95. 



J. C. HOUCK, ed. 1976. CHALONES 



North-Holland, Amsterdam, etc.; American Elsevier, New York. XIV, 510 pp., 68 figs., 



53 tabs., subject index. Dfl. 165.00, $ 63.50 



Chalones are tissue-specific inhibitors of cell division. Although the chalone concept 

 has recently become much more respectable than it used to be, it is still wrought with 

 great difficulties of methodology and interpretation. It is therefore fortunate that this 

 book, the first to be devoted entirely to chalones apart from symposium reports, is 

 pervaded by a critical spirit and a thorough awareness of methodological pitfalls. 



The 22 chapters are written by an international group of specialists. They differ widely 

 in length and there is sometimes considerable overlap between them. Almost all of the 

 presently known or suspected chalones have their own chapter. There is a brief chapter 

 on chalones and organogenesis, and several chapters on chalones and cancer. In addition, 

 a number of general chapters are interesting from the point of view of cell proliferation 

 and growth regulation per se, quite apart from chalones. 



The book is well produced and illustrated. It is concluded by a comprehensive and 

 up-to-date bibliography of chalone Uterature (some 280 titles) arranged by tissue and 

 chronologically. The subject index is surprisingly inadequate. 



96. 



J. REINERT and H. HOLTZER, eds. 1975. CELL CYCLE AND CELL DIFFERENTIA- 

 TION 



Springer, Berlin, etc. Results and Problems in Cell Differentiation Vol. 7. XII, 331 pp., 

 92 figs., 8 tabs., subject index. DM 69.00. $ 29.70 



Contributors: Borun, Braun, Dienstman, Gurdon, Holtzer, Hunt, King, Lawrence, 

 Meins, Nelson, Pfeiffer, Phelps, Selitrennikoff, Shapiro, Siegel, Tsanev, Weintraub, 

 Wood 



This is a collection of excellent reviews on a topical subject still characterized by 

 rather divergent views. The editors have chosen not to evade controversy: of the 13 

 chapters about one third (on myogenesis, erythrocyte differentiation, neurogenesis, and 

 neuronal specificity) defend the thesis of a critical dependence of differentiation on the 

 cell cycle, while the remainder are more equivocal or even sceptical. Among the cell types 

 considered in this latter category are amphibian embryos, insect generative and somatic 

 cells, the bacterium Caulobacter, Neurospora, and several types of plant cells. There are 

 also chapters on liver regeneration and on the possible functions of histones. 



The bibhographies of most chapters run up to 1973, while a few go into 1974. The 

 book is very well produced and illustrated. 



97. 



R. ROHRBACH. 1975. ZUR STEUERUNG DER ZELLPROLIFERATION DURCH 

 CHALONE, experimentelle Untersuchungen an Epidermis-Hyperplasien, (The regulation 

 of cell proliferation by chalones, experimental investigations on epidermal hyperplasia) 

 Fischer, Stuttgart. VeroffentUchungen aus der Pathologic. Heft 99. X, 68 pp., 25 figs., 

 7 tabs., subject index. English Summary (2 pp.). DM 34.00 (paper) 



Proliferation (thymidine incorporation, mitoric rate and DNA content) of "hairless" 

 mouse epidermis treated in various ways is regulated by probably two water-soluble 

 chalones, one actm" on mitosis and one on DNA synthesis. 



207 



