Volume 19, entitled Essential Metals in Medicine: Therapeutic Use and Toxicity of Metal Ions in the Clinic of the series Metal Ions in Life Sciences centers on the role of metal ions in clinical medicine. Metal ions are tightly regulated in human health: while essential to life, they can be toxic as well. Following an introductory chapter briefly discussing several important metal-related drugs and diseases and a chapter about drug development, the focus is fi rst on iron: its essentiality for pathogens and humans as well as its toxicity. Chelation therapy is addressed in the context of thalassemia, its relationship to neurodegenerative diseases and also the risks connected with iron administration are pointed out. A subject of intense debate is the essentiality of chromium and vanadium. For example, chromium(III) compounds are taken as a nutritional supplement by athletes and bodybuilders; in contrast, chromate, Cr(VI), is toxic and a carcinogen for humans. The benefi cial and toxic effects of manganese, cobalt, and copper on humans are discussed. The need for antiparasitic agents is emphasized as well as the clinical aspects of metal-containing antidotes for cyanide poisoning. In addition to the essential and possibly essential ones, also other metal ions play important roles in human health, causing harm (like the metalloid arsenic, lead or cadmium) or being used in diagnosis or treatment of human diseases, like gadolinium, gallium, lithium, gold, silver or platinum. The impact of this vibrant research area on metals in the clinic is provided in 14 stimulating chapters, written by internationally recognized experts from the Americas, Europe and China, and is manifested by approximately 2000 references, and about 90 illustrations and tables. Essential Metals in Medicine: Therapeutic Use and Toxicity of Metal Ions in the Clinic is an essential resource for scientists working in the wide range from pharmacology, enzymology, material sciences, analytical, organic, and inorganic biochemistry all the way through to medicine ... not forgetting that it also provides excellent information for teaching.

• About the Editors
• Historical Development and Perspectives of the Series Metal Ions in Life Sciences
• Preface to Volume 19. Essential Metals in Medicine: Therapeutic Use and Toxicity of Metal Ions in the Clinic
• Contents
• Contributors to Volume 19
• Titles of Volumes 1–44 in the Metal Ions in Biological Systems Series
• Contents of Volumes in the Metal Ions in Life Sciences Series
• 1. Metals in Medicine: The Therapeutic Use of Metal Ions in the Clinic
• 2. Small Molecules: The Past or the Future in Drug Innovation?
• 3. Iron Chelation for Iron Overload in Thalassemia
• 4. Ironing out the Brain
• 5. Infections Associated with Iron Administration
• 6. Iron Oxide Nanoparticle Formulations for Supplementation
• 7.Building a Trojan Horse: Siderophore-Drug Conjugates for the Treatment of Infectious Diseases
• 8. Developing Vanadium as an Antidiabetic or Anticancer Drug: A Clinical and Historical Perspective
• 9. Chromium Supplementation in Human Health, Metabolic Syndrome, and Diabetes
• 10. Manganese: Its Role in Disease and Health
• 11. Cobalt-Schiff Base Complexes: Preclinical Research and Potential Therapeutic Uses
• 12. Copper Depletion as a Therapeutic Strategy in Cancer
• 13. Metal Compounds in the Development of Antiparasitic Agents: Rational Design from Basic Chemistry to the Clinic
• 14. Chemical and Clinical Aspects of Metal-Containing Antidotes for Poisoning by Cyanide
• Subject Index