Main description:

This is the first book on molluscs as sources for pharmaceutical drugs. Marine molluscs are very promising candidates for a wide range of biotechnological applications. For example, they possess analgesic drugs more potent than morphine and very effective anticancer agents. International experts provide coverage of the most stimulating topics related to molluscs. This knowledge of their history and current studies opens the door to the future.

Contents:

Molluscan Natural Products as Biological Models: Chemical Ecology, Histology, and Laboratory Culture.- Shellfish Poisons.- Bivalve Molluscs as Vectors of Marine Biotoxins Involved in Seafood Poisoning.- Hyperhydroxylation: A New Strategy for Neuronal Targeting by Venomous Marine Molluscs.- The Chemistry of Marine Pulmonate Gastropods.- Secondary Metabolites from the Marine Gastropod Molluscs of Antarctica, Southern Africa and South America.- Marine Mollusks from Australia and New Zealand: Chemical and Ecological Studies.- Chemical Diversity in Opisthobranch Molluscs from Scarcely Investigated Indo-Pacific Areas.- Selected Bioactive Compounds from Japanese Anaspideans and Nudibranchs.- Bioactive Molecules from Sea Hares.- Trisoxazole Macrolides from Hexabranchus Nudibranchs and Other Marine Invertebrates.- Sequestration and Possible Role of Dietary Alkaloids in the Sponge-Feeding Mollusk Tylodina perversa.- Skin Chemistry of Nudibranchs from the West Coast of North America.- Biogenetic Proposals and Biosynthetic Studies on Secondary Metabolites of Opisthobranch Molluscs.- Total Synthesis of Bioactive Peptides and Depsipeptides from Marine Opisthobranch Molluscs.- Kahalalide F and ES285: Potent Anticancer Agents from Marine Molluscs.