This volume provides an overview of the defining concepts and techniques of molecular medicine. Individual chapters emphasize how recent developments in molecular genetics are likely to affect contemporary medical practice or afford further opportunities for medical intervention. The contributors focus on fundamental concepts. The initial chapters review human genetics, discussing how genes are organized and how their information is transmitted from one generation to the next. Subsequent chapters deal with basic information about DNA, RNA and the ultimate building blocks of life, the proteins. The text also includes discussions on gene cloning and the Human Genome Project.