Volume 184, number 1 FEBS LETTERS May 1985

Riimpps Chemie-Lexicon Band 1: A-Cl, 1979; Band 2: Cm-G, 1981; Band 3: H-L, 1983

by Dr Otto-Albrecht Neumiiller

Franckh’sche Verlagshandlung, Stuttgart

This most valuable work, although primarily in- One very useful feature is that many abbreviations tended for chemists, will also be of great value to are listed, thus one can find out what CNRS, biochemists. The text enries are in German but this DKFZ, and HPLC stand for. The volumes also should not put off those not very familiar with that contain short biographical entries on a number of language since the information is given in short, scientists, for example Konrad Bloch, Christian de simple sentences that can be understood easily by Duve, Paul Ehrlich, Arthur Harden, Hans Krebs, those, like the present reviewer, whose German is Luis Leloir, Fritz Lipmann, and Feodor Lynen. somewhat rusty. Also many terms are so similar in The three volumes that have appeared up to the German and English that there is little difficulty in present are fascinating and compel one to browse. locating them. They bring together a vast amount of information The entries on individual compounds are that is otherwise only found in any different specific and clear, often a key reference or two to sources. Apart from the descriptions of chemical the original literature is given, and, when compounds they contain, the work serves to in- necessary, a structural formula. In many instances form the reader about history, biography, and the names of European suppliers of the material in chemical hazards and acts as a German-English question are given and frequently the English (and chemical and biochemical dictionary. Con- sometimes the French) name when it is significant- siderable use of the months revealed no discrepan- ly different from the German. Also there are useful cies and the information given is remarkably ac- and informative descriptions of fruits, spices, and curate and up-to-date, the only annoyance was other foodstuffs, and descriptive entries under the when one wanted to look up something beginning trade names of many chemicals and drugs. with a letter later in the alphabet than L. The pre- These fascinating volumes are not merely lists of sent reviewer and his colleagues look forward to chemical compounds but contain a wealth of infor- subsequent volumes. While the emphasis of these mation that will be useful to many biochemists. volumes is mainly chemical, there is no doubt that There are, for instance, short essays on, antigens, they should be on the shelves of every university antibodies, DNA and DNA replication (which con- and research laboratory where biochemistry is tains half a page of key references), elec- practised. trophoresis, enzymes, the genetic code, hormones, the sodium-potassium pump, and many others. S.P. Datta

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