BOOK REVIEWS

RECOMMENDED TEXT publication details KI's for some 4500 compounds of toxicological interest! In spite of these criticisms these two - chapters are a useful guide to the analysis of drugs, being

Gas Chromatography in Forensic Science well referenced and describing the relative merits of Ian Tebbett, ed different systems advocated for the different drug groups. (Ellis Horwood, Chichester, 1992, 188 pp, index, ISBN

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0 13 327198 6) The chapter on alcohol analysis and other volatiles

This is another book published by Ellis Horwood in their Forensic Science Series and compares favourably with its companion volumes. The presentation is of a good standard with clear diagrams and each chapter is well referenced. There are six chapters, the first describing the theoretical basis of gas chromatography, and the remainder the applications of the technique. There is a large emphasis on the analvsis of drugs of abuse both as abuse samples and as - toxicological items. The application of gas chromatography to arson and explosive analysis and the use of pyrolysis gas chromatography represent the other two areas covered by this book.

The purpose of this volume is more difficult to define. If it is to inform the practising forensic scientist then much of the information should already be known to him/her but if it is aimed at the new recruit into the profession or the University student, the book forms a sound basis to the technique and its applications.

The first chapter on the theoretical concepts is well written and soundly, although selectively, constructed with few typographical errors. For some readers however it might have been useful to include a section on how one chooses an instrument. By what criteria does one judge whether an instrument is suitable for the purpose for which it is to be purchased?

Chapters two and three are concerned with the analysis of drugs and one wonders whether there might have been some - -

advantages in combining these chapters or at least reaching an agreement as to what was to be covered since there seems to be, inevitably, some duplication, for example, the use of derivatisation procedures. The former chapter has a number of typographical errors, especially relating to formulae (eg. alkylating agents instead of acylating agent) and some of the text is written in the first person singular. There is one named worker without a reference. There is also a feeling that the authors are not so conversant with the use of the term separation number which is a means of assessing column efficiency. It goes without saying that the more efficient the system the larger the separation number and the better will it resolve drugs of abuse. The reviewer is also unaware of anyone called Trannzahl (p 39). Most screening for drugs of abuse either as such or as toxicological samples will use temperature programmed conditions. The formula given in chapter 2 for Kovats Indices does not apply under these conditions. Moreover, recent work would suggest that better results are obtained by using a mixture of drugs as the Kovats standards in place of hydrocarbons. There is no mention of the use of Kovats Indices (KI) as of relevance to toxicology yet a recent

concentrates more on the former than the latter for obvious reasons. The analytical side is well covered but the "interpretation of results and court testimony" section is rather weak and very much orientated to the American viewpoint. There is no mention of the "laced drink" nor "post accident alcohol consumption" defences neither are there any comments on the problems of "back calculations". The area of "solvent abuse" is very sparsely covered.

The best chapter in the book is the one by Dr Mary Fulzer and John DeHaan on the application of gas chromatography to arson and explosive analysis with an emphasis on the former. The chapter sets the scene well and systematically relates the collection of samples, the recovery of accelerants and the chromatographic process with excellent sections on the interpretation of the analytical results. The chapter is also very well referenced.

The final chapter covers the area of pyrolysis gas chromatography and while informative one is left with the feeling it could have been increased with a fuller explanation of the contents of some of the quoted references. How specific pyrogrammes are for a definitive identification of polymeric materials in a variety of matrices was never really and clearly described. As a technique, with enormous potential for a variety of analyses, its importance was never really emphasised. However, this was the only chapter which attempted to describe future developments which were associated with the field of supercritical fluid chromatography and extraction.

In conclusion, this book will be a useful adjunct to a collection of books on gas chromatography which will serve the forensic scientist as a useful reference source. It will be particularly valuable to students of forensic science and to novices in the field. I would expect it to be amongst the recommended books for University students undertaking courses of forensic science.

HOW THE LITTLE MOUSE PROGRESSES

Muscle Biopsy-A Laboratory Investigation Mike Loughlin (Butterworth Heinemann, Oxford, 1993, 242 pp, index, 0 7506 1406 4; £35.00)

This book is divided into six chapters which follow a brief introduction to the equipment required for a laboratory handling muscle biopsy specimens. The first chapter gives a useful concise introduction to the structure and function of

JFSS 1993; 33(4): 253-258