Journal of Experimental Botany, Vol. 51, No. 345, pp. 829,
April 2000
© 2000 Oxford University Press
Book Review
P.J.J. Hooykass, M.A. Hall and K.R. Libbenga (eds). Biochemistry and molecular biology of plant hormones. Elsevier, 1999. Pp. 541. Price euro 188.32. ISBN 0 444 89825 5.
Over a decade ago edited texts on plant hormone biochemistry and physiology were commonplace. Most frequently their focus was on strategies for hormone analysis and the effects seen after application of these compounds to intact plants or isolated tissues. The demise of this type of volume occurred when an increasing number of individuals became disillusioned about the spray and pray philosophy and questioned whether it was wise to strive to count the number of angels on the head of a pin. At the same time the dialogue turned to an academic debate over the word ‘hormone’ and the terms ‘plant growth regulator’ and ‘plant growth substance’ surfaced to fill the void. The advent of model organisms, mutants and molecular genetics has enabled us, over the last five years, to make substantial progress in the field of hormone research. As a consequence we have enhanced our understanding of the biosynthetic pathways of these compounds and how they may be regulated, identified some hormone receptors and the inter- and intracellular signalling mechanisms triggered by occupancy, and recognized the mechanisms that can dictate gene expression. Moreover, the number of compounds that are now classified as hormones has almost doubled and the word crosstalk has found its way into common usage. It is therefore timely for a volume on Plant hormone biochemistry and molecular biology to be published.
The book opens with an exposition of the hormone concept and progresses to consider some contemporary approaches of analysis. There then follows a series of chapters on the synthesis and metabolism of plant hormones including contributions on oligosaccharins, jasmonates, brassinosteroids, and salicylic acid. The final part of the book examines aspects of hormone perception and signal transduction. The content of the volume is arranged in a logical way and the standard of writing in the main is high. Moreover, it was particularly refreshing to have some chapters that dealt with specific signalling mechanisms such as G-proteins and cytoskeletal elements, in addition to those that examined the ways that hormones might influence such systems.
There are so many outlets for up-to-the-minute reviews with full colour diagrams that monographs of this type can look rather staid and out of date. Unfortunately, with this volume the problem is exacerbated by the rather poor quality of artwork and the fact that it seems to have taken a couple of years to appear in print. A personal gripe is that the book cites references without paper titles and as individual chapters do not have running headings I frequently identified the citations from the wrong chapters. Furthermore, it would have been helpful for every chapter to commence with a list of abbreviations and end with some element of crystal ball gazing.
Setting these criticisms apart I am confident that this will be a useful reference volume for those working in the field of plant hormones. Its cost and production will not attract many individual purchasers, but I expect that it will find its way onto the library shelves of those institutions that are actively involved in plant science research.
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