8O BOOK REVIEWS bibliography and there is a very useful annotated bibliography at the end of the book. This book will undoubtedly be of interest to the biologist researching on organs in which membrane transport is of prime importance, and rewarding if one has the determination to understand the mathematical principles outlined for artificial membranes, and attempts to apply them to natur/d membranes. M. A. STOCKHAM CONJUGATES OF STEROID HOR- MONES. H. E. Hadd and R. T. Blicken- staff. Pp.xv +366. (1969). Academic Press, New York. $18.50. There has been a significant in- crease in interest in the synthesis, metabolism and analysis of steroid con- jugates and this work is a useful addition to the literature on the subject. The volume is a compilation of data which are presented partly in tabular and partly in descriptive form. There must be some reservations about the authors' claim that the references can be considered complete up to January 1968, for a rough check on this suggests they are not fully up-to-date. One further criticism is that the style is dull, but this must of course be balanced against the need to present all the necessary information in a concise fashion. The book opens with a review of the isolation and separation of steroid con- jugates. This is followed by chapters on the chemical and enzymatic synthesis of steroid sulphates, of steroid glucuron- ides, and on the properties of steroid phosphates. There is a final chapter on the metabolism of steroid conjugates, and it is to this, of course, that most of the recent references refer. The extensive tables are a mine of information, easy to read and they provide much of the justification for a work of this kind. C.B. ADVANCES IN ORGANIC CHEMIS- TRY: METHODS AND RESULTS. Editors: E. C. Taylor and H. Wynberg. VOL. 6. Pp. 432. + Cumulative index, Vols. 1-6. (1969). Interscience Publishers, London. f10.75. This is the latest in an Inter- science series of in-depth reviews principally concerned with synthetic methods. Peri-Atlantic treatment is assured by an editorial partnership of Princeton with Groningen. This volume, which contains one short and three long articles, has reversed the trend towards natural products enthusiastically noted in Vol. 5 [see J., 19 553 (1968)]. Two •ritish academics comprehen- sively (in 94 pp.) discuss the preparation and properties--predicted and actual-- of nonbenzenoid conjugated mono--and polycycles. Distinction of nonaromatic (4n) and aromatic (4n+2) •t electron systems is refined by discrimination between peripheral and central formally localised bonds, and includes multiple- charged monocyclic species such as the cyclobutadienyl dication. It is over 10 years since Ginsburg's exhaustive ac- count and this review is timely: there are 300 references through 1966, further updated by 75 citations in an addendum covering studies in 1967. A monumental chapter (125 pp.) from an author in the Japanese rayon industry describes the use of noble metal compounds in synthetic processes and preparations. There are 346 citations to 1966, supplemented by 129 more recent references with indications to appropri- ate sections of the text. Some space is saved by omitting the already well

BOOK REVIEWS 81 documented catalytic techniques for hydrogenation, dehydrogenation, oxida- tion and isomerization and the author wisely avoids the tempting diversion of discussing the background chemistry of the noble metal complexes. Neverthe- less, sufficient outline is provided to facilitate understanding of the authenti- cated reaction mechanisms described. A short contribution (23 pp., 64 refs.) from three workers with (US) Monsanto tersely summarizes the scattered and relatively sparse literature of electro- chemical preparations of cyclic com- pounds. Finally, from the University of Ottawa comes a wide ranging account (95 pp.) of the use of DMSO in organic synthesis. Initial interest (1950) in the influence on reaction rates of this highly polar solvent, was enhanced by dis- covery (1957) of mild oxidant properties, and three other nucleophilic decomposi- tion routes, for the dimethylsulphonium adducts and later (1962) by the reac- tions of the dimethylsulphinyl carban- ion. There are 259 references to the literature through 1967. Structural formulae are well set and it is easier to follow an allusion to them by the modern convention abandoning roman numerals but there is a potential source of confusion in the use of similar size arabic numerals (in slightly bolder type) for this purpose and (in plain type) for serial citation of references and equations in the text. The editors have upheld a reasonable homogeneity of style and it would be carping to single out trivial infelicities like "araliphatic olefins" in reference to aryl alkenes. There are extensive sub-subject and cited author indexes and a cumulative alphabetic list of the 36 topics in this and the preceding five volumes. G. F. PHILLIPS ORGANIC FUNCTIONAL GROUP PREPARATIONS. S. R. Sandler and W. Karo. Pp. xi + 578. {1969). Academic Press, New York. $18.50. •8.65. This also is a monograph in a general series {'Organic chemistry', edited by A. T. Blomquist) but in con- trast to the previously reviewed work it is a self-contained source of synthetic methods. Details are supplied of selected contemporary laboratory processes for preparing functional derivatives by a variety of reaction paths---oxidation, reduction, condensation, elimination, hydrolysis, etc. The book is organized by specific groups to facilitate employment by both academic and industrial organic chem- ists those responsible for synthesis of potential medicinal or cosmetic sub- stances should certainly find it useful. The chapters follow a conventional sequence of functions: hydrocarbons (alkane, arene, alkene, alkyne), oxygen {alcohol, phenol, ether), halogen, carbonyl (aidehyde, ketone, acid, ester, amide), cyanates, etc, nitrogen {amine, nitro, nitrile, NN systems) and sulphur {mercaptan, sulphide, sulphoxide, sulp- hone, sulphonic acids etc.). The chapters are sub-divided according to method type: for each type general examples are cited or tabulated and followed by expli- cit details for particular substances. It is refreshing to find guidance on the numerous variations on classic reactions --frequently elsewhere dismissed by the 'name' and a few, largely historical, references. The present authors have sought to be critical and selective, rather than attempt the impossible task of providing a comprehensive coverage. Selection criteria for the cited methods are wide applicability, high yield, relative ease and safety of operation. Special mention is made of toxicity or