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Annual Review of Microbiology
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BOOK REVIEWS
Annual Review of Microbiology, Vol. 39. Edited by L. N. ORNSTON, A. BALOWSANDP. BAUMANN. Annual Reviews Inc., Palo Alto, USA, 1985. $30.00. ISBN 0-8243-1139-6, pp. 726. The sedate brown cover of the Annual Review of Microbiology gives little hint of the richness and variety within. The 1985 issue follows the usual policy of including articles from many areas of microbiology, e.g., late Proterozoic microfossils, oncogenes, desulfurisation of fossil fuels, atypical mycobacteria. Despite the diverse subject material the 28 reviews are unified by maintaining a specifically microbiological perspective. The appeal of this Annual Review of Microbiology to the medical reader lies in the detachment from the diagnostic and therapeutic framework of the day to day experience. Several of the reviews however do concern topical problems. In particular R. C. Good’s account of the “Opportunistic Pathogenesis in the Genus Mycobacterium” provides an astute and comprehensive survey of a group of organisms which has been thrown into prominence by the AIDS epidemic. The current practices of the reference centre, CDC Atlanta are described in useful detail. Similarly the paper by Delwiche, Pestka and Tortorello on Veillonellae and by Shepherd, Poulter and Sullivan on Candida provide useful surveys of taxonomically difficult groups. J. C. Boothroyd’s review of the current status of knowledge about the molecular basis for antigenic variation in trypanosomes makes very easy reading, though the clinical problems of sleeping sickness are so remote from Australian experiences. Of less immediate appeal to the diagnostic lab are the reviews about mechanisms of bacterial virulence (Brubaker), the bacterial envelope and infection (Brown and Willing). However, the latter in particular suggests some ways to control hospital infections and identifies gaps in our understanding of the growth patterns of common pathogens in vivo. The reviews of oncogenes (Ratner, Josephs and Wong-Staal) and viral taxonomy (Matthews) cover their territory competently and form useful introductory reading in these fields. The articles on protein excretion by E. Coli and Growth Control in microbial cultures will be of particular interest to readers who wish to produce proteins by recombinant DNA technology. It is not possible to claim that the remaining two thirds of the book is of any direct use to clinical microbiologists. However, these articles offer the chance to peep through the looking-glass into the microbial wonderland where microfossils, virions, microbial corrosion and rickettsia1 assembly vie for attention. It is a heady and stimulating mixture and this issue is well up to the standard of its 38 predecessors. Y. E. Cossart Dictionary of Immunology. Edited by W. J. HERBERT,P. C . WILKINSON AND D. 1. STOTT. Blackwell Scientific Publications, Oxford, 1985. $37.95. ISBN 0-632-00984-5, pp. 240. In a discipline such as immunology, which has expanded so rapidly in the last 20 years, one of the major problems is that of terminology. With so many groups making simultaneous or independent discoveries invariably one finds the same phenomenon given different terms or the same term applied to different phenomena. To rectify this problem different approaches have been taken. The World Health Organization established nomenclature committees to attempt to standardize different terms. Major text books of immunology published glossaries or lists of definitions for terms used in their particular text. The final approach is that taken by W. J. Herbert, P. C. Wilkinson and D. I. Scott, namely, a specific Dictionary of Immunology. The 3rd Edition was released in 1985 (early editions 1971 and 1977). As a Dictionary of Immunology, overall it is well written, clearly cross referenced and very clearly laid out with a single column system. As with any publication in immunology certain aspects of it are already out of date before it appears on the shelves. For example the definition of AIDS, or the observation on cellmarkers for acute lymphobfastic leukemia. I do not consider it appropriate in this short review to review each term listed in the Dictionary! It is not the sort of book t o start at page 1 and finish at page 240. It is the sort of book, as the Editors acknowledge on the last
Pathology (1987). 19, January page, that readers should write back with the enclosed leaflet noting omissions or corrections. In summary, I think this is a very helpful book in departments of immunology, hospital medical libraries and universities. J. Vivian Wells The Autoimmune Diseases. Edited by N. R. ROSEAND I. R. MACKAY. Academic Press, New York 1985. $85.00. ISBN 0-12-596-920-1. This book is an ambitious compilation of modern thought on the autoimmune diseases affecting man. It fits best the description of a number of essays - each a chapter (25 in all) - on many aspects of the subject. There are some general topics - the genetic predisposition to autoimmune diseases by the editors, antireceptor antibodies, interpretation of autoantibody testing, and a look into the future - but the majority of contributions discuss various diseases and organ systems. The book has been edited carefully to ensure uniformity of style, despite the large number of authors and the diversity of interests. The standard is uniformly high as to be expected from the contributing authors. There is sufficient detail to satisfy the physician with clinical or laboratory interest in these diseases, and