362 JuLY 30, 1960 REVIEWS BRrm= _M IC JO formulae to permit a detailed description of enzyme Many European countries are represented as well as mechanisms. The presentation follows to some extent Australia and South Africa, but the majority of the the pattern of Professor Baldwin's earlier Dynamic contributors are from North America. This latter is Aspects, which also originated in the Cambridge School not surprising, for Dr. Schick's work and personality of Biochemistry, but is in a more condensed form. the have undoubtedly had a considerable influence on the very short chapter on control of metabolism is study of allergy in the land of his adoption. stimulating, and suggests the hope of future progress. The subjects vary widely, with the emphasis, as one The second book, by Dr. Dawkins and Dr. Rees, reads would expect, on aspects of allergy affecting children rather like a continuation of the first, and is particularly as well as on the experimental side of allergy. Side-by- concerned with the nature of metabolic disturbances side are such diverse subjects as an appraisal of sero- from the cellular angle, with special reference to the logical reactions in rheumatoid arthritis by Sulkin and effects of toxins and of deficiency states, both congenital Pvke, and food-induced aitergic illness in children by and acquired. Both authors work at University College Kaufman; liver disease and antibody formation by Hospital Medical School, and their outlook no doubt Havens, and musculo-skeletal allergy, in children by reflects the interest in the subject of Sir Roy Cameron Randolph; the influence of bacterial polysaccharides to whom the book is dedicated. Current knowledge of and steroids on the passive arthus phenomenon in the basic metabolic defects in disease is well described guinea-pigs by Jaques, Bein, and Meier, and emotional in this book, and the authors do not hesitate to point factors in allergy with special reference to asthna by out fields where knowledge is incomplete. Weiss. Both books can be cordially recommended to the All the articles in this volume have already appeared general reader in the medical field who is interested in in the International Archives of Allergy and Applied the possibility of establishing the nature of basic bio- Immunology in the Bela Schick Anniversary Numbers. chemical disturbances in disease. They form not only All who are interested in this branch of medicine and an extremely useful guide to the enormous literature who have not read them in the International Archives on this subject, but also make some important will find many articles of interest in this excellently contributions in their own right. produced volume. N. F. MACLAGAN. D. A. WILLIAMS.

DEDICATED TO SCIICK EXPERIMENTAL ENCEPHA.LOMYELITIS Current Problems in Allergy and Immunology. Papers Dedi- Allergic Encephalomyelitis. Proceedings of a Symposium: cated to Bela Schick on the Occasion of his 80th Birthday. Experimental " Allergic ' Encephalomyelitis and its Relation Edited by William Kaufman. (Pp. 992+xxiv; illustrated. to other Diseases of Man and Animals. Edited by Marian Sw. Fr. 60; $14.40.) Basle, New York: S. Karger. 1959. W. Kies, Ph.D., and Ellsworth C. Alvord, Jr., M.D. (Pp. 576+xiv; illustrated. £5 2s. 6d.) Springfield, Illinois: Charles This volume is dedicated to Dr. Bela Schick on the C. Thomas. Oxford: Blackwell Scientific Publications. 1959. occasion of his eightieth birthday, and it is pleasing to The aetiology of the demyelinating diseases, the know that Dr. Schick, born in Hungary, trained in commonest of which is disseminated sclerosis, remains Graz, Austria, is still actively interested in medicine in unknown, but some workers think that they may have America, where he went at the age of 46. Among his an allergic basis comparable with the experimental other appointments he has been professor of children's allergic encephalomyelitis that may be produced in some diseases at Vienna; paediatrician to the Mount Sinai animal species. Hospital, New York; clinical professor of diseases of This beautifully illustrated volume contains the children, Columbia University; and director of the proceedings of a conference held at Bethesda, Maryland, paediatric department, Sea View Hospital, New in October, 1957, and attended by many workers on the York. problem. The book reproduces essentially the papers as Dr. Schick is known the world over for the test of read to the conference with the subsequent discussions, diphtheria immunity which bears his name. Almost but some remarks have been added later and these are equally well known and of equal importance was his indicated in the text. From the standpoint of the clinical work with that of Clemens von Pirquet on serum neurologist and neuropathologist there are a number sickness. Their classic contribution " Serumkrankheit" of papers of great interest, in particular the account -serum sickness-appeared in 1905 (an English trans- of encephalomyelitis after rabies inoculation in lation by Dr. Schick appeared in 1951), and in the Japan, the paper by Raymond Adams comparing the following year von Pirquet coined the word " allergy." morphology of the human demyelinating diseases and Serum sickness has been described as the cornerstone the experimental disease in animals, and the summary of allergy. The editor has therefore collected some and concluding remarks by Alvord. In addition there 56 articles from 100 medical scientists and physicians are a number of papers discussing the technical aspects from all over the world on topics in allergy and of the production of experimental encephalomyelitis, immunology. Five of these articles are in German, in particular the chemical substances involved, and three in French, and the remainder in English. Articles others on the immunological aspects of the experimental by contributors from Great Britain are on diphtheria disease. toxin by Professor Marrack; the immunological basis These papers show clearly the complexities of the of carcinogenesis by Professor Green; lobsters, lymph, problem, but more particularly indicate the contribu- and histamine-liberation by Professor Paton; the histo- tions likely to be made in the discovery of the aetiology logical criteria of hypersensitivity by Pagel and Triep; of neurological diseases by scientific disciplines far experimental allergic lesions in animals by Gell; while removed from clinical neurology and orthodox Carl Prausnitz writes on the past, present, and future neuropathology. of allergy. J. W. ALDREN TURNER.