18. 



L. W. ROBERTS. 1976. CYTODIFFERENTIATION IN PLANTS, xylogenesis as a model 



system 



Cambridge Univ. Press, Cambridge, etc. Developmental and Cell Biology Series vol. 2. 



XIV, 160 pp., 34 figs., 3 tabs., combined taxonomic and subject indexes. £ 8.00 



Contents: 1. Cytodifferentiation in perspective; 2. Historical survey of xylem differen- 

 tiation studies; 3. Hormones in primary xylem differentiation; 4. Role of the cell cycle; 

 5. Regulation of secondary xylem differentiation; 6. Ultrastructural studies of differ- 

 entiating xylem elements; 7. Nutritional factors; 8. Environmental influences; 9. 

 Chemical inhibitors and cytodifferentiation; 10. Epilogue 



This monograph by a distinguished authority examines the differentiation of one parti- 

 cular cell type from as many angles as possible, with the emphasis on the cell biology of 

 the process. The treatment is critical but not exhaustive; most of the attention goes to 

 internal control mechanisms as against environmental factors, which are probably not 

 critical variables. Because the author places his subject in the broad perspective of devel- 

 opmental biology as a unified science, the book will be read with interest by zoologists. 



The table of contents speaks for itself. The bibliography numbers over 600 titles and 

 goes into early 1974. The Epilogue is concluded by a 5-page section highlighting some 

 recent developments, complete with references going into 1975. 



The book is well produced and illustrated mainly with very good photographs from 

 many different primary sources. 



19. 



H. SMITH. 1975. PHYTOCHROME AND PHOTOMORPHOGENESIS, an introduction to 



the photocontrol of plant development 



McGraw-Hill, London. XVI, 235 pp., 107 figs., 23 tabs. £7.95, $22.00, DM45.20 



Although this book was pubUshed more than two years ago we briefly mention it for 

 the benefit of our readers. The book has been well received in the scientific press. The 

 term photomorphogenesis is taken in a narrow sense, excluding phototropism and photo- 

 periodism. The former subject is nevertheless treated in some detail; the latter is not 

 covered, and the reader is referred to a companion volume by Vince-Price ( 1 975), which was 

 reviewed in Gen. Embryol. Inform. Serv. 16, 2, 1976. 



20. 



J. H. M. THORNLEY. 1976. MATHEMATICAL MODELS IN PLANT PHYSIOLOGY, a 



quantitative approach to problems in plant and crop physiology 



Academic Press, London, etc. XIV, 318 pp., 81 figs., 11 tabs., subject index. £ 9.80, 



$ 24.25 



This book is concerned largely with quantitative approaches to plant growth and devel- 

 opment, a fact which is not clearly brought out in the title. The author has himself contri- 

 buted greatly to this area, as is apparent from the bibliographies. 



The author presents his "modelling philosophy" in the introductory chapter. 

 Chapters 10-13, together occupying about a quarter of the book, are of most interest to our 

 readers. They are entitled Development and senescence, a new growth equation; Unres- 

 tricted vegetative plant growth, with senescence and transport; A biochemical switch, 

 development, and flower initiation; and Primordial initiation and phyllotaxis. The model 

 developed in the latter chapter uses polar coordinates and a morphogen and is related to 

 Turing's early approach. Ch. 14 deals largely with the external form of plants and delibe- 

 rately ignores temporal growth patterns as being at present too difficult. 



The book has a very useful glossary. 



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