..."
-KIDNEY INSTITUTE, UNIVERSITY OF KANSAS MEDICAL CENTER
Book Description
Organogenesis of the kidney has been intensely studied for over a century. In recent years advances in molecular techniques have not only made great inroads into exploring the genetic regulation of this complex process but also began to unravel the molecular basis of many forms of congenital kidney disease. This book is a comprehensive study on these findings and the only book available with such in depth coverage of the kidney.
Key Features
* Hundreds of color figures depicting key events in all aspects of kidney development
* Full coverage of the genetic and cellular basis of kidney development
* Analysis of the genetic basis of the major congenital kidney diseases
Book Info
Univ. of Calgary, Alberta, Canada. Text covers the molecular, developmental, anatomical, and functional aspects of the human kidney. Focuses on normal kidney development and how abnormal development can lead to congenital disease. For researchers and clinicians. Extensively referenced with halftone illustrations.
From the Back Cover
Organogenesis of the kidney has been intensely studied for over a century. In recent years advances in molecular techniques have not only made great inroads in exploring the genetic regulation of this complex process but have also begun to unravel the molecular basis of many forms of congenital kidney disease. The Kidney is divided into three major sections covering specific subject areas. The first presents invertebrate and embryonic kidneys as powerful new approaches to investigating the molecular regulation of specification, morphogenesis, organogenesis and physiology of the kidney. Section 2 describes the anatomy, development and physiology of the adult kidney, the metanephros in extraordinary detail. Separate chapters explore each stage and component of metanephric organogenesis from the first inductive interactions up until the acquisition of function. The final section explores our current knowledge of the molecular basis of congenital kidney disorders and the abnormal development programs that result in kidney disease.
Key Features
* Hundreds of color figures depicting key events in all aspects of kidney development
* Full coverage of the genetic and cellular basis of kidney development
* Model systems for embryologic and genetic investigations of organogenesis (chick, Drosophila, mouse, Xenopus, zebrafish)
* Molecular and developmental basis of kidney function
* Detailed methods and techniques that make the kidney a uniquely powerful experimental system
* Analysis of the genetic basis of the major congenital kidney diseases
About the Author
Peter D. Vize uses the many advantages of model systems to explore the very first events in kidney development. These studies have characterized both the inductive signals that initiate kidney formation and also characterized the genetic response to these signals. Adrian Woolf heads the Nephro-Urology Unit at the Institute of Child Health. His research focuses on defining the biological basis of low numbers of glomeruli; on elucidating the normal mechanisms of renal vessel differentiation; vascular remodeling in kidney disease; and the study of the clinical and genetic aspects of primary vesicoureteric reflux, duplex kidneys, glomerulocystic diseases (oral-facial-digital type 1 and the Renal Cysts and Diabetes syndromes), Bardet-Biedl syndrome, Kallmann's syndrome etc. Jonathan Bard is a developmental biologist whose main interests are kidney development, the generation of structures in embryos and bioinformatics. He currently works on the cellular basis of nephron formation and on making ontologies of vertebrate anatomy for gene-expression databases (see http://genex.hgu.mrc.ac.uk" target="_blank">http://genex.hgu.mrc.ac.uk) Rating
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