Chimpanzee: Central nervous system and behavior. A review

Chimpanzee: Central nervous system and behavior. A review

113 BOOK REVIEWS concepts are unhkely to be immutably preserved. The reader may be referred to Professor Harry Harris’s most stlmulatmg volume on Nu...

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113

BOOK REVIEWS

concepts are unhkely to be immutably preserved. The reader may be referred to Professor Harry Harris’s most stlmulatmg volume on Nucleus and Cytop/usm (Oxford Umverslty Press); and to much of the discussion m Prmclples of B~ochemrcal Orgunizutron (Churchill), especially the contrlbutlons by N. W Plrie. In an attempt to bring such a conspectus within the grasp of a “compound cathartic” physlcian, Professor Walton has brought together a dlstmguished group of speciahsts who have themselves made important contributions to the fields they review Not unexpectedly a number come from the large research centre at Newcastle but the “catchment area” extends across several centres m the United States to Australia. Clearly written outlines of the anatomy, physiology and histochemlstry of muscle, form an Introduction to its experimental study both in ~IL’Oand m vitro and there are good electron micrographic dlustratlons To give an adequate and readily mtelhgible exposltlon of modern views on muscle contraction 1s no easy cathartic” doctors matter, but “compound should have no trouble here; and if they feel inclined to pursue their studies further, plenty of dificult readmg references are supplied. It IS

a little surprising that amongst these more use is not made of the excellent accounts which appear from time to time m the Sclentlfic Amerx-an and In Scrence, geared as they are to the nonspecialist in molecular biology. The clmlcal and pathologlcal sections of the work are set out with all the clarity and authorlty one would expect from contributors who are wrltmg from first hand experience and the whole bears the impress of Profess01 Walton’s precision and loglcal approach. Altogether this is a fine updatmg of a work which has already established Itself as an authorltatlve compendmm for the practismg physician in search of a readable and asslmllable text. It may fairly be regarded as a clear statement of our present view of disorders of voluntary muscle However, the critical reader, faced with elaborate classifications, wdl do well to bear m mind an old saying of Rudolph Virchow “Zu alten Zelten smd der Entwlcklung der Medlzm hauptsachhch zwei Hmdernrsse entgegengetreten, die Autorltaten und die Systeme” This has contmued relevance m modern biology

Open Mesencephalotomy

of operative treatment of intractable pam, consldermg particularly lesions of the mesencephalon and thalamus It IS illustrated clearly and he refers deeply into the hterature and supports his study with personal observations This is a bload review and useful for the surgical neurologist with a particular interest m mtractable pam F. J. GILLINGHAM

and Thalamotomy for Intractable Pam (Acfa Neurochir., Suppl No 18). by B ZAPLETAL,x + 119 pages, 29 IIILIS-

tratlons, Springer-Verlag, Vienna, New York, 1969, OS 300.-; DM 48.-; US $ 12.-. For subscribers of Acta Neurochlr., 8S 270.-; DM 43.20; us d 10.80 Dr. Zapletal has given a comprehensive

review

Chimpanzee Central Nervous System and Behavior. A Revrew (Primates m Medicine, Vol.

4), by H. H. REYNOLDS(Ed.), vm + 158 pages, 11 Illustrations, 19 plates, Karger, Basle, 1969, SFr/DM 39.-, US $9 35; 78s. In the last 30 years the increasing awareness of species differences m the organization cf nervous systems has led to wider use of non-human primates m neurophyslologlcal and psychobiological studies. In particular the special Importance of primate viruses, of geneticallydetermined biochemical traits and of the compensatory functions of the prlmate nervous system have now led to the development of prunate research centers m several countries Even m such centers the use of the great apes for experlmental work has been restrlcted by the dlfficultles and expense m handlmg such large ammals. This slender volume presents a most

E. J.

FIELD

readable review of the use of the chimpanzee m neurological and psychological research It IS divided into four sections The first section by Jackson, Relte and Buxton IS a resume of all the studies cf anatomy and physiology of chlmpanzee cerebral cortex, mcludmg motor, sensory and visual function, and of thalamus, basal ganglia, cerebellum and bram stem structures. Of necessity the studies of Fulton and Kennard, of Jacobsen and their co-workers, and of McCulloch, Bailey and von Bomn have a prominent place, but the authors have preserved an excellent balance between these and lesser known work. Correlation with the more extensive data on the macaque nervous system IS, on the whole, well presented and dlscussed The book IS chiefly the work of the group at the Aeromedlcal Research Laboratory at Holloman Air Force Base, New Mexico and sections 2. 3, and 4 describe research techmques (Buxton, Relte J. neural S-l,

