The Major Transitions in Evolution by J. Maynard Smith; E. SzathmáryReview by: Jan ZimaFolia Geobotanica & Phytotaxonomica, Vol. 31, No. 4 (1996), pp. 533-534Published by: SpringerStable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/4181496 .

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Bookreviews 533

V. Loeschcke, J. Tomiuk & S. K. Jain (eds.): CONSERVATION GENETICS; Birkhauser Verlag, Basel, Boston, Berlin, 1994, 440 pp. Price SFR 138.-, DEM 158.-, ISBN 3-7643-2939-4

It is a generally known fact that, in nature conservation practice, conventional wisdom and empirical experience prevail as the background for important decisions, and protection of habitats in reserves is a basic approach. In the last decade, population and evolutionary genetics have contributed to conservation biology in numerous ways, and provided surveys of genetic diversity, a basic theory to understand the mechanisms that bring about evolutionary changes, and allow us to analyse the evolutionary fate of small populations and to develop management guidelines for the protection of endangered taxa in situ and ex situ. Population and evolutionary genetics can significantly contribute to an integrated concept of biodiversity conservation.

An important account of basic concepts in the above field is provided in the volume under review. The introduction by G. Vida stresses the utmost importance of preserving genetic variation in our changing world.

Part II is concerned with the relationships between genetic variation and fitness and its implication for conservation. A contribution by W. Gabriel & R. Buirger, Extinction risk by mutational meltdown: synergistic effects between population regulation and genetic drift, should be mentioned as a very stirnulating study. Part III deals with inbreeding, population structure, and social interactions. The importance of this section can be demonstrated by merely citing some of the contributions: C. Glidden & J. Goulet, The genetic structure of metapopulations and conservation biology; T. P. Hauser et al., Effects of inbreeding in small plant populations. In Part IV molecular approaches to conservation are presented. With reference to the explosive progress in this particular field, none of the contributions in this section seems to be able to "survive" more than a few years. However, L. Witting et al. give an interesting theoretical framework to efforts to minimize the loss of biodiversity.

The concluding three sections are devoted to selected case studies, some of them of great interest for plant conservationists, and to practical aspects of diversity conservation (sampling strategies, botanical gardens). The final part contains a selection of scenarios as outlines of some important topics illustrating significant ecological and population genetic options and developments in conservation biology.

Jan Kirschner

J. Maynard Smith & E. Szathmary: THE MAJOR TRANSITIONS IN EVOLUTION; WH. Freeman, Oxford, New York, Heidelberg, 1995, xiv + 346pp. Price GBP 16.99, ISBNO-7167-4525

Living organisms are highly complex, and are composed of parts that function to ensure the survival and reproduction of the whole. In their new book, Maynard Smith and Szathmary address the question of how and why this complexity has increased in the course of evolution. The basic thesis is that the increase depended on a small number of major transitions in the way in which genetic information is transmitted between generations. The major transitions have certain features in common. The most important of these is that entities capable of independent replication can replicate only as part of a larger whole after the transition.

The major transitions discussed in the book include changes from replicating molecules to populations of molecules in compartments; from independent replicators to chromosomes; from RNA as gene and enzyme to DNA and protein system; from prokaryotes to eukaryotes; from asexual clones to sexual populations; from protists to complex multicellular organisms; from solitary individuals to colonies; from primate societies to human society with language ability. The idea of levels of organization, and hence levels of selection, is central to this book. Perhaps the most important transition of all is that between organisms in which both genetic material and enzymes were RNA (the RNA world) and modern organisms in which the genetic material is DNA and enzymes are proteins. In this transition, a division of labour has evolved that requires that there be coding and translation. A second transition of extreme importance, which also involves a change in the language whereby information is transmitted and in the physical medium that carries the language, is the origin of human speech. The authors accept this as being the decisive step in the origin of specifically human society.

