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Microbial genetics applied to biotechnology: Principles and techniques of gene transfer and manipulation
book review
T I C , - November 1987, Vol. 3, no. 11
Manipulating microbes Microbial Genetics Applied to Biotechnology: Principles and Techniques of Gene Transfer and Manipulation by Venetia A. Saunders and Jon R. Saunders, Croom Helm, 1987. £~0 kbk, £14.95 pbk (1 + 422 p~es) I S B N 0 7099 44357 Any book coming out in this field is inevitably compared with the now familiar Old and Primrose, which has quite justifiably become the yardstick for such texts. It is, however, a rapidly moving field and whilst many of the basic techniques remain the same, new refinements and the application of these techniques in new areas rapidly make a textbook outdated, almost from the day of publication. It is gratifying, therefore, to see such an up-to-date volume as this, particularly since it spans as wide a view as possible of biotechnology. This hook is aimed at the more advanced student and has been partly based on the courses taught by Venetia and Jon Saanders in their respective departments. It refreshingly starts the treatment of most of the areas from the standpoint of a microbial geneticist; thus the first detailed descriptions are of transposous and transformation systems and their use in gene manipulation. In vivo genetic manipulation is given a thorough trea~aent, induding a useful account of fungal genetics. The discussien of in vitro genetic manipulation begins with a good definition of cloning which other publications could do well to adopt. There are excellent descriptions of the various types of restriction enzyme, their properties and uses. All of the major and most of the minor
From embryonic cells to mice
techniques in modern molecular biology are covered in good detail. The references throughout the book are not obtrusive but are the key ones and are up to date. The generally excellent text is let down by the inadequacy of some of the figures. The simple line drawings with no use of colour have been so reduced in some cases that lines merge and the detail is hist. For example, the first major figure the reader comes across is a complex model of transposition mechanisms; parts of this will be impossible to interpret for someone who has never seen such a diagram before. There are several other such examples scattered throughout the book. A book such as this w l have to compete in a market where similar texts have made very good use of colour to emphasize and explain figures. The text makes up for the disappointment of some of the figures. There are tables that gather together information that I have not seen all in one place before, such as the tables on positive selection vectors and on promoters. It is strange that in the real world of the molecular biology laboratory, positive selection vectors have not caught on to any great extent. The pUC series of vectors seem to have become the standard tool for routine cloning and subcloning operations. It is hard not to make a comprehensive treatment of modern vectors and methods read like a neverending list but Jon and Venetia Saanders manage to use the format to advantage. and much of use to the general reader is contained in this section. 1 would. though, have expected a Iongnr explanation of broad host range vectors, considering Jon Saanders's background. The chapter o n / n vivo and in vitro mutagenesis again shows the strengths
Much of the rese~ch on molecular processes in mnmm~li~ndevelopment in Teratocarcinomas andEmbryonic the past has centered on the use of StemCells:APracticalApproach pluripotential teratocarcinoma cell lines. edited by E. J. Robertson, IRL Press, These lines are readily isolated and 1987. £261547 hbk, £16/$29 pbk (zii + maintained in culture, providing a large, convenient source of material that 254 pages) 1SBN 1 85221 004 4 possesses similar developmental propResearchers in a broad range of erties to cells from the early embryo. disciplines have increasingly focused on The major advantage of such lines lies in experimental mammalian embryology to their ability to differentiate into a variety approach the complex processes in- of cell types in culture, mediated volved in early development, tissue by chemical inducers, growth factors differentiation and cell-cell interactions. or altered culture conditions, in a To a large extent this is a consequence of manner similar to their normal embryonic the development of procedures for counterparts. Exogenous DNA, when manipulating mouse eggs and embryo.s to introduced into teratocarcinoma cells via produce transgenic mice. The appeal of U-ansfection or infection, displays a pattern of expression to endobeing able to study one's favourite gene s ~ or protein in multiple tissues through genous genes in the undifferentiated and development offers a system to analyse differentiated state. Therefore, these many new aspects of gone expression cells are a valuable experimental tool for and function in the context of the whole isolating and analysing the expression of developmentally regulated genes. Unanimal.
