MISCELLANEA Noah Sclaky and Jennifer Lipplncott- Schwartz CBMB,NICHD, NIH, Bethesda, MD 20892, USA. overview is followed by an excellent and lengthy discussion by T. Clark Brelje et al. on 'Multicolour Laser Scanning Confocal Immunofluor- escence Microscopy'. Although these chapters generally contain less theon] and less technical descriptions than can be found elsewhere 1, this is acceptable given the intended pur- poses of the book. A table containing the different brands and makes of con- focal microscopes would have been a nice addition to the first chapter, although most manufacturers are credited. A concentrated discussion about lasers, image detectors, or storage devices is lacking; however, again, this book is intended for the part-time user of CM. The remaining chapters make up the applications section of the book. The topics are varied and range from laser detection of ions and potential, to labelling of endoplasmic reticulum, glycolipids and microtubules, to developmental and neuronal bio- logical applications. These short chap- ters (varying from 11 to 25 pages) contain good bibliographies and detailed protocols for specimen and fluorescent probe preparations. They are therefore useful for cell biologists who want to use CM to expand their research, as well as to the inquir- ing scientist who enjoys learning about novel approaches that are being used in adjacent fields. As revealed in these chapters, CM is quickly expanding our understanding of cell biology and embryology, where spatial relationships of cells, organelles and molecules need to be examined over time with high resolution. Such diverse processes as embryogene~. nuclear division, membrane transp:,~~, ion fluxes across membra,;~s, cell lineage formation, and patterns of gene expression are now being examined using CM. While emphasizing the benefits of CM, the book also covers some of its limitations. For example, the high excitation light levels required to de- tect adequate signals can produce photcbleaching and photo-dynamic damage that sometimes rapidly kills living cells. This puts constraints on the ability of CM to perform time.lapse imagi~g of fluorescent specimens. To alleviate these problems, improve. ments in the sensitivity of CM as well as the photostability of fluorescent probes will be needed. Like electron microscopy, CM has often been placed in the domain of the shared user environment. A dif- ference between the two approaches is that CM is 'user friendly', and the knowledgeable usercan improve their results. The information on CM theory, application and specimen preparation in this volume provides a firm foundation of knowledge for bi- ologists to apply in the collection and use of CM images. To sum up, this book is a welcome addition to any microscopist's and/or cell biologist's shelf and belongs next to its two fine siblings, Fluorescent Microscopy of Living Cellsin Culture (Methods Cell BioL Vols 29 and 30) 2. References 1 PAWLEY, I. (1989) The Handbook of Biological Confocal Microscopy, IMRPress 2 TAYLOR, D. and WANG, Y-I. (1989) Fluorescent Microscopy of Living Cells in Culture (Methods Ceil Bio!. Vols 29 and 30),Academic Press Sense and sense ability Signal Transduction: Prokaryotic and Simple Eukaryotic Systems edited by Janet Kurjan and Barry L. Taylor, Academic Press, 1993. £77.00 (463 pages) ISBN 0 12 429350 6 Cells can respond in various ways to many extracellular factors, via their signal transductlon machinery. Spec- tacular advances are now being made in the study of the molecular mechanisms of signal transductlon, and much progress has been achieved through the systems described in this book. The book contains 16 chapters, each written in a style similar to that found in the Annual Review series. The chap- ters fall into two parts, covering pro- karyotes and eukaryotes. Escherichia coil chemotaxis is presented as the paradigm for prokaryotic signal trans. duction. In the absence of receptor activation, the histidine kinase CheA is active and transfers phosphate to the regulator CheY, enabling CheY to bind to and reverse the flagella motor, I found this part of the book the least accessible - a clearer distinction be- tween activating and inhibiting pro- tein interactions would have helped, The second, more substantial, part of the book describes eukaryotic sys- tems. The emphasis is on G.protein- and Ras-mediated processes, although discussion does extend to the possible actions of Ca2+ and other signals, Particular attention is given to the microorganisms Schizosaccharomyces pombe, Saccharomyces cerevisiae and Dictyostelium. The volume rounds off with a discussion of vulva develop- ment in Caenorhabditis elegans. A chapter is also included on G proteins in Drosophila, but omma¢idial devel- opment in the eye is not covered. In addition, the book includes interesting chapters on the lesser-known systems of Paramecium and Chlamydomonas. This broad coverage is an asset and gives the reader the opportunity to read about alternative systems. The powerful genetic analysis that can be applied to many of these organisms is reflected in much of the content of the book, but where poss. ible, in particular with Dictyostelium and Chlamydomonas, the discussion of genetics is augmented by biochemical detail. Another good feature is that many of the chapters Include descrlp. tlons of components, such as the genes SRMI of S, cerevtsiae and lin.25 of C elegons, that do not fit Into the signal transductlon pathways as understood at present, This objective approach leaves a clear picture of where the major gaps lie in our present knowl- edge, something that is not always apparent in shorter reviews. For these reasons, I enjoyed reading the book and wc Jld recommend many of the individual chapters, Overall, however, the book adds up to lessthan the sum of its parts, It con- tains an excessive number of printing errors, which I found annoying and sometimes scientifically misleading. More generally, I feel that it does not provide a very convincing description of 'the paradigms and mechanisms conserved between prokaryotes and eukaryotes', a phrase appearing on the back cover. Each editor, Taylor for prokaryotes and Kurjan for eukaryotes, contributes a summary chapter, but these mainly describe the underlying similarities within each group. It is only in the second half of Taylor's chapter that a prokaryote-eukaryote 228 TRENDSIN CELLBIOLOGY VOL. 4 JUNE 1994