Mutagens and Carcinogens in the Diet

however, it is well written, with excellent transitions from one chapter to the next, and the historical approach used by the authors makes the book timeless. I recommend that everyone interested in understanding the mechanisms of G-protein signal transduction read this volume. Pariza notes in the preface that legislative and regulatory initiatives aimed at controlling or eliminating carcinogens from the food supply are focused mainly upon synthetic substances. The purpose of this symposium is to review and "discuss current information on naturally occurring mutagens, carcinogens, and modulators of mutagens, and/or carcinogens in the diet." The work is divided into five sections, covering the following topics: Thermally Formed Mutagens and Carcinogens (seven chapters), Antimutagens and Anticarcino-gens (six chapters), Carcinogenic Mechanisms (four chapters), Legislative Perspectives (three chapters), and Monitoring Methodology (two chapters). Each chapter is written by a different group of authors; hence, the book is not cohesive. The two largest sections, however, contain excellent introductory chapters which provide background information and summarize recent advances in the field. The chapters are not review articles. Each author presents the latest results of his or her laboratory investigations. There is one exception to this rule: the chapter inappropriately titled "Opportunities for Nutritional Scientists in Cancer Prevention" is an excellent review of the relationship between fat and cancer. Most chapters focus upon the modulatory effects of specific chemicals on mutagenesis and/or carcinogen-esis in various tissue culture or animal models. No chapter presents new epidemio-logic information. Seven chapters investigate the mutagenic/carcinogenic potential of heterocyclic amines (also called the aminoimidazoazaarenes or AlAs). AIAs can be generated either by cooking vertebrate muscle to 100°C to 300°C, or by heating mixtures of creatine or creatinine with various amino acids and/or sugars. All of these AlAs are genotoxic upon metabolic activation in many in vitro assays, and most are carcinogenic when fed to rodents. There is no doubt that humans are exposed to AIAs when they eat cooked meat, but further investigation must determine the magnitude of this carcinogenic risk. The section Antimutagens and Anticarcinogens investigates chemicals from a variety of dietary sources. Conjugated linoleic acid, derived from grilled hamburger, is an effective antioxidant both in vitro and in vivo, as is sesaminol, derived from refined sesame salad oil. Soybeans inhibit the appearance of mammary tumors in a rat model of breast cancer. The active agents in soybean are the isoflavones, which