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Herbicides and plant metabolism
272
TIBTECH - S E P T E M B E R 1990 [Vol. 8]
aspect of their metabolic roles, from osmotic stability in halophiles, calcium biomineralization, sporulation, cell envelope and organelle stabilization, enzyme activation and function through to the cell cycle, photosynthesis, RNA and DNA polymerases and trigger-proteins. Fifty-four pages are then devoted mainly to the biochemical roles of the transition metals and zinc, followed by another fifty on all aspects of metal toxicity: mechanisms, binding and transport, cadmium uptake and efflux, mercury cycling in the environment, resistance and detoxification. This chapter covers cations, such as lead, tin, copper, cobalt, silver and many others, as well as anions such as arsenite, arsenate, chromate and vanadate. It also deals with metalloids (selenium and tellurium com-
pounds), the transformations of metals by microorganisms, effects on cell division by compounds of platinum, ruthenium, rhodium and others, and antimicrobial heavy metal chelates and other organometal compounds. The final chapter on metals, microorganisms and biotechnology is comprehensive and will be of use to industrial biologists and undergraduate students alike. It deals succinctly but thoroughly with the microbiology, biochemistry and commercial processes of bacteriallyassisted metal leaching, including its use in gold and uranium recovery, before moving on to metal immobilization mechanisms and their exploitation in commercial recovery of metals and in clean-up of waste waters. Each chapter is prefaced with
Protecting plants HERBICIDES AND PLANT METABOLISM
edited by A. D. Dodge, Cambridge University Press, 1990. £32.50 [277 pages) ISBN 0 521 34422 0 Nowadays there is an assured market for review books because they provide a means to master the ever increasing body of knowledge without too much effort. Herbicides and Plant Metabolism, published in 1990, is the proceedings of a meeting held at the University of York in 1987 on the biochemistry of herbicide action. The introductory chapter outlines the background of the agrochemical industry, the reasons for using herbicides and the processes involved in their development. The largest part of the book is a collection of papers dealing with the inhibitory effects and mechanisms of action of herbicides on photosynthesis, pigment synthesis and lipid and amino acid biosynthesis. The metabolism of herbicides is reviewed with particular emphasis on detoxification (inactivation of toxic chemicals) and bioactivation (formation of toxic compounds from non-toxic chemicals) as a basis of selectivity. A detailed knowledge of the metabolic fate of herbicides is essential for their rational design and also for the isolation of detoxification genes in plants that
would be suitable f o r g e n e t r a n s f e r studies. The final chapters are concerned with the mechanisms of herbicide resistance in weeds and the possibility of conferring herbicide resistance on susceptible crops. A useful herbicide glossary completes the volume. The book is quite readable for one with so many authors and it is well structured overall. However, it is rather selective; this could be both its strength and its weakness. In some places, the authors do not review areas of rapid expansion. For example, there is limited coverage of the molecular manipulation of herbicides, though this is balanced by a full description of the biochemical mechanisms of the mode of herbicide action. In addition, the papers include some data and the necessary references but most serve primarily only as handy summaries of work that is published in more detail elsewhere. Due to the time lag between the presentation of the papers and the publication of this volume, as well as the rapid progress in this field, it is inevitable that the book is at least partly out of date. Surprisingly, addenda (with the exception of one paper) reporting relevant developments since the meeting are not included.
apposite quotations from sources as diverse as Kipling and Voltaire, and the book is supported by an excellent index (17 pages) that leads one easily to topics as varied as Gosio gas, trimethylarsine (via thallium as a probe for potassium), plasmids (ten entries) and X537A. The comprehensive nature of the index is illustrated by the 26 entries relating to zinc, the 60 (with 41 subheadings) to Escherichia coli, and the 53 to magnesium. i recommend this book to students of microbiology of all ages, and to all those concerned with metals in the environment. It should have a place on all technical library shelves. DON KELLY
Natural Environment Research Council, Polaris House, North Star Avenue, Swindon SN2 1EU, UK.
A frustrating feature of the book is that figures and tables are frequently not on the same page as their reference. This could have been avoided by careful editing. If I have one major criticism, however, it is the straightforward reporting of facts; although this could be advantageous with the information readily acceptable and complementary to other available reviews, review papers ought also to be the forum for exciting speculations into the different areas of research, rather than a bloodless compilation of facts. One solution to this w o u l d have been to include parts of the lively discussions that often follow the presentations in such meetings. I would recommend Herbicides and Plant Metabolism as a useful addition to any library. It provides a comprehensive and useful framework and is valuable as a reference book for scientists, academics and post-graduates working in this field. It is, however, expensive for undergraduates and not adequate as a text book. ELLI OXTOBY
School of Biomedical and Biomolecular Sciences, University of Newcastle upon Tyne, Catherine Cookson Building, Framlington Place, Newcastle upon Tyne NE2 4HH, UK.