the text is well referenced to allow access to further experimental details where required. Chapters are well set out and divided into sections for easy reference. These include a general description of the disease, its clinical presentation, histological data, and immunology as it relates to pathogenesis, diagnosis, and associated phenomena. As to be expected in a multi-author book there are some sections which are more satisfying than others. Some essays are particularly comprehensive, thoughtful and bear the mark of close knowledge of the subject over many years. The general chapters are thought-provoking. Overall the standard is very high. Despite the fact that rapid advances are being made in the field of autoimmune diseases this book is commendably up to date, and should hold its place as a standard work for many years, such is the wealth of information it holds, and the measured and temperate way in which it is presented. Highly recommended! R. S. Walls
J. E. Pathology and the Environment. Edited by D. G . SCARPELLI, CRAIGHEAD AND N. KAUFMAN. Williams & Wilkins Adis, Sydney, 1985. $127.00. ISBN 0-683-07516-0. This monograph presents eleven papers derived from a Long Course entitled “The Pathologist and the Environment” which formed part of the 73rd Annual Meeting of the United States-Canadian Division of the International Academy of Pathology held in March 1984. It is of interest that it deals more with theoretical concepts and less with specific problems of histopathology than most earlier volumes in the same series. Chapters include such subjects as “The biochemical pathology of toxic cell death”; “Iatrogenic drug toxicity”; “Biochemical and molecular epidemiology of human cancer risk”; “Human liver carcinogenesis: a complex problem”; and “Gene regulation in the expression of malignancy”. This book should therefore interest a wider readership of pathologists than its predecessors. Nonetheless it contains much to concern histopathologists, as all the above chapters have some bearing on anatomical pathology and other chapters, such as “Preneoplasia and neoplasm of the bronchus, esophagus and colon: the use of markers in determining phenotypes and classification,” relate directly t o tissue pathology. The production of this volume and indeed the I.A.P. course on which it is based, may be seen as a welcome trend in that it redirects pathologists to the nature and causation of diseases and beyond their mere identification and classification. Such an approach fits well with current developing perceptions of the role of the pathologist in “wellness” as much as in the diagnosis and treatment side of the “health industry”. Since its subjects range so widely, this is a book to be browsed in rather than read at a sitting. It is also unlikely that all readers will wish to study each chapter in detail, although they might wish to obtain the
BOOK REVIEWS
Annual Review of Microbiology, Vol. 39. Edited by L. N. ORNSTON, A. BALOWSANDP. BAUMANN. Annual Reviews Inc., Palo Alto, USA, 1985. $30.00. ISBN 0-8243-1139-6, pp. 726. The sedate brown cover of the Annual Review of Microbiology gives little hint of the richness and variety within. The 1985 issue follows the usual policy of including articles from many areas of microbiology, e.g., late Proterozoic microfossils, oncogenes, desulfurisation of fossil fuels, atypical mycobacteria. Despite the diverse subject material the 28 reviews are unified by maintaining a specifically microbiological perspective. The appeal of this Annual Review of Microbiology to the medical reader lies in the detachment from the diagnostic and therapeutic framework of the day to day experience. Several of the reviews however do concern topical problems. In particular R. C. Good’s account of the “Opportunistic Pathogenesis in the Genus Mycobacterium” provides an astute and comprehensive survey of a group of organisms which has been thrown into prominence by the AIDS epidemic. The current practices of the reference centre, CDC Atlanta are described in useful detail. Similarly the paper by Delwiche, Pestka and Tortorello on Veillonellae and by Shepherd, Poulter and Sullivan on Candida provide useful surveys of taxonomically difficult groups. J. C. Boothroyd’s review of the current status of knowledge about the molecular basis for antigenic variation in trypanosomes makes very easy reading, though the clinical problems of sleeping sickness are so remote from Australian experiences. Of less immediate appeal to the diagnostic lab are the reviews about mechanisms of bacterial virulence (Brubaker), the bacterial envelope and infection (Brown and Willing). However, the latter in particular suggests some ways to control hospital infections and identifies gaps in our understanding of the growth patterns of common pathogens in vivo. The reviews of oncogenes (Ratner, Josephs and Wong-Staal) and viral taxonomy (Matthews) cover their territory competently and form useful introductory reading in these fields. The articles on protein excretion by E. Coli and Growth Control in microbial cultures will be of particular interest to readers who wish to produce proteins by recombinant DNA technology. It is not possible to claim that the remaining two thirds of the book is of any direct use to clinical microbiologists. However, these articles offer the chance to peep through the looking-glass into the microbial wonderland where microfossils, virions, microbial corrosion and rickettsia1 assembly vie for attention. It is a heady and stimulating mixture and this issue is well up to the standard of its 38 predecessors. Y. E. Cossart Dictionary of