BOOK REVIEWS ments Eor mzgnesium, and catalytic chemicnl methods. Chapter six, entitled Plating Bath Compositions and Operating Conditions, remains the heart of the hook. As far as euhject matter is concerned, i t also remains practically unchanged from its original printing although i t now includ?s recipes for rhodium plating and for tin-nickel and tin-einc alloys. A p p m n t l y most of the proprietary infnrrnation in 1055 still remains proprictan.. Thosr who were pleased with the first edition of this book will he pleased with the second edition as well; however, I d w b t t h a t those who have t o buy their otin ihoaks will enjoy owning hoth edkions a t the 55mr time.
ROBERT E. MEREDITH Oregon State Trniucrsiti, Corcallis
Mechanisms of Organic and Enzymic Reactions
8. G . Cl'aicy, University of Oxford, England. Oxford, At thp Clxrendm~ Press, 1962. aiii 365 PI,. Figs. and tables. I6 X 24 em. S11.20.
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Therc nrasa time in the early history uf pnnylne studies when the amazing catalytic power and specificity of cnzymrs led to the assumption bhnt zi fundamentally different mad? of action was availahlr t o enzymes which was not avnilnhl~to bhc organic chemist in the lnhorat,r,ry. As E. P. Kennedy points out in the foreword t o this hook, this obscurantist attitude has finally been disspcllcd. Sequence and X-ray studies estnhlish that the enzyme is an organic molecole, morc complex than the simple cat,alyst designed by man, hut an organic molecule n~vertheless. M o ~ P over, every enzymic reaction su far drscribed has been found t o have a n rrgnnir counterpart. The specific rnzymic mactian may he difficult t o duplicate in the trst tube heeausc of its specificity but thr same type ni reaction, e g . , addition t o n douhlc hond, can he ohservcd readily. I t is appropriate, therefore, that a hook attempting to outline the main features of o r ~ a n i e chemistry and the malogous enzymic reactions he written. Waley has written such n hook and has provided an authoritabiv~and readable work. After an opening chapter on molecular structure, the authcr proeceds t o rhapters on organic reactions (principles, exprrimental proccdurrs, classifications), nucleophilic snhstitution, eliminations and addition t o douhle hond, additions t o aldehydes and ketones, esterifiention and hydrolysis, reactions of amidcs and anhydrides, d ~ ~ m h o x y l a t i o n~~n, t u r a t e d rearrangements, aromatic substitutions and, finally, mechanisms of some polymerizations. The author usually discusses the organic chemistry first and follows bhis with a brief outline of illustrative enzymic reactions.
(Continued on page A9761
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BOOK REVIEWS The hook emphasizes organic chemistry and the analogous organic chemical part oi thc enzvmic mechanisms makine no
remaining to organic mechanisms. Inevitably in a short book some subjects must he handled briefly or not a t all. One sueh area is the study of free radicals and oxidation-reduction processes a t both the organic and biolagicd level. Moreover, the volume cannot be compared to a textbook such as Gould's as far as camprehensiveness in organic mechanisms is concerned. On the other hand, its brevity has certain special advantages and it provides a bridge between enzyme chemistry and organic chemistry. I t can be read by an eneymolagist whose background in organic chemistry needs supplementing and i t e m be read by the organic chemist who wishes an introduction to the relationship bctween the organic mechanisms and enzymic catalyses. It can also serve as 8. textbook for a short course designed for students interested in both organic mechanisn~sand enzyme catalysis. The discrimination and critical sense of the author is sueh that almost all the statements are made with authority and the casual reader can have confidence that care and judgment has been exercised in the writing of this book. For these reasons and because of its lucid style, i t should have wide usefulness. DAXIET, E. KOSHLASD, JR. Brookhaom National Laboratory Cpton, L. I . , A'ew York Carbohydrates of Living Tissues
AM.Slacey and S. A . Barker, University of Birmingham, England. D. Van Nostrand Co., Ltd., Princeton, Kew 215 pp. Figs. Jersey, 1962. xvii and tables. 15 X 23.5 em. 67.50.
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Nine chapters herein deal with Glycogen, Hyaluronic acid, Chondroitin and Chondroitin Sulfates A, B, and C, Heparin and Heparin Sulfate, Miscellaneous Polysaccharides, which are mainly sulfates, Milk Oligosrtccharidea, Blood Group Polysaccharides, Mucapratein in Health, and Disease, and Lipocarhohydrates. These subjects are presented as reviews of recent literature. They are quite complete and up-to-date. Most of the subject matter, as indicated by the chapter titles, concerns polysaccharides. Attention is given to location, isolation, chemistry, operation, possible mode of synthesis, and the chnnges they undergo after the onset of disease. Animal polysaccharides are complex both in structure and biochemical behavior. Yet structural information is rapidly nceumulating and biochemical function is becoming understood. In sueh a fast moving research field, periodic and frequent reviews are espeeinllp useful to scientists who wish to keep abreast of (Continued on page A978)
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