At the molecular level scientific disciplines interlock. In this volume, which deals with fundamentals of disordered metabolism as they relate to clinical manifestations, endocrine topics predominate. Ectopic hormones, thyroid, ovary, LATS, and erythropoietin comprise two thirds of the contents. Autoimmunity commands the chapter on thyroid antibodies; experimental biology, that on diabetes and obesity in laboratory rodents; and "high" biochemistry and enzymology permeate the chapters on ketogenesis and the hypoglycemia induced by ethanol.
Surveying the literature, to which they themselves have made significant contributions, the authors provide critical comment, draw conclusions, and postulate hypotheses. Cogent on the whole, some of their views, such as Renold's on the sequence of events in the pathogenesis of diabetes and obesity, are open to challenge.
Involving several disciplines, the book is unavoidably uneven in length of discussions and depth of analyses. The reader must selectively extract information according to his interest and grasp of basic