Biomarkers in Cardiovascular Disease (eBook)

In the past decade there has been a major sea change in the way disease is diagnosed and investigated due to the advent of high throughput technologies, such as microarrays, lab on a chip, proteomics, genomics, lipomics, metabolomics etc. These advances have enabled the discovery of new and novel markers of disease relating to autoimmune disorders, cancers, endocrine diseases, genetic disorders, sensory damage, intestinal diseases etc. In many instances these developments have gone hand in hand with the discovery of biomarkers elucidated via traditional or conventional methods, such as histopathology or clinical biochemistry. Together with microprocessor-based data analysis, advanced statistics and bioinformatics these markers have been used to identify individuals with active disease or pathology as well as those who are refractory or have distinguishing pathologies. New analytical methods that have been used to identify markers of disease and is suggested that there may be as many as 40 different platforms. Unfortunately techniques and methods have not been readily transferable to other disease states and sometimes diagnosis still relies on single analytes rather than a cohort of markers. There is thus a demand for a comprehensive and focused evidenced-based text and scientific literature that addresses these issues. Hence the formulation of Biomarkers in Disease. The series covers a wide number of areas including for example, nutrition, cancer, endocrinology, cardiology, addictions, immunology, birth defects, genetics, and so on. The chapters are written by national or international experts and specialists.

Professor Victor R. Preedy is a senior faculty member of King's College London (Professor of Nutritional Biochemistry) and King's College Hospital (Professor of Clinical Biochemistry). He is attached to both the Diabetes and Nutritional Sciences Division and the Department of Nutrition and Dietetics. He is also Director of the Genomics Centre and a member of the School of Medicine. Professor Preedy graduated in 1974 with an Honours Degree in Biology and Physiology with Pharmacology. He gained his University of London PhD in 1981. In 1993 he gained his second doctoral degree, for his outstanding contribution to protein metabolism in health and disease. He has received membership and fellowship of a number of academic and professional bodies in the UK, including the Royal College of Pathologists, the Royal Institute of Public Health, and the Royal Society of Chemistry. Professor Preedy has published over 570 articles, which includes 165 peer-reviewed manuscripts based on original research, 100 reviews, and over 50 books and book volumes.

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On an annual basis, over 17 million people die due to cardiovascular disease. This represents a third of all global deaths. The World Health Organisation have identified cardiovascular disease as the leading cause of death worldwide. Although many cardiovascular conditions are preventable, there is a need for accurate characterisation and diagnosis of cardiovascular conditions before, during and after treatments. Much of this characterisation entails the use of biological indicators, i.e biomarkers. Biomarkers in Cardiovascular Disease combines detailed information on different cardiovascular conditions and the concomitant application of conventional, new and emerging biomarkers. It covers the latest knowledge, trends and applications. New platforms are described which combine advances in biomedical sciences, physics, computing and chemistry.