- Email: [email protected]
Mechanisms of plant growth and improved productivity
BookReviews~FieldCropsResearch39 (1994)171-175 ecological mechanisms are valuable resources. This information provides a basis for entomologists to obtain ideas about development of biological and cultural tactics for pest suppression. The book is attractive with large type and not excessively priced (although a short book for the price). An entomologist should choose to purchase this book for their personal library based on interest in preventive pest management and sustainable agriculture systems.
Joe E. Funderburk North Florida Research and Education Center University of Florida Quincy, FL 32351, USA
Mechanisms of plant growth and improved productivity Mechanisms of plant growth and improved productivity. A.S. Basra. Marcel Dekker, New York, 1994. 496 pp., Hardback US $165, ISBN 0-8247-9192-4.
In his preface to this book the editor writes that 'the time is ripe to bring together new knowledge' relating to crop productivity, 'giving it a clear perspective and identifying research priorities for the future.' He also expresses the hope that his book will provide 'an appreciation of the potential of biotechnological tools to achieve improved productivity.' There are 12 chapters, all reviews, ranging in length from 26 to 74 pages and in number of references from 72 to 454, so the overall literature coverage is considerable and extends up to 1993. The last quarter of the references in one chapter (9) are not referred to in the text, suggestive of substantial editorial excision. The chapters, in order, deal with photoassimilate transport (Baker and Milbum), mineral nutrition (Le Bot, Pilbeam and Kirkby), symbiotic nitrogen fixation (Atkins), nitrate assimilation (Wray and Abberton), nutrient deficiencies (Longnecker), growth regulators (Hedden and Hoad), the 'greenhouse effect' (Wit-
173
twer), cell and tissue culture (Brat and Khush), gene isolation and characterization (Bartels and Iturriaga), post-translational regulation of gene expression (Kermode), gene expression in response to pathogens (Collinge, Gregersen and Thordal-Christensen), and engineering stress-resistant plants (Van den Bulcke). The 22 authors are based in ten different countries, only one being in the USA. The improvement of crop productivity embraces so many processes that many must be omitted. Nevertheless, I was surprised by the balance and order of subjects, with one third of the chapters on aspects of mineral nutrient yet none on important topics like photosynthesis, water use or respiration. All the chapters except the first try to address the question of improving crop productivity, and I found all but one of the reviews informative, comprehensive, and well worth reading. The five 'molecular' chapters each present a strategic sense of direction, although the biotech telescope does not always see the wider agricultural landscape. For example, in the final chapter there is nothing on the potential hazards of the genes for Bt toxins losing effectiveness or of herbicide resistance genes introgressing wild relatives and other weeds, despite subheadings such as 'Herbicide resistance: the ecological answer.' The physiological chapters reveal a tendency for our increased understanding of the subtleties of each process to make it even more difficult to predict the consequences of molecular intervention, as instanced for nitrate assimilation and photosynthesis. Several of the later chapters, on the other hand, particularly those dealing with protein quality or resistance to diseases, pests and environmental stresses, project confidence in the likely effectiveness of identifying and modifying crucial processes and genes. As a former Australian prime minister said, it is a case of crash through or crash. Wittwer's chapter on the greenhouse effect stands apart. It takes a cool look at a hot topic and finds no great cause for alarm, but I was disappointed not to find among the wealth of horticultural references no examples of selection for improved performance under high C02. Although the reviews in this book are well worth reading, I am not sure to whom the book as a whole is directed. About half of the book deals with the physiology of a small, unrepresentative sample of the proc-
174
Book Reviews/ Field CropsResearch39 (1994) 171-175
esses influencing crop productivity and of interest to agronomists. The other half focuses on strategies for attacks on other aspects of crop productivity by genetic engineering, in chapters of such detail and scope that they would be mainly of interest to would-be molecular plant breeders. In the absence of a synthetic summary by the editor, I did not emerge with the clear perspective and sense of overall priorities he foretold. It is a book for sampling by many different kinds of plant scientist.
L.T. Evans CSIRO Division of Plant Industry GPO Box 1600 Canberra A.C.T. 2601 Australia
Genetic Improvement of Field Crops
Genetic Improvement of Field Crops. G.A. Slafer (Edi-
tor). Marcel Dekker, New York, 1994. 470 pp., Hardback, US$165, ISBN 0-8247-8980-6.
