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Mitochondria 1983. Nucleo-mitochondrial interactions
0300-9629/84 $3.00 + 0.00 Pergamon Press Ltd
Camp. Biochem. Physiol. Vol. 79A, No. 3, pp. 495497, 1984 Printed in Great Britain
BOOK REVIEWS Handbook of Physiology. A critical, comprehensive presentation of pbysiologlcal knowledge and concepts. Section 1. The nervous system. Volume II, Motor control--Section
editors JOHN M. BRO~KHARTand VERNONB. MOUNTCASTLE. Volume editor VERNONB. BROOKS.Executive editor S’TEPHEN R. GEZ~ER.Part 1, 733 pp. + 34 pp. index, 1981. Part 2, 747 pp. + 34 pp. index, 1981. ~blished for The American Physiological Society by Williams & Wilkins, Baltimore, USA. Parts 1 and 2 S245. These two volumes of 1500 pages provide an excellent detailed summary of the state of the subject. The main section headings are as follows: Part 1: History of Motor control; Bones, Muscle and Transmitters; Reflexes, Neural Organization and Control Systems; Descending Control Systems. Part 2: Cerebellum and Basal Ganglia; Cerebral Control Mechanisms: Rhythmical Movements and their Voluntary Engagement; Visuomotor Control; Behavioural Motor Performance. The editors are to be congratulated on having got 44 leading workers in the subject to write the 33 chapters. In general, if you want to know about Motor Control and it is known, then it most probably will be described here. However, it may be difficult to find. Although the Index is quite good, it is not exhaustive. The general layout of the volume is still in the 1920 tradition and several improvements could be made. It would help if the chapter subsections were numbered so that the reader can rapidly see in the text where he is and where to find the next piece. The use of bold print, summary boxes, lists of new developments, tables of discoveries and authors, lists of solved and unsolved problems, would make it much easier for the reader to find things and understand what is going on. There is still the assumption that all the reader has to do is sit down and read the chapter carefully a couple of times and all will be revealed. The chapters do have a summary to help orientate the reader and the diagrams and bibliographies are excellent. -These two volumes carry on the excellent tradition of the first edition (195960) and will certainly be the current source for an advanced detailed understanding of the functioning and control of the Motor System. Mitochondria
1983.
Nucleu-mitochondrial
interactions-
edited by R. J. SCHWEYEN, K. WOLFand F. KAUDEWITZ. 648 pp. 1983. Walter de Gruyter. Berlin. DM 240. The study of the dual system on encoding based on nuclear DNA and mtDNA, the interaction of the translation products of cytoplasmic and mitochondrial translation, and the detailed analysis of nuclear and mitochondrial genes has led to considerable increase in our understanding of the genesis of mitochondria. The complete DNA sequence is available for the human mitochondrial genome, and also that for the mouse, cow and rat. The genes on the mammalian mitochondrial genome are tightly packed and do not show a single intron. They lie on both DNA strands and transc~ption is complete and symmetrical from a limited number of promoters. The situation differs in plant and fungi and there is considerable diversity. The mitochondrial DNA vary in size. Insects, animals and man have a mitochondrial genome of 1418 kb. In the higher plants there can be a range of 20&2700 kb. Mitochondria also use their own variation of the genetic 495
code: UGA specifies tryptophan. Mammals decode AGA(G) as “stop” whilst insects decode it as “serine”. This divergence must have developed 680 million years ago. This volume based on a conference held in Germany in July 1983 discusses all these points and in addition the nuclear control of mitochondrial function, and the import of proteins into mitochond~a. It provides a very useful detailed clear summary of the major developments in nuclear mitochondrial interactions. and function in proteins and nucleic acids. CIBA Foundation Symposium 93, 357 pp. 1983. Pitman, London. f25.00.
