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Hayat MA. 2000. Principles and techniques of electron microscopy:

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546 Book Reviews
evident economic importance of the topic. This multi-
authored book edited by Dickinson and Beynon is a
collection of ten reviews on selected areas of molecular
plant pathology that have received much attention and
where signi®cant advances have been made.
The book opens with three chapters dedicated to
molecular aspects of pathogenicity of fungi, bacteria and
viruses. The authors of all three sections have chosen to
concentrate their attention on one or a few aspects of the
subject. Thus Magnaporthe grisea is the paradigm for fungal
diseases, type III secretion and hrp genes are the central
themes of bacterial diseases, and only RNA-containing
viruses are dealt with in the third chapter. This approach has
the advantage of concentrating on certain aspects where
research has progressed most successfully. This is certainly
the case for the ®rst and excellent chapter on M. grisea
biology, which is up-to-date and comprehensive. The choice
of limiting the chapter coverage to one or a few examples is
understandable given the limitations in space and expertise
of the individual authors. However, it should have been
made clear somewhere, perhaps in the Preface, that this is an
editorial choice and that the scope of this book is not
encyclopaedic. In the next section, three chapters analyse
various aspects of the genetics of disease resistance: one
chapter on the gene structure of the recently cloned
resistance (R) genes and their evolution, a second paper
on the possible function of the R-gene products and a third
one on R-gene dependent signalling. All three chapters are
well written and informative, although there is some overlap
and repetition as is perhaps inevitable in a multi-authored
approach to this theme. The usefulness of model diagrams
for the functioning of non-plant systems which show
similarities with R-gene dependent mechanisms is somewhat
limited by the absence of corresponding hypothetical
models for the plant scenarios: I believe that books like
this lend themselves to some, perhaps brave, speculation as
to how things may work in plants. A graphical representa-
tion of proposed models would be particularly useful in
instances where a direct interaction between R-gene
products and avirulence determinants have not yet been
shown and more complex alternative explanations are
required.
Two chapters on programmed cell death in plants and
systemic acquired resistance (SAR) follow. These essays
tackle somewhat controversial topics: whether the hyper-
sensitive cell death is equivalent to animal apoptosis, and the
nature of the systemic signal. In the ®rst case the authors fail
to come down on either side of the argument, and limit
themselves to a comprehensive and detailed report of the
known similarities and di€erences. In the second case, Claire
Baker appears convinced that salicylic acid, although
required for appropriate signalling, is not itself the systemic
signal. The chapter on SAR summarizes a great deal of data
on the mutational analysis of this phenomenon.
The next chapter is an essay on an application of the
knowledge gleaned from the study of molecular plant path-
ology to the ®eld (literally!), disease and crop protection.
This chapter reports on various attempts at creating trans-
genic plants which are resistant to viruses, as an alternative
or complement to the exploitation of `natural' resistance.
Although the current trends in public acceptance of
biotechnological manipulation of crop plants would appear
to dampen hopes of immediate use of these technologies,
they are likely to be essential in future control of this type of
disease, for which `antiviral' sprays do not exist.
The last chapter by Robert Dietrich is a concise, but
e€ective, critical overview on how novel technology can help
to improve our understanding of plant-microbe interactions.
I feel this is one of the most useful chapters in the book as it
will help both the advanced research student as well as the
more seasoned scientist to understand the strategies likely to
be used in the next decade or so in molecular plant
pathology.
Overall, the quality of the presentation is high with a few
informative tables and diagrams. As in all multi-authored
books, there is some variation in style and content of the
essays and I was personally not particularly attracted by the
familiar manner used at the beginning of the section on viral
pathogenicity, a style which soon gets lost in the intricacies
of the biology of plant virusesÐbut that is probably a
matter of personal taste. In many chapters it is dicult for
the non-initiated to follow reports with a large number of
gene/mutation names, some of which may be allelic. For
each chapter, tables summarizing names, functions, pheno-
types and references are extremely useful. An excellent
example of this appears in Jane Parker's contribution,
`Signalling in Plant Disease Resistance'. To be e€ective,
however, they must all be fully comprehensive otherwise
ploughing through the morass of dicult-to-memorize
italicised acronyms becomes frustrating and o€-putting.
