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Moisissures toxiques dans l'alimentation
J. storeti Prod. Res. 1976, Vol. 12, p. 119. Pergamon Press. Printed in Great Britain.
BOOK REVIEW Moisissures Toxiques dans L’alimentation. CLAUDE MOREAU. Masson et Cie.. Paris. 2nd edit., 1974, xi + 471 pp. 180 F. days of the symposium volume and the highly specialist review it is refreshing to use a book like this. Having digested his sources Dr. Moreau has written his own coherent, lucid account of toxigenesis by mould fungi backed up by a bibliography of nearly 3,000 titles from the literature up to the end of 1972. Incidently these really are titles, not the truncated references we are so often afflicted with in modern reviews, and there is a considerable advantage in having them as a single list instead of separately at the end of each chapter. Obviously this relatively short book lacks the fine detail one expects from more specialist works but it gains in that the author has been able to treat general topics separately from the specific accounts of particular mycotoxins without excessive overlap between chapters. If one is willing to cope with his very straightforward French this is as good an introduction to the subject as one is likely to find. It includes concise but well substantiated accounts of the main groups of toxigenic mould fungi from the points of view of their taxonomy, morphology, physiology, ecology, the toxins they produce and the diseases they cause. Unfortunately it is, even now, relatively expensive in this country and is therefore less likely to be bought by those who need it most. The subject is certainly worthy of study by the non-specialist. As the one time focus of attention on the aflatoxins has diffused to cover other mycotoxins it has become increasingly evident that the greatest importance of these substances is probably not the sudden catastrophe but the chronic effects of sub-acute doses, frequently on animal productivity and sometimes on human health. Detection of such effects may well depend on their recognition by practical people, for example those with responsibility for handling and storing food and fodder. The more widely basic knowledge of mycotoxins is disseminated the more likely it is that damage will be detected at an early stage. Dr. Moreau’s book provides a bridge over a substantial part of the gap between the research publication and the man that needs to know. IN THESE
G. AYERST
119
BOOK REVIEW Moisissures Toxiques dans L’alimentation. CLAUDE MOREAU. Masson et Cie.. Paris. 2nd edit., 1974, xi + 471 pp. 180 F. days of the symposium volume and the highly specialist review it is refreshing to use a book like this. Having digested his sources Dr. Moreau has written his own coherent, lucid account of toxigenesis by mould fungi backed up by a bibliography of nearly 3,000 titles from the literature up to the end of 1972. Incidently these really are titles, not the truncated references we are so often afflicted with in modern reviews, and there is a considerable advantage in having them as a single list instead of separately at the end of each chapter. Obviously this relatively short book lacks the fine detail one expects from more specialist works but it gains in that the author has been able to treat general topics separately from the specific accounts of particular mycotoxins without excessive overlap between chapters. If one is willing to cope with his very straightforward French this is as good an introduction to the subject as one is likely to find. It includes concise but well substantiated accounts of the main groups of toxigenic mould fungi from the points of view of their taxonomy, morphology, physiology, ecology, the toxins they produce and the diseases they cause. Unfortunately it is, even now, relatively expensive in this country and is therefore less likely to be bought by those who need it most. The subject is certainly worthy of study by the non-specialist. As the one time focus of attention on the aflatoxins has diffused to cover other mycotoxins it has become increasingly evident that the greatest importance of these substances is probably not the sudden catastrophe but the chronic effects of sub-acute doses, frequently on animal productivity and sometimes on human health. Detection of such effects may well depend on their recognition by practical people, for example those with responsibility for handling and storing food and fodder. The more widely basic knowledge of mycotoxins is disseminated the more likely it is that damage will be detected at an early stage. Dr. Moreau’s book provides a bridge over a substantial part of the gap between the research publication and the man that needs to know. IN THESE
G. AYERST
119