Mobility
Proteins are fluctuating systems capable of large seemingly random excursions from the equilibrium conformation. When bound to a ligand then the mobile region of the enzyme becomes more ordered. The enzyme’s initial mobility allows access to internal sites, change in substrate structure during the reaction, and reduces the observed binding constant of the substrate and product to the enzyme by decreasing entropy. Contractile proteins in muscles and cells are the driving force in locomotion and the rules that control their conformational changes are not yet fully understood but are discussed in this volume. Tobacco Mosaic Virus during its growth shows flexible movement of the amino acids, making a trap door through which the RNA enters, and closes when the nucleic acid is in position. The functions of transfer RNA and of DNA indicate that the molecules have internal mobilities that are associated with their function, and these mobilities can be studied using pulsed Fourier transform NMR and EPR. Each chapter of the book is followed by an edited discussion between the participants. This volume lives up to the high reputation of its predecessors in the series. Prostacyclin, thromhoxane and leokotrienes-edited by S. MONCADA,British Medical Bulletin Vol. 39, pp. 209-300. 1983. Published for British Council by Churchill Livingstone, London. $20.00. The 20-carbon poly-unsaturated fatty acid arachidonic acid gives rise to a family of important natural compounds, the Eicosanoids. The prostaglandins (PGs) are hairpin-like structures with a cycle-pentane ring between the two chains. Prostacyclin has a double ring structure, thromboxane TXA2 has an oxane ring, whilst the oxygenation of arachidonic acid via the lipooxygenase pathway leads to the leukotrienes. The biosynthesis of PGs is inhibited by aspirin. PGs, TXA2 and prostacyclin are involved in platelet aggregation, blood vessel wall protection and platelet-vessel wall interaction. The leukotrienes are involved in the slow reaction substance of anaphylaxis (SRS-A). They are involved in chronic inflammato~ reactions and asthma. The series of papers presented in this volume are well written and give a clear idea of the present state of the research front on these important substances. They are wet1 up to the high standard expected by readers of the British Medical
Bulletin.
Leukotrienes and prostacycB&ited by F. BERTI, G. FOLCOand G. P. VELO.Nato ASI Series A: Life Sciences
Camp. Biochem. Physiol. Vol. 79A, No. 3, pp. 495497, 1984 Printed in Great Britain
BOOK REVIEWS Handbook of Physiology. A critical, comprehensive presentation of pbysiologlcal knowledge and concepts. Section 1. The nervous system. Volume II, Motor control--Section
editors JOHN M. BRO~KHARTand VERNONB. MOUNTCASTLE. Volume editor VERNONB. BROOKS.Executive editor S’TEPHEN R. GEZ~ER.Part 1, 733 pp. + 34 pp. index, 1981. Part 2, 747 pp. + 34 pp. index, 1981. ~blished for The American Physiological Society by Williams & Wilkins, Baltimore, USA. Parts 1 and 2 S245. These two volumes of 1500 pages provide an excellent detailed summary of the state of the subject. The main section headings are as follows: Part 1: History of Motor control; Bones, Muscle and Transmitters; Reflexes, Neural Organization and Control Systems; Descending Control Systems. Part 2: Cerebellum and Basal Ganglia; Cerebral Control Mechanisms: Rhythmical Movements and their Voluntary Engagement; Visuomotor Control; Behavioural Motor Performance. The editors are to be congratulated on having got 44 leading workers in the subject to write the 33 chapters. In general, if you want to know about Motor Control and it is known, then it most probably will be described here. However, it may be difficult to find. Although the Index is quite good, it is not exhaustive. The general layout of the volume is still in the 1920 tradition and several improvements could be made. It would help if the chapter subsections were numbered so that the reader can rapidly see in the text where he is and where to find the next piece. The use of bold print, summary boxes, lists of new developments, tables of discoveries and authors, lists of solved and unsolved problems, would make it much easier for the reader to find things and understand what is going on. There is still the assumption that all the reader has to do is sit down and read the chapter carefully a couple of times and all will be revealed. The chapters do have a summary to help orientate the reader and the diagrams and bibliographies are excellent. -These two volumes carry on the excellent tradition of the first edition (195960) and will certainly be the current source for an advanced detailed understanding of the functioning and control of the Motor System. Mitochondria
1983.
