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Immunodiagnosis of cancer I and II
ANALYTICAL
BIOCHEMISTRY
104, 236-237
(1980)
BOOK REVIEWS
NMR AND BIOCHEMISTRY: A Symposium Honoring Mildred Cohn. Edited by S. J. OPELLA AND P. Lu. DEKKER. New York, 1979. 434 pp. $45.00. It is a pleasure to review the proceedings of a conference held to honor Mildred Cohn. However, the criteria which the reader will want applied to this publication bear on the level and range of the contents presented by the contributors. Like most symposia reproduced in print, this volume suffers from too many contributions in too wide a range of topics. usually with insufficient depth to treat the subject matter adequately. The contents of the volume are broken down into sections; “Honoring Mildred Cohn,” “Proteins and Nucleic Acids,” “Strategies for Biological NMR.” “Membranes and Intact Cells,” and “Enzymes.” Naturally. these do not represent the comprehensive treatment implied by the title: “NMR and Biochemistry.” The substance of this book lies in the first and last sections; where the article by Mildred Cohn herself leaves off, the articles in the section on “Enzymes” take up. It is clear from the articles in this section that Mildred Cohn’s contributions have continued unabated. One is struck by the fact that it is now 20 years since Cohn and Hughes published their first ‘“P NMR spectrum of ATP. and that only last year did Cohn and Hu describe the utility of ‘“0 effects upon phosphate “‘P chemical shifts. The articles. from that of Hackney et NI. (No. 19) describing the ‘“0 isotope method in detail. to that of Bickerstaff and Price (No. 28). comprise the most coherent and satisfying part of this volume. Of the 28 separate articles in the volume there is only one that deals with DNA, and that mainly in a methodological context. and there is only one that covers NMR studies of intact tissue, namely, the brain. This is rather surprising when one considers the recent surge of interest in NMR studies. “‘C as well as :“P. of a wide range of metabolic problems. Further. the “iP NMR studies of excised brain by Chance rt rrl. are open to the criticism that “cryo-NMR.”
JACK
S. COHEN
with respect to the latest progress but also with respect to the theoretical basis for the approaches and the current problems and limitations. In many chapters the directions of needed studies are suggested. In addition, articles have been included to aid in the design of appropriate clinical studies and in the statistical evaluation of diagnostic assays. The authors have tried to present most of the major areas of active research in immunodiagnosis. and have included tests that are cur-
Immunodiagnosis of Cancer 1 and II. Edited by R. B. HERBERMAN AND K. R. MCINTIRE, Dekker. New York and Basel. 1979. This collection of material by different authors. all of whom are experts in their fields, is an attempt to provide tumor immunologists and clinicians with a reference describing the breadth and current status of this field. The different aspects are discussed not only 0003.2697/80/0702X02$02.00/O
although a valiant attempt to approach an admittedly difficult problem. does not prevent cell damage and subsequent enzymatic changes during the time frame of the freezing experiments. In the section on “Proteins and Nucleic Acids” I found the article by Reid et (I/., “Probing Transfer RNA Structure by NMR.” to be one of the most complete treatments. Another of the articles in this section provides a classic case of self-citation, with 70% of the references being by the same author. “Strategies for Biological The section entitled NMR” is the standard formula to include some technique-oriented articles. Although the techniques may be very important in themselves. I always have the feeling that their purveyors would be better employed actually carrying out biological experiments. rather than preaching strategies for them. Although in their own right some of the articles in the “strategy” \ection are very useful. one must wonder about an article at this time about the relative advantages of very high fields. We should have gone beyond the “my held is higher than your field” syndrome. This volume represents a homage to Mildred Cohn. who not only pioneered many of the methods described. but also numbers many of the authors among her former students. The articles by Mildvan. Rose. Ashby and Frieden. and Chock VI uI. are particularly good examples of the elegant type of work on metalloenzyme active sites. which contain both detailed structural and temporal information, which we have come to associate with the name of Mildred Cohn. This section alone would justify the scrutiny of this volume by students of enzymology, as well as a wider audience. including those interested in biochemical applications of NMR.
