Vol. 3  Iss. 5 
The Chemical Educator 
© 1998 Springer-Verlag New York, Inc. 
ISSN 1430-4171
S 1430-4171 (98) 05239-5 
Book Review
 
Instant Notes in Biochemistry

 Reviewed by
Terry L. Helser
Chemistry Department, S.U.N.Y. College @ Oneonta, Oneonta, NY 13820-4015
HELSERTL@oneonta.edu


Instant Notes in Biochemistry by B.D. Hames, N.M. Hooper & J.D. Houghton. BIOS Scientific Publishers Limited, Oxford. (1997). 374 pp.


This book does not claim to be a biochemistry textbook, but "is designed to give students rapid, easy access to the core factual material in a format which facilitates learning and rapid revision." Its 360 pages are divided into fourteen sections, each with several subsections, for a total of seventy topics the authors consider the core concepts in biochemistry. There are no obvious omissions, and they even include sections on immunology and recombinant DNA technology that many introductory texts lack. The order of topic presentation is unorthodox, with protein structure, enzymes, and immunology leading into molecular genetics, and biotechnology followed by carbohydrate and lipid structure and metabolism. It ends with nitrogen metabolism and some cell physiology topics. Thus, it does not follow the usual course or textbook design, but that may not be much of a problem, since readers can peruse them in any order they choose.

The book has the look of a web document without the hot links. Each topic is introduced with a box of "buttons" called Key Notes. The terms on the buttons are followed by definitions or short explanations, and the section and topic number of related topics follow these. I found myself wanting to click on the buttons to get to the topic of interest; it does not work. The authors suggest students read the main topic first and then use these notes as a "revision prompt," whatever that means. Since they occur first, not last, in each topic, they seem to be designed as lecture notes, instead. They tell you what they are going to say, then they say it, but they do not tell you what they said. You have to supply the summary. The authors suggest the margins be used for notes, but the space left is suitable only for those who can write in a 10 point or smaller font.

As for illustrations, these have been deliberately minimized, both in number and complexity. Except for the buttons and the rare cell part, biochemistry is a colorless, flat diagram here. While the authors avow this is to make them easier for students to remember and instructors to incorporate in exams, I suspect printing costs may have overcome pedagogic value. In this age of visual learners (as if no such learning occurred previously), illustrations are more, not less, vital to understanding concepts. As with most textbooks, the molecular structures are two-dimensional. They could be made more accurate with text sizing, etc. to at least give them some depth. Finally, the pathways in glycolysis and gluconeogenesis are reduced to names, but no structures are provided. This is not a productive omission because chemically inclined students need to see the changes in the molecules to understand these pathways. If this absence is intentional, then why are structures given for the Krebs Cycle, pentose phosphate pathway, etc.? Curious.

A minimal list of references, in keeping with the focus of the book, is included at the back. All are very recent, with the earliest in the 1980s and the vast majority from the 1990s. A useful and accurate index ends the book.

In summary, Instant Notes in Biochemistry could be effective for students needing a condensed version of topics in their textbook or for instructors needing a lecture outline for an unfamiliar topic. It is not a reference source with detailed information for the professional. Still, it would be a valuable addition to a personal library for anyone needing quick and easy background on biochemical topics, and should be available to students in your institutional library as well.