, Jean ANDRE Universite de Paris XI, ORSAY, France. Sperm cells have long been considered as the most highly specialized of all living cells. They surely are, being very diverse, very complex, containing organelles which do not exist in any other cell -such as acrosome or crystallized mitochondria- and being endowed with a very unique behaviour, that is to meet and recognize the ovum, pierce its protective envelopes and inject into its cytoplasm a most precious deposit, the haploid genome of the species. It is Baccio Baccetti's merit to have felt the need for a confrontation of the scientists...

The NATO Advanced Study Institute on "Quantum Chemistry of Polymers; Solid State Aspects" lIIas held at the MARITIM Congress Hotel Braunlage/Harz in the Federal Republic of Germany from July 25 - August 5, 1983. We lIIish to express our deep gratitude to the NATO Scientific Affairs Division, the main sponsor of the Institute, and to the National Foundation for Cancer Research, Bethesda, Maryland for their substantial support. We sincerely thank Dr. Craig Sinclair, Director of the NATO Advanced Study Institutes program as lIIell as the IIIhole Advanced Study Institute/Advanced Research...

The NATO Advanced Study Institute on "Quantum Chemistry of Polymers; Solid State Aspects" lIIas held at the MARITIM Congress Hotel Braunlage/Harz in the Federal Republic of Germany from July 25 - August 5, 1983. We lIIish to express our deep gratitude to the NATO Scientific Affairs Division, the main sponsor of the Institute, and to the National Foundation for Cancer Research, Bethesda, Maryland for their substantial support. We sincerely thank Dr. Craig Sinclair, Director of the NATO Advanced Study Institutes program as lIIell as the IIIhole Advanced Study Institute/Advanced Research...

, Jean ANDRE Universite de Paris XI, ORSAY, France. Sperm cells have long been considered as the most highly specialized of all living cells. They surely are, being very diverse, very complex, containing organelles which do not exist in any other cell -such as acrosome or crystallized mitochondria- and being endowed with a very unique behaviour, that is to meet and recognize the ovum, pierce its protective envelopes and inject into its cytoplasm a most precious deposit, the haploid genome of the species. It is Baccio Baccetti's merit to have felt the need for a confrontation of the scientists...