Essential Cell Biology

Essential Cell Biology provides an accessible introduction to the fundamental concepts of cell biology. Its lively writing and exceptional illustrations make it the ideal textbook for a first course in cell and molecular biology. The text and figures are easy-to-follow, accurate, clear, and engaging for the introductory student. Molecular detail has been kept to a minimum in order to provide the reader with a cohesive, conceptual framework of the basic science that underlies our current understanding of biology.

The Third Edition is thoroughly updated scientifically, yet maintains the academic level and size of the previous edition. The book is accompanied by a Media DVD-ROM with over 130 animations and videos, all the figures from the book, and a new self-test quizzing feature for students.

Bruce Alberts received his PhD from Harvard University and is Professor of Biochemistry and Biophysics at the University of California, San Francisco. He is the editor-in-chief of Science magazine. For 12 years he served as President of the U.S. National Academy of Sciences (1993-2005).
Dennis Bray received his PhD from Massachusetts Institute of Technology and is currently an active emeritus professor at University of Cambridge. In 2006 he was awarded the Microsoft European Science Award.
Karen Hopkin received her PhD in biochemistry from the Albert Einstein College of Medicine and is a science writer in Somerville, Massachusetts.
Alexander Johnson received his PhD from Harvard University and is Professor of Microbiology and Immunology and Director of the Biochemistry, Cell Biology, Genetics, and Developmental Biology Graduate Program at the University of California, San Francisco.
Julian Lewis received his DPhil from the University of Oxford and is a Principal Scientist at the London Research Institute of Cancer Research UK.
Martin Raff received his MD from McGill University and is at the Medical Research Council Laboratory for Molecular Cell Biology and Cell Biology Unit and in the Biology Department at University College London.
Keith Roberts received his PhD from the University of Cambridge and is Emeritus Fellow at the John Innes Centre, Norwich.
Peter Walter received his PhD from The Rockefeller University in New York and is Professor and Chairman of the Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics at the University of California, San Francisco, and an Investigator of the Howard Hughes Medical Institute.

1. Introduction to Cells2. Chemical Components of Cells3. Energy, Catalysis, and Biosynthesis 4. Protein Structure and Function 5. DNA and Chromosomes 6. DNA Replication, Repair, and Recombination 7. From DNA to Protein: How Cells Read the Genome 8. Control of Gene Expression 9. How Genes and Genomes Evolve 10. Manipulating Genes and Cells 11. Membrane Structure 12. Membrane Transport 13. How Cells Obtain Energy from Food 14. Energy Generation in Mitochondria and Chloroplasts 15. Intracellular Compartments and Transport 16. Cell Communication 17. Cytoskeleton 18. The Cell Division Cycle 19. Genetics, Meiosis, and the Molecular Basis of Heredity 20. Tissues and Cancer