Inositol phosphates are a group of organic compounds found widely in the natural environment which are important in agriculture. They cannot be digested by some animals and as a result considerable research has been directed towards improving the digestibility of inositol phosphates in animal diets. Inositol phosphates are also abundant in soils and water bodies, yet a clear understanding of their behaviour in the environment remains elusive.
Written by leading experts, this book brings together critical reviews on inositol phosphates in agriculture, ecology, and the environment. The sixteen chapters cover a diverse range of topics, including the synthesis and hydrolysis of inositol phosphates, their role in animal nutrition, and their fate in soils and aquatic ecosystems.
Nomenclature and terminology for the inositol phosphates, S B Shears, National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, North Carolina, USA and B L Turner; Identification of inositol phosphates by nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy: unraveling structural diversity, P P N Murthy, Michigan Technological University, USA; High-performance chromatographic separations of inositol phosphates and their detection by mass spectrometry, W T Cooper, M Heerboth, and V J M Salters, all at Florida State University, USA; Origins and biochemical transformations of inositol stereoisomers and their phosphorylated derivatives in soil, M F L'Annunziata, The Montague Group, California, USA; Isolation and assessment of microorganisms that utilize phytate, J E Hill, Yale University, Connecticut and A E Richardson; Phytate-degrading enzymes: regulation of synthesis in microorganisms and plants, R Greiner, Federal Research Centre for Nutrition and Food, Centre for Molecular Biology, Germany; Phytases: attributes, catalytic mechanisms and applications, E J Mullaney and A H J Ullah, USDA, New Orleans, USA; Seed phosphorus and the development of low-phytate crops, V Raboy, USDA-ARS, Idaho, USA; Phytase and inositol phosphates in animal nutrition: dietary manipulation and phosphorus excretion by animals, X G Lei, Cornell University, New York, USA and J M Porres, Universidad de Granada, Spain; Environmental implications of inositol phosphates in animal manures, A B Leytem, USDA-ARS, Idaho, USA and R O Maguire, North Carolina State University, USA; Ligand effects on inositol phosphate solubility and bioavailability in animal manures, T H Dao, USDA-ARS, Maryland, USA; Inositol phosphates in soil: amounts, forms, and significance of the phosphorylated inositol stereoisomers, B L Turner; Abiotic reactions of inositol phosphates in soils, L Celi and E Barberis, both at University of Turin, Italy; Interactions between phytase and soil constituents: implications for the hydrolysis of inositol phosphates, T S George, R J Simpson and A E Richardson, all at CSIRO Plant Industry, Australia and H Quiquampoix, INRA-ENSAM, Montpellier, France; Plant utilization of inositol phosphates, A E Richardson, T S George, I Jakobsen, Riso National Laboratory, Roskilde, Denmark and R J Simpson, CSIRO Plant Industry, Australia; Inositol phosphates in aquatic systems, I McKelvie, Monash University, Victoria, Australia.