Nucleu-mitochondrial
interactions-
edited by R. J. SCHWEYEN, K. WOLFand F. KAUDEWITZ. 648 pp. 1983. Walter de Gruyter. Berlin. DM 240. The study of the dual system on encoding based on nuclear DNA and mtDNA, the interaction of the translation products of cytoplasmic and mitochondrial translation, and the detailed analysis of nuclear and mitochondrial genes has led to considerable increase in our understanding of the genesis of mitochondria. The complete DNA sequence is available for the human mitochondrial genome, and also that for the mouse, cow and rat. The genes on the mammalian mitochondrial genome are tightly packed and do not show a single intron. They lie on both DNA strands and transc~ption is complete and symmetrical from a limited number of promoters. The situation differs in plant and fungi and there is considerable diversity. The mitochondrial DNA vary in size. Insects, animals and man have a mitochondrial genome of 1418 kb. In the higher plants there can be a range of 20&2700 kb. Mitochondria also use their own variation of the genetic 495
code: UGA specifies tryptophan. Mammals decode AGA(G) as “stop” whilst insects decode it as “serine”. This divergence must have developed 680 million years ago. This volume based on a conference held in Germany in July 1983 discusses all these points and in addition the nuclear control of mitochondrial function, and the import of proteins into mitochond~a. It provides a very useful detailed clear summary of the major developments in nuclear mitochondrial interactions. and function in proteins and nucleic acids. CIBA Foundation Symposium 93, 357 pp. 1983. Pitman, London. f25.00.
Mobility
Proteins are fluctuating systems capable of large seemingly random excursions from the equilibrium conformation. When bound to a ligand then the mobile region of the enzyme becomes more ordered. The enzyme’s initial mobility allows access to internal sites, change in substrate structure during the reaction, and reduces the observed binding constant of the substrate and product to the enzyme by decreasing entropy. Contractile proteins in muscles and cells are the driving force in locomotion and the rules that control their conformational changes are not yet fully understood but are discussed in this volume. Tobacco Mosaic Virus during its growth shows flexible movement of the amino acids, making a trap door through which the RNA enters, and closes when the nucleic acid is in position. The functions of transfer RNA and of DNA indicate that the molecules have internal mobilities that are associated with their function, and these mobilities can be studied using pulsed Fourier transform NMR and EPR. Each chapter of the book is followed by an edited discussion between the participants. This volume lives up to the high reputation of its predecessors in the series. Prostacyclin, thromhoxane and leokotrienes-edited by S. MONCADA,British Medical Bulletin Vol. 39, pp. 209-300. 1983. Published for British Council by Churchill Livingstone, London. $20.00. The 20-carbon poly-unsaturated fatty acid arachidonic acid gives rise to a family of important natural compounds, the Eicosanoids. The prostaglandins (PGs) are hairpin-like structures with a cycle-pentane ring between the two chains. Prostacyclin has a double ring structure, thromboxane TXA2 has an oxane ring, whilst the oxygenation of arachidonic acid via the lipooxygenase pathway leads to the leukotrienes. The biosynthesis of PGs is inhibited by aspirin. PGs, TXA2 and prostacyclin are involved in platelet aggregation, blood vessel wall protection and platelet-vessel wall interaction. The leukotrienes are involved in the slow reaction substance of anaphylaxis (SRS-A). They are involved in chronic inflammato~ reactions and asthma. The series of papers presented in this volume are well written and give a clear idea of the present state of the research front on these important substances. They are wet1 up to the high standard expected by readers of the British Medical
Bulletin.
Leukotrienes and prostacycB&ited by F. BERTI, G. FOLCOand G. P. VELO.Nato ASI Series A: Life Sciences