- Email: [email protected]
Facts about man
TIBS - June 1978
144 gested that they may be responsible for perhaps 85% of human cancers, then it may not prove sufficient merely to ensure that 'recommended' exposure levels are not exceeded. It is known that exposure to some toxic chemicals result in biochemical changes which are related to subsequent alterations in tissue structure and function but which precede the on-set of clinical effects. The enzyme ribonuclease, for example, has been reported in the urine ofworkers exposed to cadmium, while %foetoprotein has been detected in the sera of rats following treatment with various hepato-carcinogens. Moreover, the inverse correlation that has been observed between the concentration of lead and the activity of'e-aminoleavulinic acid dehydratase in the blood has been used to assess the total body burden of the metal. This approach to the detection of early effects on health, if it is to be successful, requires adequate resources be made available for fundamental studies concerning the mode of action of toxic agents. This publication, which is based upon symposium held in 1976, is concerned principally with on-going research into aspects of the effects of the oxidant gases, ozone, nitrogen dioxide and sulphur dioxide on the biochemistry and morphology of the lung, including effects on collagen synthesis and the pathogenesis of lung fibrosis. The remaining chapters describe the action of trace metals on the energy metabolism of the brain, the role of neurotransmitter mechanisms in lead poisoning as a possible cause of hyperactivity in children, and the influence of selenium and other nutritional factors on modifying the toxicity of heavy metals. Although intended for those engaged in biochemical and clinical toxicology, there is much to interest all who are concerned with the health effects of environmental pollutants. While it is difficult to share the apparent optimism of the editor, this volume is nevertheless a welcome contribution to the literature. J . W . DANIEL
J.W. Daniel is with Life Science Research. Stock, Essex. U.K.
Facts about m a n H u m a n Health a n d Disease II edited by Philip L. Altman and Dorothy D. Katz, published by Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology, Bethesda, 1977. $45.00 (400pages) This conveniently-sized tome contains 373 pages of facts. Some of them are immortal, others wrong. It is clearly an intrepid un-
dertaking to assemble 373 pages of facts. Over 300 scientists contributed their knowledge to this compendium. Apparently the FASEB underwrote another similar effort, volume I, on Cell Biology. The editor tells us that this was so successful that he was impelled to undertake the task again; this time facts about man - healthy man, diseased man, microbial and visible enemies of man - are assembled in logical order. I think that this is a very useful book to investigators, particularly clinical investigators, who might wish to glean a few concise bits of information in any area of human immunity and infection, chemistry, or physiology. The tables are clearly set forth for easy reading. The completeness of coverage of subject matter is impressive ! So is the quality of the contributors. The obvious danger of this manual is that some of the 'facts' are no longer facts. To remain useful this volume will require frequent updating. The effort appears worthwhile. F.S. ROSEN
F. S. Rosen is James L. Gamble Professor of Pediatries at Harvard Medical School and Chief of the Immunology Division at The Children's Hospital Medical Center. Boston. Massachusetts. U.S.A.