The high price, not unusual for such a specialized text,
may well put this book out of the reach of advanced under-
graduates and postgraduate research students who would
certainly bene®t from it. Nevertheless, I warmly recommend
it be included in libraries and collections wherever molecular
plant pathology is researched or taught. It is likely to be a
useful resource for a few years on the state-of-the-art in the
subjects covered at the turn of the millennium.
Pietro D. Spanu
# 2001 Annals of Botany Company
doi:10.1006/anbo.2001.1367
Hayat MA. 2000. Principles and techniques of electron
microscopy: biological applications. 4th edn. 543pp.
Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. £65
(hardback).
We are often told that a picture speaks a thousand words.
However, if that picture is a transmission electron
micrograph, we are unlikely to appreciate it to its full
unless we have sucient words to tell us how that image
was obtained. Hayat's Principles and techniques of electron
microscopy provides the necessary words and background
understanding. The book [which, despite the potential
ambiguity in the title, is speci®cally about transmission
electron microscopy (TEM)] contains 10 chapters devoted
 Book Reviews
to pre-image preparation processes: Hazards, precautions
and safe handling of reagents; Chemical ®xation; Rinsing,
dehydrating and embedding; Sectioning; Support ®lms;
Positive staining; Negative staining; Low temperature
methods; Plant tissues; and Applications of microwave
heating to microscopy. There is an impressive collection of
over 1000 references, and this fourth edition represents a
substantial revision and expansion of the 1989 third edition,
with new chapters on `hazards', `plants', and `microwaves'.
No doubt, botanists will welcome the (long overdue?)
inclusion of the `plant chapter' (which should increase the
appeal of this book), and should be pleased with the book's
cover picture (which has no explanatory caption, but is a
duplicate of Figure 9.2, a transverse section of a leaf blade
vascular bundle of Themeda triandra). Despite the overall
zoocentrism of the book, plants and plant micrographs are
also mentioned speci®cally in other chapters, to address
problems that are either speci®c to, or prevalent in, plant
studies. A substantial portion of the dedicated plant
chapter is devoted to immunolocalization protocols for
lignins, `polysaccharides', and wall-proteins. However, the
chapter contains de®ciencies which detract from its useful-
ness. For instance, the ®xation protocol for `wood' ( p. 471)
speci®es 1 mm3 pieces of material. Whilst this is generally
®ne for most plant material, it is inappropriate for wood,
whose component cells may be up to 3 mm long (in the case
of gymnosperms) and is likely to lead to signi®cant ®xation
artefacts. It also seems to ignore advice given in the
protocol quoted on p. 455 (apparently taken from the cited
Baba et al., 1994), which ®xes cubes of cambial zones
2  3  0.5 mm for xyloglucan immunolocalization.
Despite due reference to Ruzin (1999) as the most up-to-
date light microscopy text for plants, it is unfortunate that
it has been omitted from the reference list. Finally,
notwithstanding a good attempt at summarizing cell wall
biology, I was disappointed to read that cell wall proteins
`are also synthesized in the endomembrane by cellulose
synthesizing complexes' ( p. 440). In summary, incorpora-
tion of a plant-speci®c chapter is a good idea, but it will not
yet do away with the need for specialist plant TEM texts
such as Hall and Hawes (1991) or chapters like that by
Rensing (2001).
At ®rst sight, the 11 page, three-columned index looks
impressive, but how well does it work? In light of the claim
that this book is `indispensable for beginners', how would a
novice fare in ®nding details of, say, the `ThieÂry reaction/
test', a well-known TEM localisation procedure for poly-
saccharides, in the index? The short answer is not very well
as there is no index entry for ThieÂry.
