NUTRITION RESEARCH, Vol. 5, pp. 447-449, 1985 0271-5317/85 $3.00 + .00 Printed in the USA. Copyright (c) 1985 Pergamon Press Ltd. All rights reserved.

BOOK REVIEWS

Tracers in Metabolic Research: Radioisotope and Stable Isotope/ Mass Spectrometry Methoas. Ku~KT R. WOLFE. Alan R. Liss, New York, pp 300, $56.00, 1984.

One of the problems facing the novice in starting stable isotope experilments, after he has; obtained the necessary mass spectrometers, is how to actua!Iyd~ the experiment. The problem is that the experimental details in most papers in this area really do not provide enough information to permilt a begiTnner tesuccessfully execute an experiment, and the costs of the isotopes ~n~o~ved tend to d~scourage experiments aimed at methodology. Working with ~sotopes is tricky, and the p i t fa l l s are usually not described in the "methods" sectilon ofresearch papers. I t is this problem that Dr Wolfe has addressed iln this we11-written book.

Most of myexperience has been with 15N and quadropole isotope ratio mass spectrometry. We recently acquired a nucleide isotope ratio spectrometer and decided to d'o some studies with I- ~3C leucine and deuterated glucose. For this, we need~dl to know how to workup Z3C C02 and glucose samples for isotope analysis. Dr Wolfe has supplied a series of workbook procedures which are straightforwar4 and easy to follow. Such detailed knowledge can only be obtained from one's own.work, so most of the examples are necessarily drawn from Dr WOlfe's extensi]ve work in this area. This is helpful because he can give real numbers, which indicate the range of values and the precision that can be expected. There is a~so a clear, concise discussion of the theory of isotope methodology. The target audience for this book are investigators who actually want to do experiments and for them, this book gives the recipes. We use i t as a laboratory manual.

T.P. Stein, Ph.D. Professor of Surgery (Research) School of Osteopathic Medicine University of Medicine and Dentistry

of New Jersey Camden, NJ 08103

Annual ReviewsofNutriltilon. WILLIAM J DARBY, HARRY P. BROQUIST and ROBERT E.' OLSON, Edhtors, :oTumes 2 andl 3. Annual Reviews, Palo Alto, California, pp 454 and 466, 1982 andl 1983, $25 and $30 respectively.

This series fu l f i !~s the need for authoritative reviews of topical subjects in the nutri t ional sciences. The extent to which this objective is achi]eved by each volume depends upon the selection of t i t l es and authors and the efforts of the ~atter. As might be expected, there is an enormous variation in the quality of contributions included in the two volumes.

:olume 2 opens with an interesting personal reflection on cl inical investigations in nutriltion by WILLIAM BEAN. His description of the events

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448 BOOK REV IEW

during the era 1930-1960 when many of the recent 'discoveries' were made would appeal to those younger readers who were not around at that time. There are good sections on: the physiological control of nutrient intake, amino acid imbalance and hepatic encephalopathy, absorption and transport of cobalamin, nutritional' and metabolic problems arising during total parenteral nutr i t ion, and iatrogenic nutr#tional deficiency other than that seen during parenteral nutr i t ion.

Volume 3 begins w#th a ~escription of historical diets devised for the management of pat~ens wi]th asthma and those advocated for sexual pleasures. I t is unfortunate that the chapter does not refer to the extensive work in this area iln the other land~ : Egypt, China and India. There are useful reviews on selene#um, carnitCne, bioavai labi l i ty of trace elements, ligands for copper a ~ zinc, and~enctemic goitre.

The o:erall qua!i~ty of the volumes suffers due to very weak contributions inc!ude~ in the publi.cat~ons. Some take a very lop-sided view of the topic, describing only experilmental animal work which may have l i t t l e relevance to human si tuat ion. A case i]n point is the otherwise satisfactory review of nutr i t ion an~ #mmu~#ty'by HANSEN and! coworkers. There is l i t t l e evidence that these findings iln: a genet~caTly selected inbred strain of mouse can be applied to man. In fact, #nseveral aspects of the immune response, one finds diametrically opposite observations in man and mouse. HAHN's description of development of ~#p~Cmetabolism is again confined to rodent work and there are good reasons to ~#sceunt extrapolation to man. Some contributors have done l i t t l e work themselves ilnthe area which they reviewed; for example, MUNRO and colleagues ~#scuss the placenta in nutr i t ion and cite only one reference to their ownwork #n thiTs area. STALLSONS' review of ischemic heart disease and diet is very su:perfi]cial and biased.

The editors would needl to be more discrete in their choice of contributors and use a heavy hand bef~)re the manuscripts are allowed to be printed.

Applied~NutritiOnfOm Hea!thProfessions: Basic Nutrition. JOHN J.B. ANDERSON, Editor. {ealth sci.ences Consortium, Universilty of north Carolina, Chapel H i l l . pp 307, 1982.

Thils neat cQmp~atiQn of self-instructional exercises was prepared with the objectilve of ilntrodUc#ng the reader to the main themes of recommended dietary allowances, relationship of malnutrition to disease, major food groups, indications of nutr i t ion and malnutrition, and the role of diet i t ians. Each section prov~dles a bmilef ~ntredUction to the topic, followed by review questions an~ answers, Thils publication would be useful for both students and teachers in many hea~th professilons.

Nutrition and the Deve!opmemt of the Child. R, RAJALAKSHMI, Editor. Department of Biochemi.stry, M.S. unlversity of Baroda, Baroda, India. pp 440, 1982.

The book is a compilation of manuscripts based on presentations given at an internati~ona! symposium on the topic. The qual i ty of material ranges f~om f a i r to goOeY, The production values are very poor. Much of the material is datec~ and ils already avai lable in other reviews and proceedings volumes.