172 Reviews of recent publications--Fd Chem. Toxic. Vol. 22, no. 2

genetic material that encodes the next and future generations: heritable mutations induced by environ- mental mutagens are a pernicious threat to the future well-being, even the existence, of mankind.

Thus it has become incumbent upon science to minimize the damage to genetic material caused by, among other things, the burning of fossil fuels, ionizing radiation and the products and waste of the chemical industry. The main thrust of scientific effort has gone into the identification of environmental mutagens with a view to screening these agents from the environment or, if this is not practicable, to assessing the genetic risk of exposure. A variety of empirical tests have been developed for estimating the mutagenic potency of suspect agents. Although such tests are of undoubted value, they are not sufficient. The accurate estimation of hazards requires a better understanding of the various mechanisms of mu- tagenesis.

The book named above is a compilation of the proceedings of the Fourteenth Rochester Inter- national Conference on Environmental Toxicity, held in June 1981. The conference sought to review present knowledge of mutagenic mechanisms, drawing to- gether data from a variety of biological systems, in order to discern the principles governing the action of different mutagens. It also sought to examine the implications of such principles for contemporary mutagenicity tests, and to assess the research areas where attention is needed to improve the inter- pretation of test results.

Contributions, from many of the world's leading genetic toxicologists, are organized by conference session under the following titles: Mutagen/DNA Interactions; Infidelity and Specificity; Genetic Anal- ysis of Mutagenesis; Mammalian Systems; and Human Systems and Environmental Protection. Fol- lowing each paper the ensuing discussion at the conference is reproduced. The whole is reasonably well subject-indexed. Pleasingly, the contents of the book pursue the aims of the conference, and all of the work reported is concerned with the elucidation of mechanisms and the assimilation of new insights, rather than with the banal generation of more mutagenicity-test results. Induced Mutagenesis is a worthwhile acquisition for genetic toxicologists and will be of interest to researchers in general toxicology, genetics, molecular biology and biochemistry.

Banbury Report 11: Environmental Factors in Human Growth and Development. Edited by V. R. Hunt, M. K. Smith & D. Worth. Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, New York, 1982. pp. xx + 570. $75.00.

The report of the l l th Banbury Conference, held in November 1981, makes compelling reading. The period between birth and adulthood is relatively long in man but the (perhaps not surprising) paucity of studies on this maturation period has led to a degree of toxicological ignorance that makes it very difficult to estimate the sensitivity of children to toxic sub- stances. Consequently, when the question of appro- priate re-entry intervals after pesticide applications was raised in connection with the safety and protec- tion of"10- and 11-year old agricultural workers" the answers were not readily forthcoming.

This Banbury conference was an attempt to bring together the scattered data that did exist, to assess their adequacy and to point the way to future re- search designed to fill the major information gaps and thus provide a better basis for regulatory and other decisions. Just how far it succeeded is not easy to judge because of the wide range of effects covered. The book demonstrates, however, that 'lack of ade- quate data' is a relative concept, reflecting the gaps in existing knowledge rather than the actual amount of information available. Certainly there is a lot of useful data here and its location is helped by a reasonable subject index.

Several of the nine conference sessions were con- cerned with the maturation of specific organ systems or of metabolic functions. Others considered devel- opmental changes in absorption through the skin, lungs and gastro-intestinal tract. Of the remaining sessions, one dealt specifically, but briefly, with pes- ticide exposure and the other with some epi- demiological approaches.

The text, in general, illustrates the dependence of age-related toxicity on two specific groups of factors--on the one hand, the variations in exposure (or access of the toxin to the target organ) resulting from changes in absorption, metabolism, excretion and so on, and on the other hand, the direct effects of immaturity on the degree of vulnerability of a given target organ compared with the situation in the adult. One sacred cow that seems to have fallen victim to the critical approach of this meeting is the familiar generalization about faster-growing animals necessarily being more susceptible than others to injurious substances.

Although the attention of the conference centred on human development, the need to consider inter- species differences and to glean clues from all possible sources has led to the inclusion of much animal data. However, the wide interspecies differences in rates of growth and in the maturation times of specific organ systems in relation to birth adds another compli- cation to the always difficult process of extrapolating animal data to man.

This fascinating insight into the complexities of the toxicology of immaturity ends with a plea for more interdisciplinary efforts in this field of study. It should perhaps be obligatory reading for those who seek to reduce toxicology to simple collections of negative and positive assessments.

IARC Monographs on the Evaluation of the Carcino- genic Risk of Chemicals to Humans: Vol. 27, Some Aromatic Amines, Anthraquinones and Nitroso Com- pounds, and Inorganic Fluorides Used in Drinking- water and Dental Preparations (1982), pp. 341, Sw.fr. 40.00); Vol. 29, Some Industrial Chemicals and Dyestuffs (1982, pp. 416, Sw.fr. 60.00); Vol. 30, Miscellaneous Pesticides (1983, pp. 424, Sw.fr. 60.00); Vol. 31, Some Food Additives, Feed Additives and Naturally Occurring Substances (1983, pp. 314, Sw. fr. 60.00). International Agency for Research on Cancer, Lyon.

Nothing, apparently, can slow the IARC's progress in assessing the carcinogenic risks that an ever- increasing range of chemicals may pose to man. The