Customer Reviews

Gene Cloning and DNA Analysis: An Introduction

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4 star:		(1)
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I came away very impressed from Dr. Brown's latest edition. The book is extremely readable but does not dumb down the material. I'm taking an upper-level molecular genetics lab and am doing independent work in genetics, and this book is a great reference. However, I think that this book would be pretty easy for someone with introductory level biology--heck, I think some AP Biology high school teachers may be able to use this text for their classes.

Brown takes you through all the basics of molecular genetics: from the basic mechanics of DNA manipulation to PCR, bacteriophages, and even a review of basic genomics and genomic analysis, which are still very new and rapidly evolving fields. Every chapter has references for more in-depth study. This is a great book to introduce you to modern molecular genetics.

I am a science student Studying Biochemistry and Molecular Biology. I used this book as a reference book for an Introduction to Genetic Engineering course. It was a great help for me. The book outlines the basic principles and methods in many aspects of Molecular Biology and Genetic Engineering in the simplest of ways. The book is easy to understand even to people with no big background in Molecular Biology as it explains everything from zero. It is a great book for introductory courses or as a quick reference for the basic ideas of some techniques and advances in the field. It does not give a lot of detail and explanation that is usually required from university students, such as myself, so more in-depth references are certainley required. However, as a joyful read for those interested in the field, or simply as a quick revision of the basics before your final exam, this book works wonders! Trust me... I got a straight A (99% on my final) :) All in all, it's a good book!

As an introductory text on its subject, the book is well written. With copious diagrams that are easy to understand and that illustrate key ideas. A merit of the book is the clarity of the textual exposition, reinforced by those diagrams.

The text is also quite up to date in this fast changing field. With the good coverage of many topics. Including the seminal Polymerase Chain Reaction, that is the basis of so much else. You can see that genomics/biotechnology is now a practical and quantitative science. With plenty remaining to be understood, to be sure. But the book shows that we now have powerful tools to experiment with, to reduce our ignorance.

This book has become the standard introductory text at the undergraduate level for students in the first or second year of college and as an introductory book for researchers whose specialty lies in other areas but needing to know more about the subject. While an introductory text, it does presume that you are approaching the subject with at least some background in biology. If nothing else, you need to know what a gene is and have some idea about why you would want to clone it.

This basic book has been around for about twenty years. The twenty years since then have seen tremendous advances in the techniques and science as they now exist. This is the fifth edition of the book and it is as up to date as any printed book can be.

Since the book was written the public awareness of genetically altered plants has increased tremendously. A major goal of this new edition is to present to the student the true facts about genetically modified agricultural products. The final chapter on Forensic science and Archaeology is most fascinating as it provides a non technical look at DNA analysis in criminal acts and in the tracing of the human species.

Highly recommended.