by Anders Liljas (Lund University, Sweden)

This comprehensive and highly illustrated book provides a basic and up-to-date summary of translation on bacterial ribosomes, with emphasis on the structural insights. It is an attempt to present the ribosome and its functional activities in a coherent manner. Two types of illustrations are used to describe the translation field: simplified black-and-white illustrations to depict aspects of translation and color plates to give correct structural representations.

The book presents essentially all aspects of the translation system, focusing on the relation between structure and function. Upper level undergraduates and graduate students with an interest in protein synthesis will find this lecture notes volume invaluable. The book is also an essential source of information for researchers who want to get an overview of translation.

• The Basics of Translation
• Historical Milestones
• Methods to Study Structure
• The Message — mRNA
• The Adaptor — tRNA
• The Workbench — Ribosomes
• The Structure of the Ribosome
• Ribosomal Sites and Ribosomal States
• The Catalysts — Translation Factors
• Inhibitors of Protein Synthesis, Antibiotics, Resistance
• The Process — Translation
• Protein Folding and Targeting
• Evolution of the Translation Apparatus