TIBTECH - S E P T E M B E R 1990 [Vol. 8]
aspect of their metabolic roles, from osmotic stability in halophiles, calcium biomineralization, sporulation, cell envelope and organelle stabilization, enzyme activation and function through to the cell cycle, photosynthesis, RNA and DNA polymerases and trigger-proteins. Fifty-four pages are then devoted mainly to the biochemical roles of the transition metals and zinc, followed by another fifty on all aspects of metal toxicity: mechanisms, binding and transport, cadmium uptake and efflux, mercury cycling in the environment, resistance and detoxification. This chapter covers cations, such as lead, tin, copper, cobalt, silver and many others, as well as anions such as arsenite, arsenate, chromate and vanadate. It also deals with metalloids (selenium and tellurium com-
pounds), the transformations of metals by microorganisms, effects on cell division by compounds of platinum, ruthenium, rhodium and others, and antimicrobial heavy metal chelates and other organometal compounds. The final chapter on metals, microorganisms and biotechnology is comprehensive and will be of use to industrial biologists and undergraduate students alike. It deals succinctly but thoroughly with the microbiology, biochemistry and commercial processes of bacteriallyassisted metal leaching, including its use in gold and uranium recovery, before moving on to metal immobilization mechanisms and their exploitation in commercial recovery of metals and in clean-up of waste waters. Each chapter is prefaced with
Protecting plants HERBICIDES AND PLANT METABOLISM
edited by A. D. Dodge, Cambridge University Press, 1990. £32.50 [277 pages) ISBN 0 521 34422 0 Nowadays there is an assured market for review books because they provide a means to master the ever increasing body of knowledge without too much effort. Herbicides and Plant Metabolism, published in 1990, is the proceedings of a meeting held at the University of York in 1987 on the biochemistry of herbicide action. The introductory chapter outlines the background of the agrochemical industry, the reasons for using herbicides and the processes involved in their development. The largest part of the book is a collection of papers dealing with the inhibitory effects and mechanisms of action of herbicides on photosynthesis, pigment synthesis and lipid and amino acid biosynthesis. The metabolism of herbicides is reviewed with particular emphasis on detoxification (inactivation of toxic chemicals) and bioactivation (formation of toxic compounds from non-toxic chemicals) as a basis of selectivity. A detailed knowledge of the metabolic fate of herbicides is essential for their rational design and also for the isolation of detoxification genes in plants that
would be suitable f o r g e n e t r a n s f e r studies. The final chapters are concerned with the mechanisms of herbicide resistance in weeds and the possibility of conferring herbicide resistance on susceptible crops. A useful herbicide glossary completes the volume. The book is quite readable for one with so many authors and it is well structured overall. However, it is rather selective; this could be both its strength and its weakness. In some places, the authors do not review areas of rapid expansion. For example, there is limited coverage of the molecular manipulation of herbicides, though this is balanced by a full description of the biochemical mechanisms of the mode of herbicide action. In addition, the papers include some data and the necessary references but most serve primarily only as handy summaries of work that is published in more detail elsewhere. Due to the time lag between the presentation of the papers and the publication of this volume, as well as the rapid progress in this field, it is inevitable that the book is at least partly out of date. Surprisingly, addenda (with the exception of one paper) reporting relevant developments since the meeting are not included.
apposite quotations from sources as diverse as Kipling and Voltaire, and the book is supported by an excellent index (17 pages) that leads one easily to topics as varied as Gosio gas, trimethylarsine (via thallium as a probe for potassium), plasmids (ten entries) and X537A. The comprehensive nature of the index is illustrated by the 26 entries relating to zinc, the 60 (with 41 subheadings) to Escherichia coli, and the 53 to magnesium. i recommend this book to students of microbiology of all ages, and to all those concerned with metals in the environment. It should have a place on all technical library shelves. DON KELLY
Natural Environment Research Council, Polaris House, North Star Avenue, Swindon SN2 1EU, UK.
A frustrating feature of the book is that figures and tables are frequently not on the same page as their reference. This could have been avoided by careful editing. If I have one major criticism, however, it is the straightforward reporting of facts; although this could be advantageous with the information readily acceptable and complementary to other available reviews, review papers ought also to be the forum for exciting speculations into the different areas of research, rather than a bloodless compilation of facts. One solution to this w o u l d have been to include parts of the lively discussions that often follow the presentations in such meetings. I would recommend Herbicides and Plant Metabolism as a useful addition to any library. It provides a comprehensive and useful framework and is valuable as a reference book for scientists, academics and post-graduates working in this field. It is, however, expensive for undergraduates and not adequate as a text book. ELLI OXTOBY
School of Biomedical and Biomolecular Sciences, University of Newcastle upon Tyne, Catherine Cookson Building, Framlington Place, Newcastle upon Tyne NE2 4HH, UK.