Textbooks 



33. 



M. J.T.FITZGERALD. 1978. HUMAN EMBRYOLOGY: a regional approach 



Harper & Row, Hagerstown. XVI, 205 pp., 165 figs., 4 tabs., subject index 



The aim of this text is to provide beginning medical students with just 

 enough, but sufficiently clear information on normal human development, 

 along with a brief treatment of the most common malformations. The format is 

 unusual in that, after the first seven chapters dealing with early embryol- 

 ogy, later development is treated on a regional basis, in parallel with the 

 students' course in gross anatomy. Thus, from ch.8 onwards separate chapters 

 treat the main body regions and the limbs, while a final chapter deals with 

 the full-term placenta and fetal and neonatal circulation. The introductory 

 chapter has sections on growth and differentiation, mitosis and meiosis, 

 cell death, and the causes of congenital malformations. 



Although not all processes are illustrated, and some only diagramraatically , 

 the illustrations are numerous and of good quality. The line drawings are 

 partly original and partly adapted from various sources, and are supplement- 

 ed by good micrographs. The nine reconstructions of three- and 14-soraite 

 embryos at the end of ch.6 are a good visual aid to the understanding of the 

 subsequent regional treatment. Each chapter has a good reading list, includ- 

 ing some of the experimental literature, and the book is concluded by a glos- 

 sary. 



34. 



R.G.HARRISON. 1978. CLINICAL EMBRYOLOGY 



Academic Press, London, etc. Monographs for Students of Medicine. VII, 250 pp. 



122 figs., subject index. £ 4.80, $ 9.35 (paper) 



The author of this text claims to have written an entirely new book as a 

 logical extension of his Textbook of Human Embryology of 1959. in fact, what 

 he has done is to take the old book as a basis and tack on new information 

 in an unsystematic manner. The result is an unfortunate blend of fairly re- 

 cent and very old material. 



Many sections taken over from the old book are unbelievably dated (e.g. 

 the greater part of the Introduction and the final chapter on regeneration) . 

 What is new are the sections called Clinical Relationships which have been 

 added to almost all chapters, but the original old literature of those chap- 

 ters has simply been retained. 



The illustrations are largely those of the old book, but less well repro- 

 duced as far as the half-tones are concerned. 



Monographs 



35. 



M.DVORAK. 1978. THE DIFFERENTIATION OF RAT OVA DURING CLEAVAGE 



Springer, Berlin, etc. Advan. Anat. Embryol. Cell Biol, vol.55, 2. 131 pp., 



62 figs., subject index. DM 64.00, $ 32.00 (paper) 



Synthesis of descriptive studies carried out with four other investiga- 

 tors over almost a decade, on over 2,500 ova; electron microscopy, cyto- 

 chemistry and ultracytochemistry; stage-wise morphological description from 

 1-cell stage to late blastocyst; surface coats and cell contacts; nucleus 

 and protein synthesis; mitochondria; lysosomes; stored materials; no discus- 

 sion of cell determination; good electron micrographs; extensive bibliog- 

 raphy. 



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