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Handbook of Sensory Physiology, vol. VII. Photochemistry of Vision
996
AMERICAN JOURNAL OF OPHTHALMOLOGY BOOK R E V I E W S
By M. Massin. Munich, S. Karger, 1972. Clothbound, 162 pages, table of contents, index, 32 black and white figures, 19 color figures, $16.55 In the second edition of this popular, con cise treatise on contact lenses, Massin pre sents practically a new book that contains—in addition to the fundamental concepts given in the 1966 edition—the numerous improve ments in contact lens design developed since then. The author is evidently not a soft lens enthusiast. Of the two types marketed, he favors the Bionite lens, evolved by Griffin of Canada, over the Soflens, introduced by L E S VERRES DE CONTACT.
Wichterle of Czechoslovakia in 1960. He holds that the Bionite lens is more hydrated, more permeable to tears, permits better corneal respiration, and is tolerated longer. The soft lens cannot correct keratoconus, high ametropia, or significant corneal astigmatism. Extreme care is required in handling the soft lens, since it tears easily. Both types must be stored in sterile physiologic saline that must be reboiled two to three times weekly to avoid surface mistiness. The prob lem of sterilization has not been adequately solved; European ophthalmologists have re ported an occasional case of hypopyon ulcer and keratomycosis from their use. He recog nizes the definite advantages of the soft lens in young children, as a protective device in neuroparalytic keratitis ; and when soaked in 5% saline, effective dehydration results in bullous keratitis and Fuchs' dystrophy. This slim volume is certainly worth reading. James E. Lebensohn HANDBOOK OF SENSORY PHYSIOLOGY,
vol.
VII. PHOTOCHEMISTRY OF VISION. Edited by Herbert J. A. Darnall. New York, Springer-Verlag, 1972. Clothbound, 810 pages, table of contents, index, 296 black and white figures. $75.50 Volume VII of the Handbook of Sensory Physiology is to be published in four sepa
NOVEMBER, 1972
rate parts of which this is the first. All are scheduled for publication in 1972. Subse quent books will deal with the physiology of photoreceptor organs, the central processing of visual information, and with psychophysics. This is a comprehensive reference work dealing with all aspects of the chemistry and photochemistry of the visual pigment. Her bert J. A. Dartnall, the editor, and also au thor of the chapter on photosensitivity, states in the preface : "The theme of this volume—The Photo chemistry of Vision—has been interpreted in a catholic sense, and the contributors come from many different disciplines. A substan tial part of the account is, indeed, directly concerned with the chemistry and photo chemistry of the visual pigments.—What is the nature of the linkage between chromophoric group and opsin?—How can such a variety of light-absorptive properties be rec onciled with such apparently homogeneous chemical and photochemical properties?— What is the nature of the photochemical change and what is its quantum efficiency ?— How many stages are there in the cascade of thermal reactions that follows the photo chemical event—and which of them is the visual trigger?—How do these reactions differ in vertebrates and invertebrates—and why?—How is the visual pigment molecule reconstituted after bleaching? The answers to these and many other questions are at tempted. "But in addition to this photochemical ap proach, the subject is also treated on the broader basis of photobiology. A description of the visual pigments and of the cells con taining them is given for the whole animal kingdom from invertebrates to vertebrates, and treated from both taxonomic and ecolog ical standpoints. Here the reader will find at tempts to answer such questions as—What is the ancestral photoreceptor?—How long does it take for a species to evolve a new vis ual pigment? Can a visual pigment help to decide an animal's taxonomic position ? Sup-
VOL. 74, NO. 5
BOOK REVIEWS
porting data for the ecological approach are provided by descriptions of the light climate in such diverse situations as the open land at sea level, underneath a canopy of vegetation, below the surface in rivers, lakes, estuaries, and coastal waters, and at various depths of the open seas. Peripheral data relevant to the quality of light reaching the visual pigments, namely, the optical properties of oil droplets and other preretinal media, and of tapeta, are given, and, likewise, the spectral qualities of bioluminescence—frequently more in tense than the attenuated light of the sun at quite moderate depths in murky coastal wa ters, and the only source of light in the abys sal depths of the oceans." Each chapter is richly annotated. The in dex contains an interesting item, "problems