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The harvey lectures, series 47, (1951–1952)
BOOK
REVIEWS
235
The Harvey Lectures, Series 47, (1951-52). Academic Press Inc., New York, N. Y., 1953. + 271 pp. Price: $7.59. This forty-seventh series of authoritative lectures under the patronage of the New York Academy of Medicine maintains the standard of excellence set by its predecessors. In the field of biochemistry, A. R. Todd describes nucleic acids and certain coenzymes in terms of the chemistry of phosphate esters. From the behavior of simple phosphate esters a theory is propounded which permits an explanation of the alkaline lability of ribonucleic acids, and the behavior of simple esters of pyrophosphates offers certain analogies to the biochemical phosphorylations which are accomplished by polyphosphates of adenosine. L. Zechmeister illustrates the biochemical value of chromatographic methods, with particular reference to the stereoisomers of the carotenes and the importance of molecular form to the biological potency of the provitamins A. As a second topic, the occurrence of polycyclic hydrocarbons in nature, particularly of the carcinogenic hydrocarbon 3,4-benzpyrene in barnacles, is reviewed. I. L. Chaikoff discusses an extensive series of studies with isotopes of the metabolic blocks in diabetes, with particular regard to the indirect blocking of the conversion of the two carbon fragment into lipides. Walter H. Seegers summarizes the present status of the riddles of blood coagulation mechanisms (plurals emphasized by Seegers), with emphasis on the complexities of the transformation of prothrombin to thrombin. In a less frankly biochemical lecture, Louis B. Flexner considers the chemical changes during the development of the cerebral cortex. In presentations in other areas, W. Barry Wood, Jr. considers antibodies and phagocytosis under the heading of cellular immunology; F. R. Winton the role of hydrostatic pressure in the functioning of the kidney; H. W. Magoun some functional mechanisms in the brain stem; and Carroll M. Williams describes hormonal controls of metamorphosis in insects, the latter illustrated with pictures from Life magazine. As is usual in this series, these extremely readable papers present scientific findings of far-reaching significance to science, and are valuable to both fellow workers in the various areas and t,o the academically curious. GEORGEB. BROWN, New York, New York
REVIEWS
235
The Harvey Lectures, Series 47, (1951-52). Academic Press Inc., New York, N. Y., 1953. + 271 pp. Price: $7.59. This forty-seventh series of authoritative lectures under the patronage of the New York Academy of Medicine maintains the standard of excellence set by its predecessors. In the field of biochemistry, A. R. Todd describes nucleic acids and certain coenzymes in terms of the chemistry of phosphate esters. From the behavior of simple phosphate esters a theory is propounded which permits an explanation of the alkaline lability of ribonucleic acids, and the behavior of simple esters of pyrophosphates offers certain analogies to the biochemical phosphorylations which are accomplished by polyphosphates of adenosine. L. Zechmeister illustrates the biochemical value of chromatographic methods, with particular reference to the stereoisomers of the carotenes and the importance of molecular form to the biological potency of the provitamins A. As a second topic, the occurrence of polycyclic hydrocarbons in nature, particularly of the carcinogenic hydrocarbon 3,4-benzpyrene in barnacles, is reviewed. I. L. Chaikoff discusses an extensive series of studies with isotopes of the metabolic blocks in diabetes, with particular regard to the indirect blocking of the conversion of the two carbon fragment into lipides. Walter H. Seegers summarizes the present status of the riddles of blood coagulation mechanisms (plurals emphasized by Seegers), with emphasis on the complexities of the transformation of prothrombin to thrombin. In a less frankly biochemical lecture, Louis B. Flexner considers the chemical changes during the development of the cerebral cortex. In presentations in other areas, W. Barry Wood, Jr. considers antibodies and phagocytosis under the heading of cellular immunology; F. R. Winton the role of hydrostatic pressure in the functioning of the kidney; H. W. Magoun some functional mechanisms in the brain stem; and Carroll M. Williams describes hormonal controls of metamorphosis in insects, the latter illustrated with pictures from Life magazine. As is usual in this series, these extremely readable papers present scientific findings of far-reaching significance to science, and are valuable to both fellow workers in the various areas and t,o the academically curious. GEORGEB. BROWN, New York, New York