Immunology. Edited by W. J. HERBERT,P. C . WILKINSON AND D. 1. STOTT. Blackwell Scientific Publications, Oxford, 1985. $37.95. ISBN 0-632-00984-5, pp. 240. In a discipline such as immunology, which has expanded so rapidly in the last 20 years, one of the major problems is that of terminology. With so many groups making simultaneous or independent discoveries invariably one finds the same phenomenon given different terms or the same term applied to different phenomena. To rectify this problem different approaches have been taken. The World Health Organization established nomenclature committees to attempt to standardize different terms. Major text books of immunology published glossaries or lists of definitions for terms used in their particular text. The final approach is that taken by W. J. Herbert, P. C. Wilkinson and D. I. Scott, namely, a specific Dictionary of Immunology. The 3rd Edition was released in 1985 (early editions 1971 and 1977). As a Dictionary of Immunology, overall it is well written, clearly cross referenced and very clearly laid out with a single column system. As with any publication in immunology certain aspects of it are already out of date before it appears on the shelves. For example the definition of AIDS, or the observation on cellmarkers for acute lymphobfastic leukemia. I do not consider it appropriate in this short review to review each term listed in the Dictionary! It is not the sort of book t o start at page 1 and finish at page 240. It is the sort of book, as the Editors acknowledge on the last
Pathology (1987). 19, January page, that readers should write back with the enclosed leaflet noting omissions or corrections. In summary, I think this is a very helpful book in departments of immunology, hospital medical libraries and universities. J. Vivian Wells The Autoimmune Diseases. Edited by N. R. ROSEAND I. R. MACKAY. Academic Press, New York 1985. $85.00. ISBN 0-12-596-920-1. This book is an ambitious compilation of modern thought on the autoimmune diseases affecting man. It fits best the description of a number of essays - each a chapter (25 in all) - on many aspects of the subject. There are some general topics - the genetic predisposition to autoimmune diseases by the editors, antireceptor antibodies, interpretation of autoantibody testing, and a look into the future - but the majority of contributions discuss various diseases and organ systems. The book has been edited carefully to ensure uniformity of style, despite the large number of authors and the diversity of interests. The standard is uniformly high as to be expected from the contributing authors. There is sufficient detail to satisfy the physician with clinical or laboratory interest in these diseases, and the text is well referenced to allow access to further experimental details where required. Chapters are well set out and divided into sections for easy reference. These include a general description of the disease, its clinical presentation, histological data, and immunology as it relates to pathogenesis, diagnosis, and associated phenomena. As to be expected in a multi-author book there are some sections which are more satisfying than others. Some essays are particularly comprehensive, thoughtful and bear the mark of close knowledge of the subject over many years. The general chapters are thought-provoking. Overall the standard is very high. Despite the fact that rapid advances are being made in the field of autoimmune diseases this book is commendably up to date, and should hold its place as a standard work for many years, such is the wealth of information it holds, and the measured and temperate way in which it is presented. Highly recommended! R. S. Walls
J. E. Pathology and the Environment. Edited by D. G . SCARPELLI, CRAIGHEAD AND N. KAUFMAN. Williams & Wilkins Adis, Sydney, 1985. $127.00. ISBN 0-683-07516-0. This monograph presents eleven papers derived from a Long Course entitled “The Pathologist and the Environment” which formed part of the 73rd Annual Meeting of the United States-Canadian Division of the International Academy of Pathology held in March 1984. It is of interest that it deals more with theoretical concepts and less with specific problems of histopathology than most earlier volumes in the same series. Chapters include such subjects as “The biochemical pathology of toxic cell death”; “Iatrogenic drug toxicity”; “Biochemical and molecular epidemiology of human cancer risk”; “Human liver carcinogenesis: a complex problem”; and “Gene regulation in the expression of malignancy”. This book should therefore interest a wider readership of pathologists than its predecessors. Nonetheless it contains much to concern histopathologists, as all the above chapters have some bearing on anatomical pathology and other chapters, such as “Preneoplasia and neoplasm of the bronchus, esophagus and colon: the use of markers in determining phenotypes and classification,” relate directly t o tissue pathology. The production of this volume and indeed the I.A.P. course on which it is based, may be seen as a welcome trend in that it redirects pathologists to the nature and causation of diseases and beyond their mere identification and classification. Such an approach fits well with current developing perceptions of the role of the pathologist in “wellness” as much as in the diagnosis and treatment side of the “health industry”. Since its subjects range so widely, this is a book to be browsed in rather than read at a sitting. It is also unlikely that all readers will wish to study each chapter in detail, although they might wish to obtain the