Wood Recent A d v a n c e s in Phytochemistry, Vol. 11 : The Structure, Biosynthesis and D e g r a d a t i o n of W o o d edited by F. A. Loewus and I/. C. Runeck les, published by Plenum Press, New York and London, 1977. $59.40 (£31.19) (xii+527 pages) This volume contains contributions made by the participants at a Conference under the same title arranged at the University of British Columbia by the Phytochemical Society of North America. The outlook of the Conference, and of the book, is based upon the undoubted circumstance that in forest trees man has one of the major renewable resources of the world, and was intended to differ from other symposia devoted over the years to wood in an emphasis on the living tree. As it turns out, there are other reviews I remember in which the living tree appeared with more prominence. Structure is dealt with in five Chapters (Chap. 1 - wood; Chap. 2 - cell wall glycoproteins and therefore primary walls; Chap. 4 - lignin; Chap. 6 - lipid polymers; and Chap. 7 - secondary changes in wood), biosynthesis in two Chapters (Chap. 2 - polysaccharides; Chap. 5 lignin) with references to the biosynthesis
of glycoproteins in Chapter 3, and degradation in three Chapters (Chap. 3 lignin; Chap. 8 - carbohydrates; and Chap. 9 - lignin (microbiological deterioration)). Chapter 10 deals with defence mechanisms mainly in the bark and the final Chapter, 11, covers the current and prospective situation with respect to the utilisation of chemicals from wood. Throughout the volume, each author deals with his own work, measured against a wide background of work in other laboratories (with extensive literature references), and this makes for a very readable account of what must have been an exciting Conference to attend. The standard is uniformly high though the treatment is in places selective and with some Chapters better accounts have recently appeared elsewhere. A good deal of thought had evidently gone into the design of the Conference and it is perhaps ungracious to cavil at the title of the book which results. Nevertheless, the reader will find that four important and highly interesting Chapters are not concerned with wood itself except by implication and one other has only minor references to wood. It does not help thi~ situation to write (p. 186) 'The presence of aliphatic chains in wood was indicated in 1797 when La Grange obtained suberic acid by treating cork with nitric acid' (reviewer's italics) so that suberin and cutin can then be discussed, nor to conclude a long statement about defense mechanisms in bark with only a brief reference to wood. This is not to detract from the statements themselves but only to wonder if the title of the volume will deter those who are not specialists in wood science from reading valuable articles which might be relevant to their interests. I found the last Chapter very rewarding to read but I cannot see how it comes to be in a book with this title. It is a book which is a 'must' for wood scientists of all persuasions, but it ought also to be read by all botanists involved, even peripherally, with wall studies. I can thoroughly recommend it. R . D . PRESETON
R.D. Preston F.R.S. is Emeritus Professor and lately Head of the Astbury Department of Biophysics. at the University of Leeds and also Visiting Professor h~ the Department of BotatO' and Plant Technology at Imperial College of Science and Technology. University of London, London. U.K.
144 gested that they may be responsible for perhaps 85% of human cancers, then it may not prove sufficient merely to ensure that 'recommended' exposure levels are not exceeded. It is known that exposure to some toxic chemicals result in biochemical changes which are related to subsequent alterations in tissue structure and function but which precede the on-set of clinical effects. The enzyme ribonuclease, for example, has been reported in the urine ofworkers exposed to cadmium, while %foetoprotein has been detected in the sera of rats following treatment with various hepato-carcinogens. Moreover, the inverse correlation that has been observed between the concentration of lead and the activity of'e-aminoleavulinic acid dehydratase in the blood has been used to assess the total body burden of the metal. This approach to the detection of early effects on health, if it is to be successful, requires adequate resources be made available for fundamental studies concerning the mode of action of toxic agents. This publication, which is based upon symposium held in 1976, is concerned principally with on-going research into aspects of the effects of the oxidant gases, ozone, nitrogen dioxide and sulphur dioxide on the biochemistry and morphology of the lung, including effects on collagen synthesis and the pathogenesis of lung fibrosis. The remaining chapters describe the action of trace metals on the energy metabolism of the brain, the role of neurotransmitter mechanisms in lead poisoning as a possible cause of hyperactivity in children, and the influence of selenium and other nutritional factors on modifying the toxicity of heavy metals. Although intended for those engaged in biochemical and clinical toxicology, there is much to interest all who are concerned with the health effects of environmental pollutants. While it is difficult to share the apparent optimism of the editor, this volume is nevertheless a welcome contribution to the literature. J . W . DANIEL
J.W. Daniel is with Life Science Research. Stock, Essex. U.K.