1971. 12: 111-118

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BOOK

REVIEWS

and Jackson) and psychobtologlcal testing (Reynolds and Farrer) of particular value m relation to aeromedical research using chimpanzees, with a section on the details of special apparatus fol such research (Wilson and Grunske). These chapters are also clearly written and well illustrated. They review not only the basic work on special senses, motor behavior and learning, but also the adaptation of testmg

reward systems, liquid dispensers and such equipment to gravity-free sttuattons. There is also a useful description of cage design and the management of chimpanzees. Though necessarily primarily oriented to aeromedtcal problems, this volume has much of interest to all concerned with primate experimentation

Modele

and expertmental techntques utthsed in the study of endocrinology; some of the methods descrtbed are original. The book is clearly written, amply tllustrated and carefully documented and is an excellent guide to practtcal experimental endocrmology H. RAIX

Experrmentale

ale Glandelor

Endocrme,

by N. SIMIONESCU AND M. SCHERZER, 3 I4 pages, 133 dlustrations, 39 tables, Edttura Academies Repubhcu Socraliste Romania, Bucharest, 1969. Lei 23:. This book IS a compendtum

Boala

Ulceroasi

describmg surgical

Flzlopatologle

!l Patogenezg,

by 0. FODOR, S. POPESCUAND S. URCAN, 296 pages, 73 illustrations, 39 tables. Editura Academies Republicii Socialiste Romania, Bucharest, 1968, Lei 19.50. This monograph IS devoted to fundamental problems of pathogenests and treatment of peptic ulcer. The authors consider that the activity of acid pepsin 1s particularly important,

Harvey surgery,

Cushrng:

Selected

Papers

on

Neuro-

edited by D. D. MAT%IN,W. J. GERMAN and a Committee of the American Assoctatton of Neurological Surgeons, XIV -1 663 pages, illustrated, Yale University Press, New Haven, London, 1969, US $20.-: 180s There seems commonly, amongst surgeons, to be an inverse relationship between operating and writing With a few notable exceptions, the active surgeon is not a prolific contributor to medical literature Three of the outstanding surgical writers in the English language were neurological surgeons-Cushmg, Dandy and Jefferson, and of these Cushing was unique. The amount of operating he undertook personally in a new and difficult field would nowadays be most exceptional. It can only be compared with that of some of the modern innovators m the fields of vascular and cardiac surgery. Cushmg’s gifts were many-sided and his industry was immense. Elizabeth Thomson records that from his earliest days as a student at Harvard medicure filled his life. He decided to be, in his words, “a leper”-to forgo soctal activities and devote all his attention to his work. Similarly Fulton describes Cushmg’s evenmgs as follows, “Having survived the day on toast and two eggs in the

1). DENNY-BROWN

parttculary when ulcer occurs m the Zollingerr Ellison syndrome, and they accept the neurovagal mechanism for the devttahsatton of the gastric mucosa. They conclude that the disease IS of multifactorial origin and that genetrc, envuonmental and neurovegetattve factors are involved. This is an authorttative and informative monograph. H. R~DU

morning, wtth more toast and a cup of tea at four, he usually ate quite heartdy tn the evenmg. but not enough to make him sleepy, for he was at his desk with the greatest regularity from 8 until midmght. If the family had guests for dinner, he was a most gracious host--If the day had not been too excmng at the hospttal-but he had cultivated the Oslertan habit of dtsappearing promptly the meal was over. And rf a guest happened to be a medical student or a House Ofhcer, he was backed out of the front door half an hour after dinner and was on hts way down the street before he quite reahsed what had happened to him.” The present volume IS Issued by the American Association of Neurologtcal Surgeons (founded in 1931 as The Harvey Cushing Society), as a trtbute on the centenary of his birthday, g April, 1869. It includes as an appendix a useful annotated bibliography of Harvey Cushing’s wrnings, consisting of 26 books and over 300 addresses and papers in journals and reports The books included his work on the pituitary and hypothalamus, tumours of the acousttc nerve and tumours arising from blood vessels, the great monograph on the menmgiomas with Louise Eisenhardt, the classification of the gliomas with Percival Bailey, and an account