The Machinery of Life	2
	Preface	8
	Contents	10
	Introduction	13
	A Matter of Scale	15
	The Molecular World	16
	Molecular Machines	20
	Nucleic Acids	24
	Proteins	28
	Lipids	30
	Polysaccharides	34
	The Strange World of Molecules in Cells	36
	The Processes of Living	39
	Building Molecules	40
	Harnessing Energy	50
	Protection and Perception	55
	Molecules in Cells: Escherichia coli	62
	The Protective Barrier	63
	Building New Proteins	68
	Powering the Cell	72
	Cellular Propellers	74
	Molecular Warfare	76
	A Human Cell: The Advantages of Compartments	79
	The Human Body: The Advantages of Specialization	91
	Infrastructure and Communication	92
	Muscle	95
	Blood	103
	Nerves	109
	Life and Death	117
	Ubiquitin and the Proteasome	118
	DNA Repair	120
	Telomeres	124
	Programmed Cell Death	124
	Cancer	126
	Aging	128
	Death	132
	Viruses	135
	Poliovirus and Rhinovirus	137
	Influenza Virus	140
	Human Immunodeficiency Virus	141
	Vaccines	143
	You and Your Molecules	148
	Vitamins	149
	Broad-Spectrum Poisons	153
	Bacterial Toxins	155
	Antibiotic Drugs	157
	Drugs and Poisons of the Nervous System	161
	You and Your Molecules	163
	Atomic Coordinates	164
	Additional Reading	166
	Index	168