For the Love of Enzymes: The Odyssey of a Biochemist

In 1645 the Japanese samurai Musashi Miamoto wrote A Book of Five Rings, which described the attitudes necessary for individual success. Though he was a swordsman, his book was not limited to combat but addressed the much broader question of how to achieve excellence in life through study, discipline, and planning. It is still avidly read in Japan today.
Arthur Kornberg's book is a modern-day Book of Five Rings that replaces the medium of swordsmanship with that of biochemistry, particularly enzymology. As Kornberg describes his successive research problems, the challenges they presented, and the ultimate accomplishments that resulted, he provides us with a primer in the strategies needed to do scientific work of great significance. Moreover, these strategies are played out in the context of solving some of the great biochemical problems of the twentieth century.
The ability to manipulate and alter DNA fired a revolution that forever changed the nature of biology. Arthur Kornberg is a primary architect of that revolution, arguably one of the two or three most important biologists of this time. Prior to Kornberg, genetic information and later DNA were imbued by biologists with an almost vitalistic aura. Kornberg demonstrated that DNA is a molecule synthesized by enzymes, like all other chemical constituents of the cell. More important, he trained a school of scientists who focused on and discovered many of the enzymatic activities that act on DNA. It is these enzymes in particular that allow modern "genetic engineering."
For the Love of Enzymes does not describe a single lucky or hard-won accomplishment. Rather, it is the story of thirty years of decisive campaigns, nearly all of which led to insights of major significance. In relating his story, Kornberg never avoids the difficult question of "why": why he felt classical nutritional studies had reached a plateau, why he turned to enzymology as a discipline in which the important answers would be found, and why he believes the study of enzymes will grow ever more important as we face the new scientific frontier of brain function.
This book will challenge students of biology and chemistry at all levels who want to do important work rather than simply follow popular trends. It will also delight and inform readers who wish to understand how "real" science is done, and to learn of the values that guide one of our greatest researchers.

Kornberg, Arthur

Biographies & Memoirs

Harvard University Press

In 1645 the Japanese samurai Musashi Miamoto wrote A Book of Five Rings, which described the attitudes necessary for individual success. Though he was a swordsman, his book was not limited to combat but addressed the much broader question of how to achieve excellence in life through study, discipline, and planning. It is still avidly read in Japan today. Arthur Kornberg's book is a modern-day Book of Five Rings that replaces the medium of swordsmanship with that of biochemistry, particularly enzymology. As Kornberg describes his successive research problems, the challenges they presented, and the ultimate accomplishments that resulted, he provides us with a primer in the strategies needed to do scientific work of great significance. Moreover, these strategies are played out in the context of solving some of the great biochemical problems of the twentieth century. The ability to manipulate and alter DNA fired a revolution that forever changed the nature of biology. Arthur Kornberg is a primary architect of that revolution, arguably one of the two or three most important biologists of this time. Prior to Kornberg, genetic information and later DNA were imbued by biologists with an almost vitalistic aura. Kornberg demonstrated that DNA is a molecule synthesized by enzymes, like all other chemical constituents of the cell. More important, he trained a school of scientists who focused on and discovered many of the enzymatic activities that act on DNA. It is these enzymes in particular that allow modern "genetic engineering". For the Love of Enzymes does not describe a single lucky or hard-won accomplishment. Rather, it is the story of thirty years of decisive campaigns, nearly all of which led to insights of major significance. In relating his story, Kornberg never avoids the difficult question of "why": why he felt classical nutritional studies had reached a plateau, why he turned to enzymology as a discipline

Professionals & Academics

DNA Synthesis

W.H.Freeman

DNA replication

The second edition of thes work has been completely revised to reflect current research and interpretations. Arthur Kornberg and his coauthor Tania A. Baker have created a second edition that provides the reader with up-to-date coverage of DNA replicaiton and related cellular processes - including summaries of recent work on replication in eukaryotes and bacteria.

DNA Replication

Science & Math

Baker, Tania A.

Biological Sciences

W.H.Freeman & Co.

The Golden Helix: Inside Biotech Ventures

The average person - indeed, even the relatively sophisticated reader - is at once dazzled and mystified by the facts of biotechnology, both as a business and as an intellectual enterprise. Now Arthur Kornberg, drawing extensively on his own experiences in biotech ventures, elucidates much about this most exciting of human undertakings. In The Golden Helix, he provides an insider's view of biotechnology - an inherently fascinating confluence of science and industry made possible, in large measure, by his epoch-making work with enzymes and DNA, for which he was awarded a Nobel Prize. Although science is at the center of this story, its principal subject is people - not only research scientists but business executives and managers as well. One of the most prominent and impressive figures in the story is Alejandro Zaffaroni, a remarkably successful and charismatic scientist-entrepreneur, whose vision and enthusiasm were instrumental in the founding of the DNAX Institute of Molecular and Cellular Biology, Inc. Another remarkable character in this story is Robert P. Luciano, CEO of the Schering-Plough Corporation, the pharmaceutical company that acquired DNAX a little more than a year after its founding. Although the history of DNAX is presented here in the greatest detail, various other prominent biotech ventures are profiled as well, including, most notably, ALZA, Genentech, Amgen, Chiron, and Regeneron.

Univ Science Books

This candid narrative by Nobel laureate, Arthur Kornberg, chronicles the saga of a small biotech start-up, the key players, the painstaking development of the perfect product, and the forces affecting its resulting success or failure. Kornberg's razor-sharp wit and provocative opinions make this book a compelling page turner, whether he is decrying the current fashion in scientific funding or delving into the hotly contested PCR patent trial.

Business & Money

Industries

The ability to culture cells is fundamental for mass propagation and as a baseline for the genetic manipulation of plant nuclei and organelles. The introduction to "Plant Cell Culture: Methods Express" will provide a general background to plant cell culture, including basic principles, technologies and laboratory practices that underpin the more detailed techniques described in subsequent chapters. Whilst each chapter will provide background to the topic area and methodology, a crucial aspect will be the provision of detailed protocols with emphasis on troubleshooting, describing common problems and detailed advice for their avoidance. "Plant Cell Culture: Methods Express" provides the reader with a concise overview of these techniques, including micropropagation, mutagenesis, cryopreservation, genetic and plastid transformation and somatic cell technologies. This book will be an essential addition to any plant science laboratory's bookshelf.

Plant Cell Culture

Reference

Encyclopedias & Subject Guides

Scion Pub Ltd

Cuentos de microbios

Editorial Reverté

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Books by Kornberg, Arthur