A Cosa Serve la Biochimica – 2nd Edition

Volume size 17 x 24 cm, 448 pages, with numerous illustrations.

Seven years after the first edition, this second expanded, revised and corrected edition of A Cosa Serve la Biochimica is presented to readers. Even the most carefully reviewed book may reveal minor typographical errors once printed.

Technical issues may also arise during the transfer of chemical formula files between systems, sometimes altering bond symbols and creating interpretative challenges in molecular representations.

Substantive revisions have also been made. For example, in the Krebs cycle discussion, it was previously assumed that every oxidative decarboxylation involved cocarboxylase (the active form of vitamin B₁). Further analysis clarified that vitamin B₁ does not participate in the final reaction converting citric acid (6 carbon atoms) into α-ketoglutaric acid (5 carbon atoms).

This new edition includes three additional chapters (hypnotics, antibiotics and perineural adjuvants) and expanded revisions of several others. The chapter on antibiotics will be particularly useful for intensivists; that on perineural adjuvants for specialists in regional anaesthesia; and the former appendix on pulmonary surfactant has been developed into a full chapter.

Several modifications had already been introduced in the English edition Biochemistry for Anesthesiologists and Intensivists, published by Springer in January 2020. A favourable review highlighted the extensive bibliography, which supports further in-depth study. While some references may appear dated, scientific knowledge remains valid until superseded by new evidence.