In keeping with the book's aim of providing `practical
instructions', I think it would have been useful to provide a
list of suppliers of equipment and chemicals, with contact
details. Inclusion of a list of abbreviations would not go
amiss, either. Whilst the micrographs are generally very
good and serve their purpose well, a criticism is the large
number that have no indication of magni®cation
(e.g. Figures 6.1, 6.9, 6.11, 7.5), or, frustratingly, have
scale bars but with no indication of the length they
represent (e.g. Figure 7.4). From a teaching point of view,
one of the most useful features of a TEM book ought to be
547
the micrographs, which indicate the range of shapes, sizes,
appearances, etc. which di€erent organelles can have in
di€erent cells, species and after di€erent treatments. I know
most experienced TEM users could guess the missing
information, but beginners probably couldn't (and even as
a `plant TEM person' I wouldn't like to guess at some of
the `non-plant' images!); without an indication of scale
these important teaching/training points can neither be put
across as e€ectively, nor reinforced.
It is a fact of life that scienti®c advances tend to occur at
times which are at variance with those involved in book-
production; this usually means that books are often `out of
date' before they are published. An indication of this is
surely given by the delay between apparent completion of
the text, as per the date of this book's forewordÐ
2 December 1998Ðand the publication of the book in
late 2000. This almost inevitably means that the text,
particularly the references, will not be as up-to-date as the
publication date might lead us to believe. This is borne out
by perusal of this book's reference list, which reveals the
following data for `year of publication/number of cited
papers': 1997/33; 1998/25; 1999/4; 2000/0. Whilst it must be
acknowledged that there might have been little that was
relevant in 1999, and perhaps nothing worth citing from
2000, this survey suggests that the literature review is
probably complete only up to the end of 1998. I look
forward to the next edition to read of new developments
from 1999 onwards.
Microscopy is undergoing something of a renaissance at
present. That this is due in large part to the greater `appeal'
of ¯uorescent (especially confocal) microscopy, rather than
TEM (driven primarily by the interests of molecular
biologists in using exotic ¯uorescence techniques to unravel
the secrets of the cell), and notwithstanding the fact that
TEM may not be able to compete with the excitement of
multi-channel Technicolor, 4-dimensional ¯uorescence
images, TEM has one very important advantage: resolu-
tion. The nanometer resolution of the TEM is still the
greatest weapon in the microscopist's arsenal, and will
continue to justify its place as one of the standard tools of
the modern, and future, cell biological laboratory. It is
undeniable that, used well, TEM can provide that ®nal,
elusive, essential information that is missed by lower-
resolution microscopical techniques, but which is the key to
understanding of the subject. Armed with the information
in books such as Hayat, the ultrastructural explorer can
venture forth into uncharted nano-territory with more
understanding and con®dence.
Overall, I'm left with the impression that `it's mostly all in
there', but it is not necessarily arranged in the most
accessible, user-friendly, consistent way (and the plant
chapter will require a period of settling-in). Nevertheless,
despite these shortcomings, it is a useful book and a
welcome new edition of an old standard. It should be read
by all those experiencing, or about to experience, the
delights of TEM for the ®rst time (as well as old hands who
need occasional reminders of the theory), and by anyone
who teaches the subject.
 548 Book Reviews
L I T E R AT U R E C I T E D
Hall JL, Hawes C. 1991. Electron microscopy of plant cells. London,
San Diego, New York: Academic Press.
Rensing K. 2001. Chemical and cryo®xation for transmission electron
microscopy of gymnosperm cambial cells. In: Cha€ey NJ, ed.
2001. Wood formation in trees: cell and molecular biology
techniques. The Netherlands: Harwood Academic Publishers (in
press).
Ruzin SE. 1999. Plant microtechnique and microscopy. New York,
Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Nigel Cha€ey
# 2001 Annals of Botany Company
doi:10.1006/anbo.2000.1343
Keddy PA. 2000. Wetland ecology: principles and conserva-
tion. 614 pp. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
£32.95 (softback).