of this book as it gives a succinct but " . , , , , , / thorough explanation of classical mutagenesis and repair systems and explains how these are used in breeding programrues. The in vitro mutagenesis methods are also well covered, although cassette mutagenesis and the use of dut-uegstrains do not appear. There is a timely chapter on microbial strain improvements, which it is good to see sharing the same book with the chapters on recombinant DNA and in vitro mutagenesis. Both protein engineering and hybrid antibiotics round off what is an excellent chapter. Other chapters include modern methods of vaccine development and production, the use of RFLP in genetic fingerprinting and disease diagnosis, and a whole chapter on plant technology. The book ends with a chapter on environmental biotechnology which strangely misses out the long runningbattle over the deliberate release of/ce- bacteria. A section on deliberate release would be most useful in an expanded future volume, since this area is going to be not only a controversial one but one where large monetary returns will be made. Apart from minor quibbles with the text, such as no mentmn of pulsed field gel electrophoresis, field inversion gel electxophoresis or chromosome jumping, and the questionable statement that 'yeast glycosylate proteins in a manner similar to mammalian cells', this is an excellent book. It is sad that the figures in many cases leave a lot to be desired.
JOHN" WARD
Department of Bmchemislry. U~iversity College London, Gower Street, London, WCIE 6BT. UK.
fortunately, very few of the teratocarcinoma lines are able, when returned to a proper embryonic environment, to differentiate reproducibly in a manner that generates chimeric animals with a substantial contribution from the teratocarcinoma cells in germ-line and somatic tissues. Recently, many of the problems encountered with teratocarcinoma cells have been circumvented with the development of techniques for the derivation, culture and manipulation of embryonic stem cells. These stem cell lines have all the advantages of the teratocarcinoma cells, but in atilt, ion, they reproducibly contribute to the germ line of chimeric mice, providing an alternative method to microinjection for the production of transgenic mice. This is a critical property because the embryonic stem cells can be subjected to transfection or selection to isolate clones that have specific genetic alterations or patterns of
T I C , - November 1987, Vol. 3, no. 11
Manipulating microbes Microbial Genetics Applied to Biotechnology: Principles and Techniques of Gene Transfer and Manipulation by Venetia A. Saunders and Jon R. Saunders, Croom Helm, 1987. £~0 kbk, £14.95 pbk (1 + 422 p~es) I S B N 0 7099 44357 Any book coming out in this field is inevitably compared with the now familiar Old and Primrose, which has quite justifiably become the yardstick for such texts. It is, however, a rapidly moving field and whilst many of the basic techniques remain the same, new refinements and the application of these techniques in new areas rapidly make a textbook outdated, almost from the day of publication. It is gratifying, therefore, to see such an up-to-date volume as this, particularly since it spans as wide a view as possible of biotechnology. This hook is aimed at the more advanced student and has been partly based on the courses taught by Venetia and Jon Saanders in their respective departments. It refreshingly starts the treatment of most of the areas from the standpoint of a microbial geneticist; thus the first detailed descriptions are of transposous and transformation systems and their use in gene manipulation. In vivo genetic manipulation is given a thorough trea~aent, induding a useful account of fungal genetics. The discussien of in vitro genetic manipulation begins with a good definition of cloning which other publications could do well to adopt. There are excellent descriptions of the various types of restriction enzyme, their properties and uses. All of the major and most of the minor
From embryonic cells to mice
techniques in modern molecular biology are covered in good detail. The references throughout the book are not obtrusive but are the key ones and are up to date. The generally excellent text is let down by the inadequacy of some of the figures. The simple line drawings with no use of colour have been so reduced in some cases that lines merge and the detail is hist. For example, the first major figure the reader comes across is a complex model of transposition mechanisms; parts of this will be impossible to interpret for someone who has never seen such a diagram before. There are several other such examples scattered throughout the book. A book such as this w l have to compete in a market where similar texts have made very good use of colour to emphasize and explain figures. The text makes up for the disappointment of some of the figures. There are tables that gather together information that I have not seen all in one place before, such as the tables on positive selection vectors and on promoters. It is strange that in the real world of the molecular biology laboratory, positive selection vectors have not caught on to any great extent. The pUC series of vectors seem to have become the standard tool for routine cloning and subcloning operations. It is hard not to make a comprehensive treatment of modern vectors and methods read like a neverending list but Jon and Venetia Saanders manage to use the format to advantage. and much of use to the general reader is contained in this section. 