A resynthesis or re-extraction?: Plant Biochemistry and Molecular Biology (2nd edition), edited by Peter J. Lea and Richard C. Leegood

Abstract

John Wiley & Sons, 1999. £24.95 (xvi + 364 pages)ISBN 0471976830A measure of success for the author or editor of any textbook is to be invited back by the publisher to have a second bite of the cherry. In this case it would be more appropriate perhaps to describe the cherry as being re-extracted, both in terms of the subject matter and the manner in which the volume has been modified for this second edition. It is six years since Plant Biochemistry and Molecular Biology was published originally, and progress made during this time, particularly in the use of mutants and transgenic plants to study biochemical pathways, has made some revision desirable. The editors assure us in their preface that the content of many of the chapters has been rewritten completely. In most instances this is correct, although in a few chapters revision is restricted largely to the inclusion of a minimal amount of additional text coupled with an updating of the references. This is not meant to be a criticism, because many of the chapters in the first edition were not ‘broken’ and therefore you could argue that they didn’t need fixing. I do feel, however, that the editors or perhaps the publishers have missed the opportunity to give the volume a more contemporary feel. A couple of modestly priced third-year textbooks focussed on plant molecular biology have appeared recently and included either two-colour or full-colour diagrams. Unfortunately, this second edition still has the ‘feel’ of being produced in the early 1990s and the quality of some of the line diagrams in my copy was poor. Moreover, some of the less valuable illustrations from the first edition have been retained. For example, I can remember trying to work out what the black-and-white line drawing of the Arum spadix was conveying in the first edition!Besides some major revisions and the introduction of new material, the principal development has been the inclusion of a chapter on secondary metabolism. This is a valuable addition to the text and provides the reader with a more comprehensive account of the subject.Overall, this book is likely to prove as popular as the previous edition with both undergraduates and lecturers in the plant sciences. The undergraduate will view it as a well-priced volume providing a readable account of the principal components of plant biochemistry and molecular biology. The lecturer will see it as a ready source of material on which to base their modules. To satisfy both these parties is quite an achievement.