Book reviews 185

consuming conventional methods of antibody pro-duction. Genes coding for antibody fragments that areresponsible for antibody binding can be isolated andcloned into vectors that allow the recombinant anti-body fragments to be displayed on the surface of phage.Those that bind antigen, and the genes they contain,can be isolated from libraries of millions of di†erentspeciÐcities. The power of the technique to increase thespeed of production, increase the diversity of spe-ciÐcities available and the ability to Ðne tune the affin-ities and speciÐcities of antigen binding by manipulatingthe isolated gene sequences is impressive.

This section of the volume is completed by a numberof chapters which consider speciÐc examples of sero-logical studies. These include the use of a monoclonal-antibody-based immuno-dot assay for a braconidparasitoid of the corn earworm, use of a monoclonalantibody to examine predation of cotton bollworm eggsin Ðeld crops in India, use of monoclonal antibody tech-niques to detect predators of whiteÑies and predators ofpink bollworm in the USA and use of polyclonal andmonoclonal techniques to examine slug predation.

An important consideration in this Ðeld is the extentto which assay data can be converted into ecologicallyuseful information. Indeed, as indicated by the contentsof this volume, there is a wealth of technology whichenables one to detect insect proteins. It is tempting tosuggest that this technology appears to have outs-tripped the ability to interpret the Ðndings. A thought-provoking assessment of the inerpretation of suchstudies by Sunderland rightly highlights such issues and,for instance, makes the distinction between consump-tion rate and predation rate ; essential reading foranyone considering using such techniques.

A number of chapters e†ectively update the reader onthe electrophoretic techniques which were the subject ofthe previous symposium. An illuminating openingchapter focuses on biochemical methods for speciesidentiÐcation in groups of pest insects that are noto-riously rich in sibling species, where species identiÐca-tion in immature stages is difficult on morphologicalgrounds and on the analysis of population structureand intraspeciÐc di†erentiation. This section is com-pleted with two papers that review the use of electro-phoretic techniques to examine esterase polymorphismin US populations of the cotton bollweevil and in thestudy of predatorÈprey relationships. The volume iscompleted with a chapter by Langley which detailspractical techniques for determining the age and nutri-tional status of tsetse Ñies.

It is a pity that the book is not sub-divided into sec-tions. The distribution fo chapters seems a little arbi-trary in places and the reader might have expectedtopics to be grouped rather more tightly. These minorquibbles aside, this excellent book contains a wealth ofinformation of value to applied entomologists, ecol-ogists and all those involved in pest management. The

symposium organisers and editors are to be congratu-lated on a very useful and timely volume.

Alan R. McCa†ery

Induced responses to herbivory. ed. R. Karban & I. T.Baldwin, The University of Chicago Press, Chicago,1997, ix] 319 pp., price US$27.95, UK£14.25.ISBN 0 226 42496 0.

This is a stimulating and authoritative book written bytwo pioneers of the subject. Induced defence againstattack by herbivorous animals is currently one of themost exciting areas of natural science, and a book thatso well encompasses the subject in such a readable andcompact form is essential for libraries and individualsconcerned with any aspect of plant science, not leastcrop protection. There are six chapters, the Ðrst provid-ing an introduction to the phenomenology of induction,with deÐnitions of induced response, resistance anddefence. There is also a brief history of what is none theless a very young subject. The next chapter describeshow plants perceive damage and discusses the speci-Ðcity of the processes involved. A table of signals thatare proposed to operate within plants, giving possibleroles and evidence for their existence, is an invaluablecomponent and includes early studies on the oligosac-charide fragments and recent developments with sali-cylic acid and jasmonic acid. This chapter becomes evenmore useful when it discusses, in a critical and informedfashion, communication between individual plants. Thechapter concludes that there is increasing evidence ofvolatile cues released by damaged plants beingexploited by herbivores and their predators and para-sites, but that it is yet to be proven whether such signalsare also used by unattacked neighbouring plants.