The book is the first comprehensive review of the major transitions in the evolution of life. It is written in a clear style and readers can learn a lot about various questions of current evolutionary biology, in spite of the fact that many answers still remain speculative. It seems to me that there are several reasons to consider the

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534 Bookreviews

book a milestone of evolutionary thinking in this century. Its logical framework shows clearly that evolutionary biology is actually an integral part of science, with complete ability to generate hypotheses which can be tested and falsified. This assumption is particularly related to the role of natural selection in evolution, and to conceptual relationships between the processes of micro- and macroevolution. The comprehensive approach taken in the book is further extremely important for understanding both biological and cultural evolution, and it promotes a dialogue between evolutionary biology and various branches of the social sciences. Finally a note about the authors: the first author, J. Maynard Smith, has become a classic of evolutionary biology. He was a pupil of J.B.S. Haldane and a continuator of the work of famous Anglo-Saxon evolutionists of this century. He tends to approach biological problems from the point of view of natural history. The second author, E. Szathmary, is a relatively young scientist, originally from eastern Europe. He is engaged mainly in biochemistry and the physical sciences. The book that resulted from their collaboration is a good example of the importance of the division of labour, cooperation, and mutualism in evolution.

Jan Zima

B. Herrmann & S. Hummel (eds.): ANCIENT DNA; Springer Verlag, New York, etc., 1994, 263 pp. Price DEM 68.-, ATS 530.40, SFR 68.-, ISBN 0-540-94308-0

The book reviewed describes the recovery and analysis of genetic material from paleontological, archaeological, museum, medical, and forensic specimens. The detection of DNA in ancient remains has opened up new research possibilities during the last five years. The monograph Ancient DNA is the first review covering this new field of biological science. Ancient DNA (aDNA) is characterised as any DNA that has undergone autolytic or diagenetic processes or any kind of fixation. It could be DNA from organism that lived millions of years ago or DNA from last summer's herbarium specimen. The book is divided into 17 chapters. Most of them - 17 - concern sample preparation from various sources. DNA extraction from arctic human burials, amber inclusions or from feathers of extinct birds is described.

DNA preparation from herbarium specimens or from plant compression fossils is the most interesting topic for botanists. The successful isolation of the DNA from the leaf of a 17-million-year Magnolia is mentioned. The laboratory protocol for ancient DNA extraction resembles that for DNA isolation from living plants. The main problem is to confirm the authenticity of aDNA. To avoid contamination of samples is very difficult. Sometimes primeval contamination presents an inherent part of the fossil specimen. The best criterion of authenticity is the sequence of fossil DNA that must differ from all potential contaminants. DNA extraction from ancient specimens is not so complicated but the final confirmation of authenticity requires laboratory equipment suitable for DNA sequencing. Nevertheless more and more taxonomists and other biologists will use these new possibilities to solve old problems. The analysis of ancient DNA - fossil or subrecent - would contribute to the construction of more realistic phylogenetic trees in near future.

Helena Storchova

D.N. Pegler, T. Laesse & B.M. Spooner: BRITISH PUFFBALLS, EARTHSTARS AND STINKHORNS. An account of the British gasteroid fungi; Royal Botanic Gardens Kew, 1995, 255 p., 157 fig. (including 74 maps). Price not given, ISBN 0-947643-81-8

Persistent interest in gasteroid fungi like puffballs, earthstars and others provokes mycologists to produce various studies, local floras or monographs on this subject. The m-ost recent one is reviewed here.

This book on British gasteromycetes covers only epigeous species because hypogeous gasteroid fungi were treated in a special study by D.N. Pegler, B.M. Spooner and T.W.S. Young in 1993 (British Truffles). In the reviewed book, all species covered are described and illustrated with distribution maps, which are very valuable.

The illustrations include line-drawings (mostly microstructures) and coloured photographs (about one third of which, however, are from non-British collections). Especially beautiful are Scleroderma bovista, S.

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