Cell Biology

  • T. Pollard &
  • W. Earnshaw
Saunders: 2002. 834 pp. $59.95/£34.99. Electronic Image Collection (CD-ROM) $395/£425

Do we need another cell-biology textbook? After all, the classic Molecular Biology of the Cell by Alberts et al. (Garland Science, 2002) is still going strong in its fourth edition; and Molecular Cell Biology by Lodish et al. (W. H. Freeman, 2000) and The Cell: A Molecular Approach by Cooper (Sinauer, 2000) are worthy alternatives. So there is no excuse for cell biologists, be they undergraduates or cutting-edge researchers, not to have a broad knowledge of their field. What, then, does this new textbook, Cell Biology by Pollard and Earnshaw, have to offer?

Cellular structures, such as the nuclear envelope, are important even in the post-genomic era.

The first thing that struck me is that this is not a book about cells. Go to the index and you won't find any neurons, glia, chromaffin cells, keratinocytes, melanocytes, hepatocytes, myoblasts or hair cells. This is partly due to the poor indexing, but mainly it reflects the book's molecular emphasis. With a few exceptions, such as the cells of the blood and connective tissues, there is little detailed information about the biology of cells, and how cells are adapted for their functions in tissues and organisms. For this you'll have to go to a specialized text such as Cell Movements by Dennis Bray (Garland Science, 2000).

Unashamedly, Cell Biology is about molecules. As such it is a magnificent piece of work. Most of the chapters begin with the structures and family trees of the key molecules. In this post-genomic era, this is the logical way to organize our knowledge of biology. The danger is that the approach can be dry. But by focusing on mechanisms and principles, the book shows the connections between different cells, and between the different organisms. And this is gratifying.

Perhaps the most stunning feature of the book is its illustrations. Molecules leap out from every page. Proteins, DNA, membranes and small molecules are all beautifully rendered by Graham Johnson. Atomic structures are used when available. In each figure, molecules are drawn in proportion to create a vivid impression of the scale and intricacy of the cell's building blocks . And the book is lavishly illustrated with electron micrographs, many from Don Fawcett, one of the pioneers of cell biology. This goes a long way to redress the molecular bias. All of the illustrations are available on the accompanying CD-ROM.

Have the authors got their facts straight? For the most part, yes — this is a very scholarly text. But there are notable exceptions. For example, Figure 1.1A is a phylogenetic tree showing the radiation of the Eubacteria, Archaebacteria and the Eucarya on the basis of rRNA-sequence comparisons. But the structure of this tree has been dramatically altered as a result of recent developments in molecular phylogeny. The problem is not that the information is out of date; biology is a living subject, so this is inevitable. Rather, this example illustrates how important it is to not present hypotheses as fact. Another example is the promulgation of the common misconception that the microtubule is the only cytoskeletal polymer that can resist compression. Yet the protrusion of moving cells is driven by the polymerization of actin filaments that must act in compression. One of my pet peeves is about units: there is no place for non-SI units such as the centimetre, and the use of the mole runs counter to the molecular spirit of the today's biology.

Now to the bottom line. First, Cell Biology is short, only half the length of Alberts et al. Second, it is based in bioinformatics and protein structure. And third, it contains a lot of data upon which knowledge in cell biology is based. The sections on the cytoskeleton and the cell cycle, Pollard and Earnshaw's research fields, are particularly strong in this respect. Thus Cell Biology is a higher-level textbook than Molecular Biology of the Cell. The illustrations and the inclusion of kinetics make it a superb choice for an advanced undergraduate or graduate textbook in cell biology. It is essential reading for all workers in the field.

More biology textbooks 

Molecular Biology of the Cell, 4th edn. A Problems Approach by John Wilson & Tim Hunt Garland Science, £18.99, $33.95 Study Companion to Molecular Biology of the Cell.

Molecular Principles of Animal Development by Alfonso Martinez Arias & Alison Stewart Oxford University Press, £28.99