E K Silverman, S D Shapiro, D A Lomas, S T Weiss, Hodder Arnold, 2005.

This is an excellent new textbook on respiratory genetics – an area that has suddenly emerged over the last decade.

It is well written and divided into four clear sections:

Part 1 deals with key concepts in respiratory genetics – this section is targeted at nongeneticists and will not be of great interest to readers of this journal, but provides an excellent overview for the general respiratory clinician, and includes topics on Bioinformatics, including how to carry out a good Pub Med search, and a succinct guide to SNPs and microarrays. Other chapters cover pharmacokinetics and functional genomics.

Parts 2–4 cover three clinical respiratory disease sections – Part 2 covers obstructive lung disease – asthma, chronic pulmonary disease and cystic fibrosis are covered comprehensively. Part 3 deals with interstitial lung disease, Part 4 covers miscellaneous – including the genetics of lung cancer and rare lung diseases. The glossary is excellent for those not fully familiar with genetic terminology. Chapter references are indicated with an * or a diamond ⋄ depending on relevance and an excellent way to find a good reference quickly.

I enjoyed the miscellaneous section most – covering rare diseases and syndromes. It is up to date and includes discussion of causes of hereditary and sporadic pneumothorax including certain mutations in Birt-Hogg-Dubé syndrome – something that was not really recognised until recently.

There are only six colour plates – disappointing in a book of this size but overall, this is a great book for respiratory and interested general physicians. General clinical geneticists will find it useful to have a copy in the library for reference, and may find their laboratory colleagues having a look at the more clinical sections. This book should become the standard reference text in this area▪