Chapter 1 Overview of Geology and Tectonic Evolution of the Baikal-Tuva Area

Chapter 2 Tectonics of the Baikal Rift Deduced from Volcanism and Sedimentation: A Review Oriented to the Baikal and Hovsgol Lake Systems

Chapter 3 Paleoclimate and Evolution: Emergence of Sponges During the Neoproterozoic

Chapter 4 Studies on the Taxonomy and Distribution of Freshwater Sponges in Lake Baikal

Chapter 5 Towards a Molecular Systematics of the Lake Baikal/Lake Tuva Sponges

Chapter 6 Symbiotic Interaction Between Dinoflagellates and the Demosponge Lubomirskia baicalensis: Aquaporin-Mediated Glycerol Transport

Chapter 7 Silicon in Life: Whither Biological Silicification?

Chapter 9 Identification and Isolation of a Retrotransposon from the Freshwater Sponge Lubomirskia baicalensis: Implication in Rapid Evolution of Endemic Sponges

Chapter 10 Modelling the Skeletal Architecture in a Sponge with Radiate Accretive Growth

Chapter 11 Silicatein: Nanobiotechnological and Biomedical Applications

Chapter 12 Role of Biosilica in Materials Science: Lessons from Siliceous Biological Systems for Structural Composites

Chapter 13 An Overview of Silica in Biology: Its Chemistry and Recent Technological Advances

Chapter 14 Optical and Nonlinear Optical Properties of Sea Glass Sponge Spicules

Chapter 15 Nanobiotechnology: soft lithography.

Chapter 16 The Application of Silicon and Silicates in Dentistry: A Review

Chapter 17 Sustainable Exploitation and Conservation of the Endemic Lake Baikal Sponge (Lubomirskia baicalensis) for Application in Nanobiotechnology