Some years ago a book reviewer, perhaps with Freudian honesty, remarked that the book in question 'filled a much needed gap in the literature'. That phrase has haunted the writing of this gap-filler and this preface may be considered an apologia. For a number of years I have found myself teaching various groups of students about cell locomotion and cell behaviour: sometimes science students specializing in cell or molecular biology, sometimes immunologists or pathologists who only wanted a broad background introduction. Those students who were enthusiastic, or who wished to appear so, asked for a general background text (to explain my lectures perhaps), and that is what I hope this book will provide. With luck, other scientists who have only a peripheral interest in cell movement will also find this a useful overview. The more proximate origin of the book was a special 'option' subject which I taught for two years to our Senior Honours Cell Biology students in Glasgow.

This book describes the latest molecular and genetic advances in the study of one of the most fundamental, and yet least understood, processes of life: the movement of cells. Cell locomotion lies at the basis of embryological development, wound healing, and the spread of cancers. The recent advances in identifying the molecular components of cell motility can be found in many publications, but this text uniquely provides a synthesis of the molecular and phenomenological aspects that will be required for an understanding of the controlling processes that underlie cell behavior. The book will benefit final-year students studying molecular/cell biology but it is primarily aimed at graduate research workers, in all biomolecular sciences, who need to understand the wider implications of their research. Besides cell and molecular biologists, these will include workers in oncology, vascular biology, tissue repair, and cell engineering.

Introduces cells, discussing their structure, life cycle, and what they can do.