1 would. though, have expected a Iongnr explanation of broad host range vectors, considering Jon Saanders's background. The chapter o n / n vivo and in vitro mutagenesis again shows the strengths
Much of the rese~ch on molecular processes in mnmm~li~ndevelopment in Teratocarcinomas andEmbryonic the past has centered on the use of StemCells:APracticalApproach pluripotential teratocarcinoma cell lines. edited by E. J. Robertson, IRL Press, These lines are readily isolated and 1987. £261547 hbk, £16/$29 pbk (zii + maintained in culture, providing a large, convenient source of material that 254 pages) 1SBN 1 85221 004 4 possesses similar developmental propResearchers in a broad range of erties to cells from the early embryo. disciplines have increasingly focused on The major advantage of such lines lies in experimental mammalian embryology to their ability to differentiate into a variety approach the complex processes in- of cell types in culture, mediated volved in early development, tissue by chemical inducers, growth factors differentiation and cell-cell interactions. or altered culture conditions, in a To a large extent this is a consequence of manner similar to their normal embryonic the development of procedures for counterparts. Exogenous DNA, when manipulating mouse eggs and embryo.s to introduced into teratocarcinoma cells via produce transgenic mice. The appeal of U-ansfection or infection, displays a pattern of expression to endobeing able to study one's favourite gene s ~ or protein in multiple tissues through genous genes in the undifferentiated and development offers a system to analyse differentiated state. Therefore, these many new aspects of gone expression cells are a valuable experimental tool for and function in the context of the whole isolating and analysing the expression of developmentally regulated genes. Unanimal.
of this book as it gives a succinct but " . , , , , , / thorough explanation of classical mutagenesis and repair systems and explains how these are used in breeding programrues. The in vitro mutagenesis methods are also well covered, although cassette mutagenesis and the use of dut-uegstrains do not appear. There is a timely chapter on microbial strain improvements, which it is good to see sharing the same book with the chapters on recombinant DNA and in vitro mutagenesis. Both protein engineering and hybrid antibiotics round off what is an excellent chapter. Other chapters include modern methods of vaccine development and production, the use of RFLP in genetic fingerprinting and disease diagnosis, and a whole chapter on plant technology. The book ends with a chapter on environmental biotechnology which strangely misses out the long runningbattle over the deliberate release of/ce- bacteria. A section on deliberate release would be most useful in an expanded future volume, since this area is going to be not only a controversial one but one where large monetary returns will be made. Apart from minor quibbles with the text, such as no mentmn of pulsed field gel electrophoresis, field inversion gel electxophoresis or chromosome jumping, and the questionable statement that 'yeast glycosylate proteins in a manner similar to mammalian cells', this is an excellent book. It is sad that the figures in many cases leave a lot to be desired.
JOHN" WARD
Department of Bmchemislry. U~iversity College London, Gower Street, London, WCIE 6BT. UK.
fortunately, very few of the teratocarcinoma lines are able, when returned to a proper embryonic environment, to differentiate reproducibly in a manner that generates chimeric animals with a substantial contribution from the teratocarcinoma cells in germ-line and somatic tissues. Recently, many of the problems encountered with teratocarcinoma cells have been circumvented with the development of techniques for the derivation, culture and manipulation of embryonic stem cells. These stem cell lines have all the advantages of the teratocarcinoma cells, but in atilt, ion, they reproducibly contribute to the germ line of chimeric mice, providing an alternative method to microinjection for the production of transgenic mice. This is a critical property because the embryonic stem cells can be subjected to transfection or selection to isolate clones that have specific genetic alterations or patterns of