236
BOOK rently being used for their potential clinical usefulness. The editors have made no attempt to comment on individual chapters. In the first volume several general chapters relating to general methodology, such as statistics. radioimmunoassay, and immunoenzyme assays are presented. The next few chapters then deal with wellestablished and highly useful markers of certain specific types of tumors. These include Lu-fetoprotein, carcinoembryonic antigen, and human chorionic gonadotropin. The last part of Volume I deals with the evolving technology of the isolation and characterization of somewhat less-established tumor markers such as antigens found in human leukemia. ovarian cancer, and brain tumors. Volume II deals for the most part with somewhat less specific phenomenologies; these include the depressed immunological competence in patients with malignancy, various aspects of skin testing in patients with malignancy, and the presence of immune complexes in the sera of patients. The last few chapters deal with even less well-established. less specific, and controversial techniques for the diagnosis of malignancy. The quality of the articles in the two books is arranged almost in a gradient; the best articles on the more definitive tests appear early and the less im-
237
REVIEWS
portant and least useful appear later. There is also a certain redundancy: for example, melanomaand leukemia-associated antigens are discussed in both the first and second volumes. Another relevant point is that the timing of this series of immunodiagnostic tests just happens to coincide with the development of a new technology involving the use of monoclonal hybridoma antibodies. This new technology will rapidly supersede much of what is presented in these volumes. The contents of these two volumes, with their extensive bibliography, will be most useful for novices in the field who wish to find out rapidly what the present state of the art was one or two years ago. For those who are planning new immunodiagnostic strategies the contents of these volumes will describe some of the problems and pitfalls involved in the study of human malignancy. For the most part this book succeeds in the main goal of providing the immunologist and clinician a rapid reference to both the good and bad in this field. IRA
GREEN
BIOCHEMISTRY
104, 236-237
(1980)
BOOK REVIEWS
NMR AND BIOCHEMISTRY: A Symposium Honoring Mildred Cohn. Edited by S. J. OPELLA AND P. Lu. DEKKER. New York, 1979. 434 pp. $45.00. It is a pleasure to review the proceedings of a conference held to honor Mildred Cohn. However, the criteria which the reader will want applied to this publication bear on the level and range of the contents presented by the contributors. Like most symposia reproduced in print, this volume suffers from too many contributions in too wide a range of topics. usually with insufficient depth to treat the subject matter adequately. The contents of the volume are broken down into sections; “Honoring Mildred Cohn,” “Proteins and Nucleic Acids,” “Strategies for Biological NMR.” “Membranes and Intact Cells,” and “Enzymes.” Naturally. these do not represent the comprehensive treatment implied by the title: “NMR and Biochemistry.” The substance of this book lies in the first and last sections; where the article by Mildred Cohn herself leaves off, the articles in the section on “Enzymes” take up. It is clear from the articles in this section that Mildred Cohn’s contributions have continued unabated. One is struck by the fact that it is now 20 years since Cohn and Hughes published their first ‘“P NMR spectrum of ATP. and that only last year did Cohn and Hu describe the utility of ‘“0 effects upon phosphate “‘P chemical shifts. The articles. from that of Hackney et NI. (No. 19) describing the ‘“0 isotope method in detail. to that of Bickerstaff and Price (No. 28). comprise the most coherent and satisfying part of this volume. Of the 28 separate articles in the volume there is only one that deals with DNA, and that mainly in a methodological context. and there is only one that covers NMR studies of intact tissue, namely, the brain. This is rather surprising when one considers the recent surge of interest in NMR studies. “‘C as well as :“P. of a wide range of metabolic problems. Further. the “iP NMR studies of excised brain by Chance rt rrl. are open to the criticism that “cryo-NMR.”
JACK
S. COHEN
with respect to the latest progress but also with respect to the theoretical basis for the approaches and the current problems and limitations. In many chapters the directions of needed studies are suggested. In addition, articles have been included to aid in the design of appropriate clinical studies and in the statistical evaluation of diagnostic assays. The authors have tried to present most of the major areas of active research in immunodiagnosis. and have included tests that are cur-
Immunodiagnosis of Cancer 1 and II. Edited by R. B. HERBERMAN AND K. R. MCINTIRE, Dekker. New York and Basel. 1979. This collection of material by different authors. all of whom are experts in their fields, is an attempt to provide tumor immunologists and clinicians with a reference describing the breadth and current status of this field. The different aspects are discussed not only 0003.2697/80/0702X02$02.00/O
although a valiant attempt to approach an admittedly difficult problem. does not prevent cell damage and subsequent enzymatic changes during the time frame of the freezing experiments. In the section on “Proteins and Nucleic Acids” I found the article by Reid et (I/., “Probing Transfer RNA Structure by NMR.” to be one of the most complete treatments. Another of the articles in this section provides a classic case of self-citation, with 70% of the references being by the same author. “Strategies for Biological The section entitled NMR” is the standard formula to include some technique-oriented articles. Although the techniques may be very important in themselves. I always have the feeling that their purveyors would be better employed actually carrying out biological experiments. rather than preaching strategies for them. Although in their own right some of the articles in the “strategy” \ection are very useful. one must wonder about an article at this time about the relative advantages of very high fields. We should have gone beyond the “my held is higher than your field” syndrome. This volume represents a homage to Mildred Cohn. who not only pioneered many of the methods described. but also numbers many of the authors among her former students. The articles by Mildvan. Rose. Ashby and Frieden. and Chock VI uI. are particularly good examples of the elegant type of work on metalloenzyme active sites. which contain both detailed structural and temporal information, which we have come to associate with the name of Mildred Cohn. This section alone would justify the scrutiny of this volume by students of enzymology, as well as a wider audience. including those interested in biochemical applications of NMR.
236
BOOK rently being used for their potential clinical usefulness. The editors have made no attempt to comment on individual chapters. In the first volume several general chapters relating to general methodology, such as statistics. radioimmunoassay, and immunoenzyme assays are presented. The next few chapters then deal with wellestablished and highly useful markers of certain specific types of tumors. These include Lu-fetoprotein, carcinoembryonic antigen, and human chorionic gonadotropin. The last part of Volume I deals with the evolving technology of the isolation and characterization of somewhat less-established tumor markers such as antigens found in human leukemia. ovarian cancer, and brain tumors. Volume II deals for the most part with somewhat less specific phenomenologies; these include the depressed immunological competence in patients with malignancy, various aspects of skin testing in patients with malignancy, and the presence of immune complexes in the sera of patients. The last few chapters deal with even less well-established. less specific, and controversial techniques for the diagnosis of malignancy. The quality of the articles in the two books is arranged almost in a gradient; the best articles on the more definitive tests appear early and the less im-
237
REVIEWS
portant and least useful appear later. There is also a certain redundancy: for example, melanomaand leukemia-associated antigens are discussed in both the first and second volumes. Another relevant point is that the timing of this series of immunodiagnostic tests just happens to coincide with the development of a new technology involving the use of monoclonal hybridoma antibodies. This new technology will rapidly supersede much of what is presented in these volumes. The contents of these two volumes, with their extensive bibliography, will be most useful for novices in the field who wish to find out rapidly what the present state of the art was one or two years ago. For those who are planning new immunodiagnostic strategies the contents of these volumes will describe some of the problems and pitfalls involved in the study of human malignancy. For the most part this book succeeds in the main goal of providing the immunologist and clinician a rapid reference to both the good and bad in this field. IRA
GREEN