unsolved," with 106 entries varying from how the high concentration of 11-cis isomer is maintained against an unfavorable thermodynamic gradient to the different forms of acid metarhodopsin. This obviously is a reference work that will be used for years to come throughout the world. Professor Dartnell deserves the gratitude of every visual scientist for his achievement in bringing this together. Frank W. Newell JAEGER'S ATLAS OF DISEASES OF THE O C U LAR FUNDUS. By Daniel M. Albert. Phila delphia, W. B. Saunders Company, 1972. Clothbound, 165 pages, table of contents, index, 16 black and white figures and 184 color figures. $50 The news of the discovery of the "AugenSpiegel" by Hermann von Helmholtz reached Vienna in the summer of 1851. Eduard Jaeger, the son and grandson of dis tinguished Austrian ophthalmologists and already a Privat-Dozent in his own right, was one of the first to apply himself to the systematic study of the posterior segment of the eye with the new instrument and to dis cover some of the basic features of the ophthalmoscopic picture. The value of graphic recordings became very apparent and in
997
duced several ophthalmologists of the period to engage in techniques of drawing or paint ing eyegrounds. Among them was Jaeger, motivated by an ardent desire to observe and to portray accurately. Some of his early paintings drew criticism from some of his colleagues which only intensified his striving for accuracy and trueness to nature. After about 18 years of deep involvement in the exploration of the fundus with mirror and pen, he decided, in 1869, to publish 128 of his paintings on 29 plates, together with di agnoses and rather detailed descriptive, but not explanatory or interpretative, notes on each patient. This was the "Ophthalmoskopische Hand-Atlas," copies of which can be located in most major medical libraries in this country. After Jaeger's death, his original fundus paintings were purchased by William Fisher Norris, the then professor of ophthalmology at the University of Pennsylvania, who had been a graduate student in Vienna under Jaeger, Mauthner, and Arlt from 1865-7. Norris bequeathed the paintings to the li brary of the College of Physicians of Phila delphia. The history of the paintings is re lated, in interesting detail, in the introduc tion to the new "Jaeger's Atlas of Diseases of the Ocular Fundus, with New Descrip tions, Revisions and Additions." The title fits the new book only partly. What the author, Daniel Albert of Yale Uni versity, has attempted to do is to use Jaeger's paintings as illustrations for a modern sys tem of the diseases and disorders of the fun dus, vitreous, and lens. In the individual chapters of the book, several pages of intro ductory text by Albert precede one or sev eral color plates made from the original paintings by modern photographic techni ques. For instance, Chapter X, Papilledema and Optic Neuritis, begins with three pages of text describing briefly the two diseases, their differentiation, and their causes, as seen today. Then follows a plate with five of Jae ger's paintings which show some of the clas sic features of papilledema and papillitis, but
AMERICAN JOURNAL OF OPHTHALMOLOGY BOOK R E V I E W S
By M. Massin. Munich, S. Karger, 1972. Clothbound, 162 pages, table of contents, index, 32 black and white figures, 19 color figures, $16.55 In the second edition of this popular, con cise treatise on contact lenses, Massin pre sents practically a new book that contains—in addition to the fundamental concepts given in the 1966 edition—the numerous improve ments in contact lens design developed since then. The author is evidently not a soft lens enthusiast. Of the two types marketed, he favors the Bionite lens, evolved by Griffin of Canada, over the Soflens, introduced by L E S VERRES DE CONTACT.
Wichterle of Czechoslovakia in 1960. He holds that the Bionite lens is more hydrated, more permeable to tears, permits better corneal respiration, and is tolerated longer. The soft lens cannot correct keratoconus, high ametropia, or significant corneal astigmatism. Extreme care is required in handling the soft lens, since it tears easily. Both types must be stored in sterile physiologic saline that must be reboiled two to three times weekly to avoid surface mistiness. The prob lem of sterilization has not been adequately solved; European ophthalmologists have re ported an occasional case of hypopyon ulcer and keratomycosis from their use. He recog nizes the definite advantages of the soft lens in young children, as a protective device in neuroparalytic keratitis ; and when soaked in 5% saline, effective dehydration results in bullous keratitis and Fuchs' dystrophy. This slim volume is certainly worth reading. James E. Lebensohn HANDBOOK OF SENSORY PHYSIOLOGY,
vol.