This collection of reviews by different authors covers nine major crops: bread wheat, oats, barley, maize, soybean, sunflower, cotton, potato, and rice. Based on the title, it might be assumed to be a book on plant breeding, but the reviews primarily address the physiological changes that have occurred as a result of varietal improvement, rather than breeding methodology. The editor notes in the preface that the purpose of the book is to evaluate how past yield gains have been achieved, and to develop ideotypes for future improvement efforts. While the chapters differ considerably in emphasis depending on the interests of the authors, each chapter does present a comparison of early and recent varieties, and describes in general terms the characteristics of a desirable crop ideotype. The book is primarily intended to serve as a reference for researchers and advanced students. Contributors to the book are from eight different countries, and the extensive literature reviewed reflects
an international perspective. The chapter on potato summarizes a number of references written in Spanish which might be otherwise unavailable to many readers, but other chapters review almost exclusively literature published in English. All chapters except that on rice primarily emphasize crop production in temperate zones, but some other chapters also mention genetic improvement in tolerance to stresses typical of tropical regions. Most contributors specialize in the area of crop physiology. Chapters on bread wheat, oats, maize, soybean, sunflower, potato, and rice provide thorough, up-to-date summaries of the physiological bases of yield improvement at the plant or canopy level of organization. They address the relative importance of changes in photosynthetic rates, leaf area development, phenology, nutrient utilization, and dry matter partitioning. Authors also discuss changes in yield components and in tolerance to abiotic and biotic stresses that have accompanied varietal improvement. Authors of these chapters generally develop a conceptual model to describe yield generation and identify opportunities for future improvement, but the potential applications of computer simulations are mentioned only for sunflower and soybean. Whereas most chapters review the available literature, the chapter on maize presents useful unpublished data as well. One objective of reviewing the results of genetic improvement is to allow a better application of the techniques of molecular genetics to crop improvement. The coverage of genetics is, however, somewhat limited. Only the chapter on barley, which is written from the perspective of a plant breeder, addresses in depth the chromosome mapping of key traits and the extent to which genetic mechanisms are understood. The omission of this information for other crops should not detract from the usefulness of the book for crop physiologists, but it does highlight a continuing weakness of integration in the area of physiological genetics. The chapter on cotton describes the historical importance of the crop, selection methods used in its improvement, and relationships between the year of release of cultivats and lint yields. The editing and presentation of the book are generally excellent. The text is clear and readable, and a complete index is included. The book differs in several ways from previous volumes that have reviewed the physiology of major commodities. The focus of all
Joe E. Funderburk North Florida Research and Education Center University of Florida Quincy, FL 32351, USA
Mechanisms of plant growth and improved productivity Mechanisms of plant growth and improved productivity. A.S. Basra. Marcel Dekker, New York, 1994. 496 pp., Hardback US $165, ISBN 0-8247-9192-4.
In his preface to this book the editor writes that 'the time is ripe to bring together new knowledge' relating to crop productivity, 'giving it a clear perspective and identifying research priorities for the future.' He also expresses the hope that his book will provide 'an appreciation of the potential of biotechnological tools to achieve improved productivity.' There are 12 chapters, all reviews, ranging in length from 26 to 74 pages and in number of references from 72 to 454, so the overall literature coverage is considerable and extends up to 1993. The last quarter of the references in one chapter (9) are not referred to in the text, suggestive of substantial editorial excision. The chapters, in order, deal with photoassimilate transport (Baker and Milbum), mineral nutrition (Le Bot, Pilbeam and Kirkby), symbiotic nitrogen fixation (Atkins), nitrate assimilation (Wray and Abberton), nutrient deficiencies (Longnecker), growth regulators (Hedden and Hoad), the 'greenhouse effect' (Wit-
173
twer), cell and tissue culture (Brat and Khush), gene isolation and characterization (Bartels and Iturriaga), post-translational regulation of gene expression (Kermode), gene expression in response to pathogens (Collinge, Gregersen and Thordal-Christensen), and engineering stress-resistant plants (Van den Bulcke). The 22 authors are based in ten different countries, only one being in the USA. The improvement of crop productivity embraces so many processes that many must be omitted. Nevertheless, I was surprised by the balance and order of subjects, with one third of the chapters on aspects of mineral nutrient yet none on important topics like photosynthesis, water use or respiration. All the chapters except the first try to address the question of improving crop productivity, and I found all but one of the reviews informative, comprehensive, and well worth reading. The five 'molecular' chapters each present a strategic sense of direction, although