Primus inter pares
2002; The Company of Biologists; Volume: 115; Issue: 15 Linguagem: Inglês
10.1242/jcs.115.15.3029
ISSN1477-9137
Autores Resumoby Bruce Alberts, Alexander Johnson, Julian Lewis, Martin Raff, Keith Roberts, Alexander Johnson, Julian Lewis, Martin Raff, Keith Roberts and Peter Walter Garland Science (2002) 1463 pages. ISBN 0-1853-4072-9 £44It perhaps behoves book reviewers to ask themselves who on earth ever reads their products. A part answer is, presumably, those whose eye is caught by a new title or by one they had previously noted and fleetingly wondered whether it might be worth forking out for. The majority, I suspect, are like those who watch Formula One motor racing: they do so not for enlightenment, or even any real interest, but because of the unfailing magnetism of the prospect of spilled blood. Of course, if the review subject is a new edition of the bible of molecular biology, few will fall into the first category, and, for the thrill-seekers, sanguinary prospects are not good - after all, the first edition topped the best-selling list in Cambridge and has continued to be a scientific best-seller ever since (admittedly Cambridge has a pretty weird clientele but you get my drift). Having thus dispensed with our readership,what is to be said about the fourth edition of Molecular Biology of the Cell? The most casual glance confirms that standards have not slipped:short sub-sections with informative headings, highlighted key words,italicised chapter summaries and diagrams of great clarity - some still recognisable from the first edition but now, inevitably, all in colour. Of course, in one sense time has caught up with Alberts et al. By revolutionising the presentation of biology they set a new standard, and now, 19 years on,there are half a dozen or more general texts, all of remarkable quality and all owing something to that first edition. So, how does this edition compare with its predecessor and with its more embryonic rivals?The most obvious difference is that it's bigger. One reason for the size of Molecular Biology of the Cell is the extensive discussion of topics that other general textbooks either omit or mention only `en passant'. As examples, two pages are devoted to explaining how misfolded proteins are identified and disposed of, and lipid rafts are mentioned in no fewer than three places with two diagrams. However, the main reason for the size is, of course, the phenomenal rate at which data are accumulating in almost all areas of biology. For example, the intracellular vesicular traffic chapter has increased by ∼17% to convey the enormous detail of macromolecular transport processes that has emerged since 1994. Even more dramatically, the cancer chapter is 39% longer than in the third edition. It now comprises a very clear and reasoned exposition of our perception of how tumours develop,the preventable causes of cancer and a brief summary of therapeutic strategies. This provides an excellent background, although it is slightly surprising that specific molecular data are relatively sparse. There is a complex and uninformative schematic of intracellular signalling pathways,preferable to which would have been a simpler summary of the fundamental pathways that programme malignant cell growth. This would have made the story more comprehensible and also made the point that, although each cancer may well be unique in its combination of genetic anomalies, the functional results appear to focus on a limited group of molecular circuits.The authors observe that the advent of genomics has demanded revision of the molecular genetics content to the extent that the chapters on genomes, DNA structure, replication, repair, recombination and transcription, together with that on the experimental methods of cloning and sequencing, constitute a molecular biology textbook in their own right. A new chapter, `Pathogens,Infection and Innate Immunity', noting that the human body, while comprising 1013 cells of its own, is also home to 1014 bacterial,fungal and protozoan cells, goes on to summarise the basic features of the major pathogens before discussing the mechanisms by which they control their hosts and the innate mechanisms by which hosts can control pathogens. All of which makes an absorbing read, the more so because it is liberally endowed with examples ranging from the familiar Vibrio cholerae, via the remarkable invasion strategies of the cat parasite Toxoplasma gondii,to the disturbing predilections of Legionella pneumophilia.A CD-ROM has been added since the third edition, which provides videos illustrating the main points of each chapter together with some 3D structures. These are generally informative - the apoptosis and mitosis films are beautiful and the PCR cartoon is the clearest I have seen. The CD appears to offer a less extensive range than those accompanying some other texts, but it should be remembered that Molecular Biology of the Cell set the precedent of providing a substantial problems book, and Tim Hunt and John Wilson have contributed a revised version of this supplement for the fourth edition (Wilson and Hunt,2002). The comprehensive nature of the problems book reflects its parent in that, together, they comprise an immense repository of information -so much, in fact, that one might advise first year students to go for the basic concepts and omit the fine detail. However, for final year students,post-graduates and post-docs, to say nothing of more senior citizens, the sheer scale of coverage by the fourth edition of Molecular Biology of the Cell means it will be the first thing most of us will reach for in pursuit of the facts of life.
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