3 5 2 BOOK REVIEW much more completely elsewhere, fre- quently by these authors. This is, how- ever, the one section which argues against the general criticism noted earlier, namely that the volume is directed exclusively to "bioprocess" technology. Hanna's Applied Genetics for Biochemical Engineering: Recombinant DNA again suffers from the conflict between the needs of a short course and the norms for publishable material, at least at the level implied by the title. It is a workmanlike discussion at an introductory level. In Molecular Enzyme Engineering, Holmes offers a brief introduction to en- zyme structure and function. While this material is certainly not novel, the treat- ment is brief and clear. The author then moves on to areas which he believes will have a "major impact" on the enzyme in- dustry: (1) direct, chemical modification of enzymes to alter specificity, (2) the use of small, artificial enzymes to elucidate structure/function relationships, (3) syn- thesis of non-peptide enzyme-mimics, and (4) growing appreciation of the abilities of naturally occurring enzymes to demon- strate a much broader range of catalytic abilities than those which they exhibit in vivo. This chapter appeared to me to fulfill the promise of the book's title far more adequately than any other. Elander's brief (16 pages) discussion of Applied Genetics and Molecular Biology of ln- dustriM Microorganisms suffers from two se- rious ailments. First, the discussion is limited to the genetics of antibiotic-pro- ducing organisms. It ignores the many other important classes of "industrial mi- croorganisms." Furthermore, the author has presented essentially the same discus- sion in other, earlier contribution-type volumes. Again, this is clearly an impor- tant unit in the course, but publication-- or republication in this case--is not ap- propriate. The final three chapters are devoted to the recovery and purification of biologi- cally active molecules from either--or both--the cells in which they accumulate or the surrounding fluids. Belfort intro- duces this subject (Challenges and Opportu- nities in Product Recovery) in a well-crafted but somewhat unbalanced overview. Some methods receive only a minimal, descrip- tive treatment while others, apparently the author's favorites, are dealt with in great--and mathematically complex-- detail. Ladisch then discusses Separation by Sorption. This is a nicely organized and presented discussion of separation by liquid chromatography and, especially, scale-up of laboratory and pilot-level re- suits. Finally, Belfort returns with a com- prehensive overview of Membrane Separa- tion Technology. Perhaps I am only empha- sizing my own limited knowledge, but I found this chapter to be much more inclu- sive and well-balanced than the same au- thor's preceding one. So, we have a "book"--or more accu- rately an introduction plus nine indepen- dent treatments of topics which, with a couple of exceptions, relate only to one aspect of biotechnology, and hence, bio- chemical engineering. I can sum up my reaction quite simply: I would like to take the RPI course but I cannot justify buying the book! For readers of this journal, one of the first books entitled "Biochemical Engineering," that by F. C. Webb (Van Nostrand, London/New York, 1964), is a far better bet. Unfortunately it is now out of print but should be available in larger corporate and academic libraries.- ELMER L. GADEN, JR. Department of Chemical Engineering, University of Vir- ginia.

j. Soc. Cosmet. Chem., 38, 353-358 (September/October 1987) Abstracts The Annual Scientific Meetings and Seminars of the Society of Cosmetic Chemists are important venues for informing the participants about the state of the art and recent technical advances in the field of Cosmetic Science. To provide broader dissemination of that information, the Publi- cations Committee has decided to publish abstracts of the technical presentations made at these Meetings and Seminars in theJournaL--The Editor. Society of Cosmetic Chemists Annual Meeting December 3-4, 1987 The Waldorf-Astoria, New York Program arranged by the Society's Committee on Scientific Affairs Carl B. Felger, Ph.D., Chairman, 1987 SCIENTIFIC SESSION A HUMAN INFLAMMATORY RESPONSE Animal models of skin irritation: Perspectives on testing procedures and inflammatory mech- anisms for cosmetic formulatots Esther Patrick, Ph.D., Dept. of Dermatology, Box 0989, University of California, San Francisco, CA 94143 Animal models have been used extensively for screening cosmetic, drug, and household products for their ability to produce skin irritation. Methods, such as the Draize skin irritation test and its modi- fications, endorsed by regulatory agencies, have been used for 40 years to screen materials for the ability to produce acute skin irritation and or skin corrosion. Assays such as the guinea pig immersion test and formalin-trypan blue tests have provided information on the irritation potential of materials following repeated contact with the skin. Recent investigations in our laboratory have provided evi- dence that topically applied chemicals do not pro- duce irritant inflammation by a single common in- flammatory pathway. The existence of multiple in- flammatory pathways, the activities of the putative mediators of irritation, and the processes which reg- ulate mediator effects provide some insight into why some chemicals produce cumulative irritation while others produce skin "hardening." Informa- tion describing the inflammatory process may be useful to formulators in choosing ingredients which have low irritation potentials for cosmetics. Predic- tive irritation tests will be reviewed in terms of their evaluation of acute and cumulative irritation and relevance for materials to be applied to dam- aged skin. SCIENTIFIC SESSION C GENERAL PAPERS Antimicrobial optimization in anionic skin cleansers Linda J. Bartelme and Connie J. Callander, Minne- tonka Corp., P.O. Box 1A, Minnetonka, MN 55343 Various cosmetic additives of experimental skin cleansers were examined for microbiological preser- vative interference. The addition of allantoin to an anionic surfactant composition resulted in reduced activity of the preservative system dependent on the concentration of allantoin. In another study, the antimicrobial activity of chloroxylenol was exam- ined in relation to the composition of a skin cleanser. The method used to demonstrate preserva- tive interference was based on the modified USP Antimicrobial Preservatives Effectiveness Test. A 353