3. 



V.SCHWARTZ. 1973. VERGLEICHENDE ENTWICKLUNGSGESCHICHTE DER 



HERE, ein kurzes Lehrbuch 



rhieme, Stuttgart. V1II,4 14 pp., 289 figs., combined subject and taxonomic index. 



DM 16.80 (paper) 



This concise textbook can be very useful not only for students but also for researchers, 

 considering the surprising lack of comparative-embryological knowledge one often en- 

 counters. It is amazing that no modern textbooks of this kind exist in English, and an 

 English translation would certainly find a market. 



The book bears the mark of careful consideration of what to select from this vast area. 

 Its organization is original and the author has not shunned the presentation of new 

 viewpoints wherever he deemed it necessary. A special feature is the inclusion of a brief 

 chapter on cell division and differentiation in Protozoans. The cautious phylogenetic 

 interpretations are based on Remane's trimerism hypothesis. 



The general part (112 pp.) deals in concise form with the following subjects: the 

 developmental programme, nucleus and cytoplasm, cellular differentiation (followed by 

 the chapter on Protozoans mentioned above), the germ line, embryogenesis, blastogenesis 

 (asexual reproduction), special aspects of the latter two processes, and the evolution of 

 basic body form. Data from developmental physiology are adduced wherever necessary. 



The interlude which follows (17 pp.) deals with the phylogenetic interpretation of 

 embryonic and larval stages. Then follows the special part, arranged as follows: Porifera, 

 Coele'nterata, Bilateria - Protostomia, and Bilateria - Deuterostomia. In the section on 

 prostomians the normal systematic order is abandoned, partly because of the require- 

 ments of the underlying trimerism hypothesis, and partly because the criteria of ordering 

 are based on ontogenetic stages, not on the adult forms. 



The book is profusely illustrated with excellent line drawings, all redrawn and 

 simplified if necessary. The selective bibliography is adequate for students but the 

 researcher who uses the book would require some more literature. The book is well 

 produced and surprisingly cheap. 



4. 



F.SEIDEL. 1972. ENTWICKLUNGSPHYSIOLOGIE DER TIERE. I. Ei und Furchung 



2nd. ed. 



de Gruyter, Berlin, etc. Sammlung Goschen Band 7162. 234 pp., 51 figs., author and 



subject indexes. DM 14.80 (paper) 



This is the second edition of a short text which first appeared 20 years ago. (Part II is 

 not yet available for review.) Although the major subdivisions have been retained, the 

 book has been considerably expanded; beside a judicious selection from the classical data 

 it also treats the most important recent experimental and molecular advances. The text is 

 compact but well written and clearly organized (however, the style is personal and 

 typically German, and might present difficulties to non-German readers). Because the 

 author always starts from observations and experiments, the student gets a good impres- 

 sion of the characteristic working methods of the developmental biologist. At the same 

 time, much care is devoted to the definition of concepts, and the vast gaps in our 

 knowledge are pointed out. 



The approach in part I is general rather than comparative. The main chapters con- 

 secutively deal with the localization of developmental factors in the egg nucleus; the 

 structure and morphogenetic properties of the egg cytoplasm; nucleo-cytoplasmic interac- 

 tions in the uncleaved and cleaving egg; and the reaction of the egg and early embryo to 

 external influences (including fertilization and parthenogenesis). A final chapter deals 

 with the more theoretical aspects of egg organization (e.g. regulation, egg types, axial 

 organization, symmetry and asymmetry). This thoughtful chapter is opened by a section 

 on the methodology of developmental physiology, and also devotes attention to the 

 history of important present-day concepts. It could be read with profit by advanced 

 students and active researchers. 



The book is illustrated with very good original line drawings. Although authors' names 

 are mentioned in the text, there are no literature references in part I (there will be a list 

 of books and review articles in part II). The book is concluded by a very useful glossary. 



170 