The mechanism of induced responses is thendescribed, looking Ðrst at the induction of primarymetabolism and moving to the extensive, althoughrecent, literature on the induction of secondary metabo-lites. An important part of this chapter is devoted todescribing the various mechanisms for induced chemicaldefences, followed by control processes : synthesis, syn-thesis and turnover, and transport, exempliÐed by pro-teinase inhibitors, phytoalexins and nicotinerespectively, with the Ðrst example allowing discussionof the ground-breaking work by Clarence (Bud) Ryan ofWashington State University on these importantdefence proteins and their inductions. In the fourthchapter, there is an extensive tabulation of whereinduced resistance has been found. This is accompaniedby a critical discussion on use of bioassays involvingherbivores to determine the e†ect of induced resistanceand susceptibility after initial plant damage. Here, we

186 Book reviews

also have a discussion on underlying hypotheses relat-ing to the types of plants and the growth patterns thatare likely to be associated with induced resistanceagainst herbivores. The discussion then extends to therelationship between the extent and nature of thedamage and the possible mechanism for induced resist-ance. Evidence for these phenomena having an inÑuenceon populations of herbivorous arthropods is tabulated,concluding with affirmation of the need for more studiesat population and community levels, with longer-termexperiments being employed. The next chapter isdirected at the evolution of induced resistance, describ-ing the evolutionary processes involved and how thesecan exploit variability in induction. An obvious advan-tage in induced defence is its relatively low metaboliccost compared with continuous and constitutivedefence, but this issue is again debated critically withnumerous examples of key studies, and not excludingother hypotheses that bear on the subject. The Ðnalchapter is devoted to prospects for using induced resist-ance in agriculture. Such usage would be advantageousin agricultural crop protection for all the reasons thathave allowed these mechanisms to evolve so suc-cessfully, not least the low cost on plant metabolism. Inaddition, “switching onÏ plant defences would help toconserve such systems, thereby avoiding unnecessarydeployment which could promote the onset of resist-ance by herbivores. Although relating to prospects forthe future, this Ðnal chapter is typical of the others, fullof extremely valuable information and, as well as exem-pliÐcations in discussion, there is included a table pro-viding examples of competition between individuals ofthe same and di†erent species where induced defence isinvolved, and where the host is an agricultural crop.This book rightly recommends that, whateverapproaches to crop protection are adopted, we must atleast understand such important processes as thoseinduced in plants by herbivores against further damage.

John A. Pickett

Chlorinated organic micropollutants. ed. R. E. Hester &R. M. Harrison, Royal Society of Chemistry, Cam-bridge, 1996, 184 pp., price UK£17.50.ISBN 0-85404-225-3

This is the sixth of a series entitled Issues in Environ-mental Science and Technology. It contains nine chap-ters, each written as an up-to-date review of someaspect of environmental contamination by chlorinatedorganic compounds. The emphasis is on their environ-mental chemistry. Some aspects of environmental toxi-cology are also given, but this, in the main, is superÐcialand incomplete. The compounds considered includePCBs, PCDDs, PCDFs, and some organochlorinepesticides.

Two chapters are concerned with the environmentalfate of PCBs, PCDDs, and PCDFs, one of which dealsin some detail with atmospheric chemistry. One chapterfocuses on human exposure to PCDDs and PCDFs.Another deals with biological uptake and transfer. Achapter is devoted to the very large subject of chlorinat-ed pesticides ; inevitably it is very superÐcial and incom-plete, especially with regard to ecotoxicological aspects.Another presents an overview of the complexities of theecotoxicology of chlorinated aromatic hydrocarbons inas much detail as limited space will allow. The detailedstudy of the fate of PCBs in the Great Lakes of N.America is presented as an integrated case study in oneof the best chapters of the book. Many data are logi-cally presented in a small space with the aid of somevery useful Ðgures. There is a good concise account ofhuman toxicology covering much of the literature, butnot dealing in any depth with mechanistic aspects.

This is a very useful text for people working in theÐeld, giving up-to-date reviews of the environmentalchemistry of these important pollutants. It should alsobe of some value to advanced students specialising inthis area.

C. H. Walker