Erythropoietin, Softcover reprint of the original 1st ed. 1989

The book contains a series of up-to-date review articles on the physiology and pathophysiology of the control of the production of red cells by the hormone erythropoietin. In addition, the results are reported of initial clinical trials using recombinant human erythropoietin (rhuEpo) in the treatment of the anemia of renal failure. The introductory chapter briefly recalls the history of erythropoietin research. The following section on the chemistry and physiology covers details of the structure of the hormone, assay methods, the identification of renal and extrarenal sites of the production of erythropoietin by in situ hybridization and the hypoxic stimulation of its production. A special chapter is devoted to the regulation of erythropoiesis in the neonatal period. There follows a section on pathophysiology, which includes respiratory, renal and malignant diseases in humans. In the final section the pharmacology of rhuEpo is considered. The strategy of the cloning and in vitro expression of the erythropoietin gene is described. Four chapters summarize clinical observations of the effects of rhuEpo in the correction of the anemia of renal failure, including the rise in hematocrit, blood viscosity and possibly hypertension, and the increased physical work capacity of the patients. The monograph will prove useful not only to investigators working in the basic fields of physiology, pharmacology and endocrinology, but also to practising physicians, especially hematologists and nephrologists, who are interested in erythropoietin for diagnostic or therapeutic purposes.

List of Contents.- Introduction: Advances in Erythropoietin Research.- Chemistry and Physiology.- Chemistry and Assays of Erythropoietin.- Erythropoietin Production Under Steady-State Conditions: Detection and Localization Using In Situ Hybridization.- Erythropoietin Synthesis in the Anemic Mouse Kidney as Observed by Morphological Techniques.- Tissue Hypoxia and the Production of Erythropoietin.- Early Anemia in Mammals.- Pathophysiology of Erythropoiesis.- Physiological Studies of Erythropoietin in Plasma.- Erythropoietin Production in Malignancy.- Pathophysiology of Erythropoiesis in Renal Diseases.- Renal Artery Stenosis and Renal Polyglobulia.- Erythrocytosis in Renal Graft Recipients.- Erythropoietin in the Treatment of Anemia.- Recombinant Human Erythropoietin.- Erythropoietin, Blood Viscosity, and Hypertension: Implications for Patients with End-Stage Renal Disease.- Recombinant Human Erythropoietin and CIS-Retinoic Acid Therapy of Anemia in Hemodialysis and Peritoneal Dialysis Patients.- Clinical Effects of Partial Correction of Anemia Using Recombinant Human Erythropoietin on Working Capacity in Dialysis Patients.- In Vitro and In Vivo Regulation of Erythropoiesis.