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A reprint of a classical work in the Princeton Legacy Library. Originally published in 1999.
Eicosanoids in Invertebrate Signal Transduction Systems generates a new paradigm for researching and understanding the biological meaning of eicosanoids. Eicosanoid is a general term for oxygenated metabolites of certain polyunsaturated fatty acids. The compounds are extremely important in human biology, in which they are well understood. Their importance to humans, however, has tended to overshadow their broader biological significance. David Stanley seeks to change that in Eicosanoids in Invertebrate Signal Transduction Systems, providing a general sketch of the medical background on eicosanoids and then developing a detailed critical treatment of eicosanoid actions in invertebrates and some lower vertebrates.
Stanley looks at the role of eicosanoids in, for example, invertebrate reproduction, immunity, and ion transport physiology. As he explains, eicosanoids also mediate important ecological interactions, particularly host-parasite interactions. Drawing on these physiological and ecological actions, Eicosanoids in Invertebrate Signal Transduction Systems develops a "biological paradigm," under which we understand that eicosanoids probably exert important actions in most, if not all, animals. Because eicosanoids mediate crucial events in the lives of animals, they are endowed with unusual explanatory power. Research designed to increase our understanding of eicosanoids has thus yielded and will continue to yield important new information about animal biology. In addition to representing a major advance in our understanding of eicosanoids in animals, Eicosanoids in Invertebrate Signal Transduction Systems serves as an unusually comprehensive and accessible introduction to eicosanoid research in general.
Foreword by Ralph W. Howard ix
Acknowledgments xi
Chapter 1. Introduction: A Theory of the Biological Significance of Eicosanoids 3
Chapter 2. Eicosanoid Structures and Biosynthesis 11
The Mammalian Model of Eicosanoid Biosynthesis 12
Chapter 3. Polyunsaturated Fatty Acids 34
Essential Fatty Acids 34
C20 Polyunsaturated Fatty Acids in Insects 39
The Complete Biosynthesis of 18:2n-6 in Insects 39
Biosynthesis of C20 Polyunsaturated Fatty Acids 43
Patterns of Polyunsaturated Fatty Acid Metabolism in Insects 50
Chapter 4. Eicosanoids in the Reproductive Biology of Invertebrates 55
Eicosanoids in Insect Reproduction 55
Eicosanoids as the Barnacle Hatching Factor 74
Eicosanoids in Scallop Reproduction 79
Prostaglandins in Crayfish Vitellogenesis 82
Prawns 86
Eicosanoids in the Reproduction of Molluscs 87
Prostaglandins Influence Organismal-Level Events through Their Actions on Cells in the CNS 92
Eicosanoid Actions at the Cellular Level 94
Chapter 5. Eicosanoids in Invertebrate Immunity 109
Eicosanoids in Insect Cellular Immune Reactions to Bacterial infections 111
Eicosanoids Mediate Clearance of Injected Bacteria from Insect Heinolymph Circulation 112
Eicosanoids Mediate Nodulation Reactions to Bacterial Infections 117
Hypothesis: Eicosanoids Mediate Nodulation Reactions to Bacterial Infections in Most, If Not All, Insect Species 124
The Biochemistry of Eicosanoid Systems in Immune Tissues 133
Chapter 6. Eicosanoids in Invertebrate Ion Transport Physiology 152
Chapter 7. Emerging Eicosanoid Actions 173
Eicosanoids in Invertebrate Temperature Biology 173
Eicosanoids in Insect Peptide Hormone Signal Transduction 178
Eicosanoids in Development and Regeneration in Hydroids 183
Chapter 8. Eicosanoids Mediate Ecological Interactions 188
Eicosanoids in Predator Avoidance 188
Eicosanoids in Host-Parasite Interactions 194
Prostaglandin Biosynthesis Inhibitors in Insect Defensive Secretions: Do these Compounds Act in Insect Chemical Ecology? 231
Chapter 9. A Research Prospectus: Approaching the Frontiers 235
How Do Eicosanoids Work? 236
Understanding Departures from the Mammalian Background 237
The Enzymes Associated with Eicosanoids 239
Eicosanoids and Neurobiology 241
The Molecular Biology of Eicosanoids 243
An Epilogue 244
Abbreviations Used in References 245
References 249
Taxonomic Index 273
Subject Index 275