Facts about m a n H u m a n Health a n d Disease II edited by Philip L. Altman and Dorothy D. Katz, published by Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology, Bethesda, 1977. $45.00 (400pages) This conveniently-sized tome contains 373 pages of facts. Some of them are immortal, others wrong. It is clearly an intrepid un-
dertaking to assemble 373 pages of facts. Over 300 scientists contributed their knowledge to this compendium. Apparently the FASEB underwrote another similar effort, volume I, on Cell Biology. The editor tells us that this was so successful that he was impelled to undertake the task again; this time facts about man - healthy man, diseased man, microbial and visible enemies of man - are assembled in logical order. I think that this is a very useful book to investigators, particularly clinical investigators, who might wish to glean a few concise bits of information in any area of human immunity and infection, chemistry, or physiology. The tables are clearly set forth for easy reading. The completeness of coverage of subject matter is impressive ! So is the quality of the contributors. The obvious danger of this manual is that some of the 'facts' are no longer facts. To remain useful this volume will require frequent updating. The effort appears worthwhile. F.S. ROSEN
F. S. Rosen is James L. Gamble Professor of Pediatries at Harvard Medical School and Chief of the Immunology Division at The Children's Hospital Medical Center. Boston. Massachusetts. U.S.A.
Wood Recent A d v a n c e s in Phytochemistry, Vol. 11 : The Structure, Biosynthesis and D e g r a d a t i o n of W o o d edited by F. A. Loewus and I/. C. Runeck les, published by Plenum Press, New York and London, 1977. $59.40 (£31.19) (xii+527 pages) This volume contains contributions made by the participants at a Conference under the same title arranged at the University of British Columbia by the Phytochemical Society of North America. The outlook of the Conference, and of the book, is based upon the undoubted circumstance that in forest trees man has one of the major renewable resources of the world, and was intended to differ from other symposia devoted over the years to wood in an emphasis on the living tree. As it turns out, there are other reviews I remember in which the living tree appeared with more prominence. Structure is dealt with in five Chapters (Chap. 1 - wood; Chap. 2 - cell wall glycoproteins and therefore primary walls; Chap. 4 - lignin; Chap. 6 - lipid polymers; and Chap. 7 - secondary changes in wood), biosynthesis in two Chapters (Chap. 2 - polysaccharides; Chap. 5 lignin) with references to the biosynthesis
of glycoproteins in Chapter 3, and degradation in three Chapters (Chap. 3 lignin; Chap. 8 - carbohydrates; and Chap. 9 - lignin (microbiological deterioration)). Chapter 10 deals with defence mechanisms mainly in the bark and the final Chapter, 11, covers the current and prospective situation with respect to the utilisation of chemicals from wood. Throughout the volume, each author deals with his own work, measured against a wide background of work in other laboratories (with extensive literature references), and this makes for a very readable account of what must have been an exciting Conference to attend. The standard is uniformly high though the treatment is in places selective and with some Chapters better accounts have recently appeared elsewhere. A good deal of thought had evidently gone into the design of the Conference and it is perhaps ungracious to cavil at the title of the book which results. Nevertheless, the reader will find that four important and highly interesting Chapters are not concerned with wood itself except by implication and one other has only minor references to wood. It does not help thi~ situation to write (p. 186) 'The presence of aliphatic chains in wood was indicated in 1797 when La Grange obtained suberic acid by treating cork with nitric acid' (reviewer's italics) so that suberin and cutin can then be discussed, nor to conclude a long statement about defense mechanisms in bark with only a brief reference to wood. This is not to detract from the statements themselves but only to wonder if the title of the volume will deter those who are not specialists in wood science from reading valuable articles which might be relevant to their interests. I found the last Chapter very rewarding to read but I cannot see how it comes to be in a book with this title. It is a book which is a 'must' for wood scientists of all persuasions, but it ought also to be read by all botanists involved, even peripherally, with wall studies. I can thoroughly recommend it. R . D . PRESETON
R.D. Preston F.R.S. is Emeritus Professor and lately Head of the Astbury Department of Biophysics. at the University of Leeds and also Visiting Professor h~ the Department of BotatO' and Plant Technology at Imperial College of Science and Technology. University of London, London. U.K.