Fundamental molecular biology

Fundamental Questions in Biology

The anti-tumour antibody-dependent cell-mediated cytotoxicity (ADCC) capacity of the conventional antibody ml7-IA was compared with its chimerised analogue c17-lA and a newer chimeric antibody. cSF25. specific for colonic adenocarcinoma. The results (AUC units±s.e.m.. control versus cancer) show that mononuclear cells from patients with adenocarcinoma mediate ADCC as efficiently as those from c...

Fundamental Unsolved Problems of Biology

From more than two decades of theoretical consideration of biology, especially evolutionary biology, I have concluded that there are no satisfactory answers to some of the most important and most fundamental questions of biology. I will argue that the fundamental reason for this is the lack of any teleology (purpose) in natural selection, which is the current dominant biological paradigm. There...

Fundamental issues in systems biology.

In the context of scientists' reflections on genomics, we examine some fundamental issues in the emerging postgenomic discipline of systems biology. Systems biology is best understood as consisting of two streams. One, which we shall call 'pragmatic systems biology', emphasises large-scale molecular interactions; the other, which we shall refer to as 'systems-theoretic biology', emphasises syst...

Borges Dilemma, Fundamental Laws, and Systems Biology

A well-known folk-law in biology is that there is no general law in biology because of exceptions. In her recent elegant essay E.F. Keller gave a particular nice presentation on the exceptions to rules or laws in biology [1]. Her example of scaling laws was especially illuminating. Nevertheless, for this cherished folk-law the present author is wondering about its exceptions, too. Several examp...

Fundamental Aspects of Low - Temperature Biology