VII. PHOTOCHEMISTRY OF VISION. Edited by Herbert J. A. Darnall. New York, Springer-Verlag, 1972. Clothbound, 810 pages, table of contents, index, 296 black and white figures. $75.50 Volume VII of the Handbook of Sensory Physiology is to be published in four sepa
NOVEMBER, 1972
rate parts of which this is the first. All are scheduled for publication in 1972. Subse quent books will deal with the physiology of photoreceptor organs, the central processing of visual information, and with psychophysics. This is a comprehensive reference work dealing with all aspects of the chemistry and photochemistry of the visual pigment. Her bert J. A. Dartnall, the editor, and also au thor of the chapter on photosensitivity, states in the preface : "The theme of this volume—The Photo chemistry of Vision—has been interpreted in a catholic sense, and the contributors come from many different disciplines. A substan tial part of the account is, indeed, directly concerned with the chemistry and photo chemistry of the visual pigments.—What is the nature of the linkage between chromophoric group and opsin?—How can such a variety of light-absorptive properties be rec onciled with such apparently homogeneous chemical and photochemical properties?— What is the nature of the photochemical change and what is its quantum efficiency ?— How many stages are there in the cascade of thermal reactions that follows the photo chemical event—and which of them is the visual trigger?—How do these reactions differ in vertebrates and invertebrates—and why?—How is the visual pigment molecule reconstituted after bleaching? The answers to these and many other questions are at tempted. "But in addition to this photochemical ap proach, the subject is also treated on the broader basis of photobiology. A description of the visual pigments and of the cells con taining them is given for the whole animal kingdom from invertebrates to vertebrates, and treated from both taxonomic and ecolog ical standpoints. Here the reader will find at tempts to answer such questions as—What is the ancestral photoreceptor?—How long does it take for a species to evolve a new vis ual pigment? Can a visual pigment help to decide an animal's taxonomic position ? Sup-
VOL. 74, NO. 5
BOOK REVIEWS
porting data for the ecological approach are provided by descriptions of the light climate in such diverse situations as the open land at sea level, underneath a canopy of vegetation, below the surface in rivers, lakes, estuaries, and coastal waters, and at various depths of the open seas. Peripheral data relevant to the quality of light reaching the visual pigments, namely, the optical properties of oil droplets and other preretinal media, and of tapeta, are given, and, likewise, the spectral qualities of bioluminescence—frequently more in tense than the attenuated light of the sun at quite moderate depths in murky coastal wa ters, and the only source of light in the abys sal depths of the oceans." Each chapter is richly annotated. The in dex contains an interesting item, "problems unsolved," with 106 entries varying from how the high concentration of 11-cis isomer is maintained against an unfavorable thermodynamic gradient to the different forms of acid metarhodopsin. This obviously is a reference work that will be used for years to come throughout the world. Professor Dartnell deserves the gratitude of every visual scientist for his achievement in bringing this together. Frank W. Newell JAEGER'S ATLAS OF DISEASES OF THE O C U LAR FUNDUS. By Daniel M. Albert. Phila delphia, W. B. Saunders Company, 1972. Clothbound, 165 pages, table of contents, index, 16 black and white figures and 184 color figures. $50 The news of the discovery of the "AugenSpiegel" by Hermann von Helmholtz reached Vienna in the summer of 1851. Eduard Jaeger, the son and grandson of dis tinguished Austrian ophthalmologists and already a Privat-Dozent in his own right, was one of the first to apply himself to the systematic study of the posterior segment of the eye with the new instrument and to dis cover some of the basic features of the ophthalmoscopic picture. The value of graphic recordings became very apparent and in
997
duced several ophthalmologists of the period to engage in techniques of drawing or paint ing eyegrounds. Among them was Jaeger, motivated by an ardent desire to observe and to portray accurately. Some of his early paintings drew criticism from some of his colleagues which only intensified his striving for accuracy and trueness to nature. After about 18 years of deep involvement in the exploration of the fundus with mirror and pen, he decided, in 1869, to publish 128 of his paintings on 29 plates, together with di agnoses and rather detailed descriptive, but not explanatory or interpretative, notes on each patient. This was the "Ophthalmoskopische Hand-Atlas," copies of which can be located in most major medical libraries in this country. After Jaeger's death, his original fundus paintings were purchased by William Fisher Norris, the then professor of ophthalmology at the University of Pennsylvania, who had been a graduate student in Vienna under Jaeger, Mauthner, and Arlt from 1865-7. Norris bequeathed the paintings to the li brary of the College of Physicians of Phila delphia. The history of the paintings is re lated, in interesting detail, in the introduc tion to the new "Jaeger's Atlas of Diseases of the Ocular Fundus, with New Descrip tions, Revisions and Additions." The title fits the new book only partly. What the author, Daniel Albert of Yale Uni versity, has attempted to do is to use Jaeger's paintings as illustrations for a modern sys tem of the diseases and disorders of the fun dus, vitreous, and lens. In the individual chapters of the book, several pages of intro ductory text by Albert precede one or sev eral color plates made from the original paintings by modern photographic techni ques. For instance, Chapter X, Papilledema and Optic Neuritis, begins with three pages of text describing briefly the two diseases, their differentiation, and their causes, as seen today. Then follows a plate with five of Jae ger's paintings which show some of the clas sic features of papilledema and papillitis, but