Biology of Root Formation and Development Altman, Arie, and Yoav Waisel, 1997. ISBN 0-30645706-7 (cloth US$125.00) 376 pp. Plenum Publishing Corporation, 233 Spring Street, New York, New York 10013-1578.
- These days there are numerotps international meetings of highly specialized topics, and many times, an edited volume of articles results from such gatherings. The problem is that it is difficult to determine the value of the books that result from these meetings because it is uncertain that they were peer-reviewed.Biology of Root Formation and Development falls into the above category. This book is a collection of papers that were presented at the Second International Symposium on the Biology of Root Formation and Development that was held in Jerusalem in June 1996. There are 78 contributions in the book that are either longer papers (about 6 - 7 pages) or short papers (i.e., abstracts). The topics are broad and include molecular biology, structural biology, plant physiology, and ecology. Mathematical and theoretical modeling also are discussed in some of the presentations.
I found that even the regular papers were far shorter than most good scientific papers so that a detailed presentation of the status of a field could not be adequately presented. The caliber of illustrative material also was not the best. While there were subject and species indices, an author index would have been helpful to the reader. In terms of content, as with most such volumes, the quality of papers was mixed. However, if one were interested in learning about the current trends in root biology, this would be a good text to read. The book is appropriate for acquisition by university libraries and may appeal to graduate students and faculty interested in the field of root biology. - John Z. Kiss, Department of Botany, Miami University, Oxford OH 45056
The Shoot Apical Meristem: Its Growth and Development Lyndon, Robert F., 1998. ISBN 0521-40457-6 (cloth US $90.00) 277 pp. Cambridge University Press, 40 W. 20th St., New York, NY 10011-4211.
- The stated aim of the book is to try to answer "what does the shoot apex do and how does it do it." Lyndon does not attempt a comprehensive coverage of the literature, focusing rather on what he considers "key references," referring readers to reviews for most of the pre- 1 970 research and admitting that no book can keep up with the fast moving field of molecular biology/ mutants. Nevertheless, Lyndon includes many references as recent as 1996 in his chapters on the transition to flowering and the effect of various mutants on floral development. The 34 pages of cited literature include more than 75 papers with Lyndon and/or D. Francis as author or co-authors, many from Bemier's group in Liège, and from Nougarède's laboratory in Paris. The biophysical approach of Paul Green is well represented also by 20 cited papers from the last 20 years.
Various aspects of the apical meristem are described. These include patterns within the apex of cell heterogeneity and growth, histochemical and cell-division differences, and changes in orientation of microtubules as new leaves develop. Line drawings, graphs, a few microphotographs, and a particularly impressive series of scanning electron micrographs of Silene and Pisum apices illustrate these changes.
Despite the wealth of descriptive detail presented, the hope seems still unsatisfied that one or more of the lines of investigation will lead to a causal answer to "how does the shoot apex do what it does." An often repeated comment of Lyndon's is that although some hormone or other chemical may possibly be controlling some activity of the meristem, we do not currently have evidence for such control. Even Green's strong advocacy of biophysical, as contrasted to biochemical, controls is based on temporal association of changes in microtubular or microfibril orientation with developmental events. Lyndon points out that the association may not be causal and, in fact, he cites recent evidence from Arabidopsis mutants showing normal development of primordia despite random arrangement of microtubules.
In summary, this is a well produced book, with a good summary of the 1996 state of knowledge of "what the shoot apical meristem does". Despite the intensive research, so well summarized by Lyndon, we will have to wait longer to find out what controls all the growth and differentiation going on in the shoot apical meristem and its most recently formed leaf primordia. - William P. Jacobs, Molecular Biology Department, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ 08542
Subcellular Biochemistry. Vol. 29. Plant-Microbe Interactions Biswas, B.B., and H.K. Das, eds., 1998. ISBN 0-306-45678-8 (cloth US$129.50) 440 pp. Plenum Publishing Corporation,233 Spring Street, New York, New York 10013-1578. - The 13 chapters of this volume-the 29th in its series and the work of 31 authors-range from developmental and metabolic adaptations during symbiosis between legume hosts and rhizobia to oligosaccharide elicitors in host-pathogen interactions. The editors have expertly arranged the volume around four themes: the concept of symbiosis; disease and plant resistance to bacteria, viruses, and fungi; tumor induction by agrobacteria; and the role of oligosaccharide elicitors in host pathogen interactions and signal transduction.
'Me first three chapters deal with the relationships between Rhizobium and legume hosts and the development of root nodules. The first chapter deals with the development and metabolic relationships between legume hosts and rhizobia while chapter two elaborates on the production of signal molecules and their role in modulation. The rhizobial lipochitin-oligopolysaccharide (LCO) signal molecules are perceived by plants on the molecular level; while a lot of study remains to be done this chapter pulls together much what is known about the subject. Chapter three discusses the importance of microbial cell surface polysaccharides to the establishment of a Rhizobium-legume symbiosis. The production of exopolysaccharides by Rhizobium has much to do with the establishment, or nonestablishment, of a symbiotic relationship between Rhizobium and root.
Chapter four, still exploring symbiotic relationships resulting in nitrogen fixation, examines the relationship between Sesbania rostrata and Azorhizobium caulinodans in which infection by the latter results in the formation of stem nodules. In the Sesbania-Azorhizobium interactions, genes from both individuals play a role in development of stem nodules.
Symbiotic relationships between Frankia and actinorhizal plants are explored in chapter 5. This is a valuable chapter because it emphasizes that not all nitrogen fixation occurs due to the association of roots with Rhizobium, although I think that most readers of the book would already be well aware of this fact.
Chapters 6 to 10 deal with disease and resistance of plants against viruses, bacteria, and fungi, and also discuss genetic engineering to contain disease. Chapter 6 discusses strategies for engineering plants for resistance to bacterial and fungal disease. Sections in this chapter deal with antifungal proteins, phytoalexins, simulation of hypersensitive cell death, and oxidative bursts with regard to increase in H 2 0 2 concentration. Chapter 7 deals with plant-fungal interactions and plant disease, covering modes of fungal invasion, pathogenicity, virulence, and resistance of plants to disease.
Arabidopsis thaliana as a model plant to study pathogenesis by bacteria, fungi, viruses, nematodes, insects, and mycoplasma-type organisms, is discussed in chapter 8. Strategies used for engineering resistance against viral diseases using RDNA technologies are addressed in chapter 9, while chapter 10 explores the pathogenicity of Pseudomonas syringae and the production of toxins.
The third major topic of the book, Agrobacterium tumifaciens-the bacterium responsible for crown gall tumor formation in dicotyledonous plants-is covered in chapters I 1 and 12. The former chapter deals with the transfer of DNA from Agrobacterium to plant cells, while chapter 12 discusses the import of A. tumifaciens virulence proteins and transfer of DNA into the nucleus of the plant cell.
The fourth and final topic addressed, the role of oligosaccharide elicitors in host-pathogen interactions and signal transduction, is covered in chapter 13.
In this book, each chapteris capable of standing alone, so this would be an excellent text for a senior or graduate level seminar class where each chapter can be presented and discussed individually. All chapters have extensive literature cited, making it easy to find out more about the topics discussed. The authors present this text for the use of plant scientists in general and plant pathologists in particular and I think this goal has been met. This book is a must have for anyone who is seriously considering study on the topic of plant-microbe interactions. - Cynthia M. Galloway, Department of Biology, Texas A&M University-Kingsville, Kingsville, TX 78363
