Customer Reviews

Pigment of the Imagination: A History of Phytochrome Research

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Hold the phone fellow Phytonerds!.... Here is your definitive skip along the Aqua/Teal Brick Road leading to the Oz of plant photobiology. Ms. Sage has done one heckuva job here in compiling the story of Phytochrome, the Wondercule. She has traveled the world to interview the living major players of phytochrome research in an effort to drain their brains of the scientific and anecdotal information regarding the story of this fascinating photoreceptor first discovered in plants. Phytochrome is immensely important to normal plant development. With both Pr and Pfr playing center stage, you are treated to one of plant biology's finest sagas of ongoing discovery. Flowering, seed germination, gene regulation, and lots more fill these pages with text and data that just itch to grab at your own photoreceptors. However, this field is clearly hitting the ground with its feet running, since this text is now already way out of date. But a little more digging after you depart here will easily bring you up to speed. The land of Chrome awaits you, so punch your card and get on the bus!

Today's whiny molecular biology brats will benefit from a review of the history of phytochrome, a molecule discovered through hard-core brute-force bucket biochemistry and the investment of millions of combined work hours. Careers were made and lost in pursuit of an understanding of a light sensitive trigger; a molecule that could be switched between active and inactive states depending on prevailing wavebands. The book gives us all a perspective of the brilliant hypotheses posed and tested, the behind-the-scenes thinking of scientific minds honed to attack a critical facet of plant biology.

Dittos to B.M.Parks (the above review) a guy that was there and featured in the text. From Borthwich, Spiegelman and Hendricks to Chory, Briggs and Quail, the text covers the gamut of players and their important contributions to understanding a critical molecule in plant biology. A great story, not just for scientists.