Overview

Living systems are fundamentally dynamic and adaptive, relying on a constant throughput of energy. They are also, by definition, self-sustaining over the full range of length and time scales. This characteristic combination of constant adaptive flux and emergent persistence requires that the properties of all living systems must, at some level, be cyclical. Consequently, oscillatory dynamics, in which system properties rise and fall in a regular rhythmic fashion, are a central feature of a wide range of biological processes. The scale of biological oscillations covers enormous ranges, from the sub-cellular to the population level, and from milliseconds to years. While the existence of a number of biological oscillations is widely appreciated, there are many oscillatory phenomena that are much less obvious, albeit no less important.Since oscillations reflect periodic quantitative changes in system properties, their detection and characterisation relies on the quantitative measurement of a system over an extended period. Until recently, such measurements were difficult to obtain at cellular or sub-cellular resolution, and relatively few cellular oscillations had been described. However, recent methodological advances have revealed that oscillatory phenomena are as widespread in cells as they are at larger scales. The chapters in this book provide an introduction to a range of both well known and less familiar cellular oscillations and serve to illustrate the striking richness of cellular dynamics. The contributions focus particularly on elucidating the basic mechanisms that underlie these oscillations.The essentially quantitative nature of oscillations has long made them an attractive area of study for theoretical biologists, and the application of complementary modelling and experimental approaches can yield insights into oscillatory dynamics that go beyond those that can be obtained by either in isolation.

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9786611953850

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