the biotech telescope does not always see the wider agricultural landscape. For example, in the final chapter there is nothing on the potential hazards of the genes for Bt toxins losing effectiveness or of herbicide resistance genes introgressing wild relatives and other weeds, despite subheadings such as 'Herbicide resistance: the ecological answer.' The physiological chapters reveal a tendency for our increased understanding of the subtleties of each process to make it even more difficult to predict the consequences of molecular intervention, as instanced for nitrate assimilation and photosynthesis. Several of the later chapters, on the other hand, particularly those dealing with protein quality or resistance to diseases, pests and environmental stresses, project confidence in the likely effectiveness of identifying and modifying crucial processes and genes. As a former Australian prime minister said, it is a case of crash through or crash. Wittwer's chapter on the greenhouse effect stands apart. It takes a cool look at a hot topic and finds no great cause for alarm, but I was disappointed not to find among the wealth of horticultural references no examples of selection for improved performance under high C02. Although the reviews in this book are well worth reading, I am not sure to whom the book as a whole is directed. About half of the book deals with the physiology of a small, unrepresentative sample of the proc-
174
Book Reviews/ Field CropsResearch39 (1994) 171-175
esses influencing crop productivity and of interest to agronomists. The other half focuses on strategies for attacks on other aspects of crop productivity by genetic engineering, in chapters of such detail and scope that they would be mainly of interest to would-be molecular plant breeders. In the absence of a synthetic summary by the editor, I did not emerge with the clear perspective and sense of overall priorities he foretold. It is a book for sampling by many different kinds of plant scientist.
L.T. Evans CSIRO Division of Plant Industry GPO Box 1600 Canberra A.C.T. 2601 Australia
Genetic Improvement of Field Crops
Genetic Improvement of Field Crops. G.A. Slafer (Edi-
tor). Marcel Dekker, New York, 1994. 470 pp., Hardback, US$165, ISBN 0-8247-8980-6.
This collection of reviews by different authors covers nine major crops: bread wheat, oats, barley, maize, soybean, sunflower, cotton, potato, and rice. Based on the title, it might be assumed to be a book on plant breeding, but the reviews primarily address the physiological changes that have occurred as a result of varietal improvement, rather than breeding methodology. The editor notes in the preface that the purpose of the book is to evaluate how past yield gains have been achieved, and to develop ideotypes for future improvement efforts. While the chapters differ considerably in emphasis depending on the interests of the authors, each chapter does present a comparison of early and recent varieties, and describes in general terms the characteristics of a desirable crop ideotype. The book is primarily intended to serve as a reference for researchers and advanced students. Contributors to the book are from eight different countries, and the extensive literature reviewed reflects
an international perspective. The chapter on potato summarizes a number of references written in Spanish which might be otherwise unavailable to many readers, but other chapters review almost exclusively literature published in English. All chapters except that on rice primarily emphasize crop production in temperate zones, but some other chapters also mention genetic improvement in tolerance to stresses typical of tropical regions. Most contributors specialize in the area of crop physiology. Chapters on bread wheat, oats, maize, soybean, sunflower, potato, and rice provide thorough, up-to-date summaries of the physiological bases of yield improvement at the plant or canopy level of organization. They address the relative importance of changes in photosynthetic rates, leaf area development, phenology, nutrient utilization, and dry matter partitioning. Authors also discuss changes in yield components and in tolerance to abiotic and biotic stresses that have accompanied varietal improvement. Authors of these chapters generally develop a conceptual model to describe yield generation and identify opportunities for future improvement, but the potential applications of computer simulations are mentioned only for sunflower and soybean. Whereas most chapters review the available literature, the chapter on maize presents useful unpublished data as well. One objective of reviewing the results of genetic improvement is to allow a better application of the techniques of molecular genetics to crop improvement. The coverage of genetics is, however, somewhat limited. Only the chapter on barley, which is written from the perspective of a plant breeder, addresses in depth the chromosome mapping of key traits and the extent to which genetic mechanisms are understood. The omission of this information for other crops should not detract from the usefulness of the book for crop physiologists, but it does highlight a continuing weakness of integration in the area of physiological genetics. The chapter on cotton describes the historical importance of the crop, selection methods used in its improvement, and relationships between the year of release of cultivats and lint yields. The editing and presentation of the book are generally excellent. The text is clear and readable, and a complete index is included. The book differs in several ways from previous volumes that have reviewed the physiology of major commodities. The focus of all