Writing a book on wetland ecology is an ominous under-
taking, not least because there is no universally accepted
de®nition of what actually constitutes a true `wetland'. As a
result, Paul Keddy dedicates some 30 pages of the ®rst
chapter to an exhaustive review of the various de®nitions
available, and this may seem a little long-winded to the non-
specialist. The book goes on to discuss some of the general
factors that structure communities, such as disturbance and
competition, as well as discussing factors that are more
speci®c to wetland ecology, such as hydrology and burial.
The ®nal section of the book draws on the earlier parts to
investigate conservation and restoration of wetlands.
Rather than reviewing previous studies case-by-case,
Keddy attempts to provide the reader with a conceptual
framework that might unite all restoration studies. The
section includes some helpful recommendations on priority-
setting for wetland conservation, which will prove very
useful to managers of such habitats. I think this is one of
the strongest parts of the book, although wetland managers
will probably wish to read it alongside more speci®c case
studies, such as those found in Hey & Philippi (1999).
Perhaps the most serious short-coming of this book is
that it misses out on a key point: wetland ecology is not just
about plants. While animals are considered as an important
structuring force of wetland ¯ora, the book fails to integrate
plant and animal ecology into a community-level synthesis.
Where animals are mentioned, they are discussed super-
®cially. For example, there is no mention of mosquito
ecology, even though they are one of the most important
parts of many wetland ecosystems from both an ecological
and human health viewpoint. As a consequence, the recent
book by Westlake et al. (1998) may prove more satisfactory
to those looking for a more complete community approach
to the subject.
The 614 pages are interspersed with numerous ®gures and
tables taken from approx. 1000 references. There are also
many photographs, although the quality of reproduction is
generally poor for a book of this style and price range.
Wetland ecology is not a book to wade through from
cover-to-cover. Rather, it will serve as a useful reference
View publication stats
work to dip into from time-to-time. The impressive amount
of literature reviewed in this book will make it particularly
valuable to academics with a speci®c interest in wetland
¯ora.
L I T E R AT U R E C I T E D
Hey DL, Philippi NS. 1999. A case for wetland restoration. New York:
Wiley.
Westlake DF, Kvet J, Szczepanski A, eds. 1998. The production ecology
of wetlands. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
David C. Aldridge
# 2001 Annals of Botany Company
doi:10.1006/anbo.2001.1384
Malmfors B, Garnsworthy P, Grossman M. 2000. Writing
and presenting scienti®c papers. 133 pp. Nottingham:
Nottingham University Press. £15.00 (softback).
The aim of this book is to help scientists communicate
the results of their work to others, in a simple and
unambiguous way. Arguably, a signi®cant number of
scientists do this part of their work least well. As the
authors rightly point out, it is no good doing research
worthy of winning a Nobel Prize if you are unable to
communicate the results of that work to the rest of the
world. Unfortunately, writing is an art form and very few
possess the innate ability to write well. The majority of us
must be taught this skill, although very few institutes of
higher learning consider it their responsibility to do so. As a
consequence, many scientists drift into a jargon-®lled,
verbose and often incomprehensible style of writing they
perceive as `professorial'. It might be argued that the use of
word-processors with `spell-checkers', `grammar-checkers',
computer graphics and even voice activated writing
programs, ought to enable anyone to write a half-decent
paper. It is my observation that this is not the case; if
anything, the problem has become worse.
Towards remedying this problem, Writing and presenting
scienti®c papers provides advice on the whole gamut of
communicating science, from how to write and publish a
scienti®c paper, through to reviewing papers and presenta-
tions. I should add that this last chapter was read
assiduously by this reviewer! The book was stu€ed full of
useful advice on improving style and how to avoid verbosity
and some of the major grammatical pitfalls, into which we
all tend to fall. Also, there were chapters on publishing
scienti®c papers, oral and poster presentations, visual
displays and training students in these arts.
The book was relatively easy to read, with clever use of
graphics and illustrations. On the whole, it was well written,
although the authors sometimes tended to stray into
inelegant phraseology, one could say `hoist by their own
petard'. This criticism is purely subjective, however, and did
not detract from the well-presented and illustrated text,
which drove the intended message well and truly home.
(Or, is that sentence better written as `However, this