As in previous symposia, some current research topics were selected for review and eight invited papers were presented. For the first time a paper was presented on the historical aspects of Rotiferology, covering European research between 1680-1950. A special workshop session was devoted to a debate on a controversial topic: Rotifer Phylogeny. The workshop resulted in a very successful discussion and the integration of scattered evidence and hypotheses on the phylogenetic origin of rotifers, the relationships between major rotifer groups, and the mechanisms of evolution.

The Fifth International Rotifer Symposium was organized by Dr. Claudia Ricci and held in the northern Italian town of Gargnano (Brescia) from September 12-17, 1988. Through the generosity of the Rector of Milano University, a beautiful villa on the shores of Lake Garda was made available to the 83 people from 20 countries who attended the symposium. Ten of these rotifer workers had attended the four previous meetings. Such symposia serve three major functions, the results of which will be apparent in the papers contained in this volume. First, because of the heterogeneity of interests and absence of concurrent sessions, the attendees are exposed to an unusually large variety of research problems, approaches and modes of interpretation. Bridges are thus built between one's own investigations and developments in the field as a whole. Second, the extensive informal interactions that occur outside of the meeting room during coffee breaks, dinners and excursions provide remarkable opportunities for research planning and sharing of results of work in progress. Third, the acquaintances established at these meetings have facilitated interactions during the three-year intervals between symposia. The result has been that visits between laboratories, acquisition of research materials from distant sources and coordination of related investi gations have all been greatly enhanced. A description of the week's events may serve to convey the ambience of the meeting.

The fourth international rotifer symposium was Wednesday afternoon a tour of Edinburgh, includ held in Edinburgh, Scotland, August 18 - 25, 1985, ing a visit to the Palace of Holyrood, was arranged. hosted by the Institute of Terrestrial Ecology. This This was followed by an evening banquet with meeting continued the tradition of holding rotifer traditional Scottish entertainment. On Thursday symposia at three-year intervals. The first an evening most participants attended a fireworks dis nouncement of the fourth meeting was circulated at play which was part of the Edinburgh Festival. Fi the end of 1983 to almost 300 people whose names nally, an excursion to Loch Lomond and the Tros appeared on the mailing list of the international sach hills was arranged for the Saturday after the newsletter, Rotifer News. In total, 68 people from meeting. 23 countries attended the meeting. It is interesting The organisers would like to thank Mr. C. J. to note that, of these 68 participants, 21 had at Place and colleagues at the Institute of Terrestrial tended the first meeting, held in Linz, Austria, Ecology for their invaluable help in organising the 1976, and 13 had attended all three previous meet meeting and preparing the symposium volume for ings. publication. We are also grateful for financial sup As in previous symposia, some research topics port from the Royal Society, the British Council were identified in advance of the meeting as being and British Petroleum (Scotland).

The Proceedings of the Seventh International Rotifer Symposium, Rotifera VII, spans subjects from community ecology through biochemistry, from the most basic science through the most clearly applied technology. Some papers report exceptional progress in our knowledge of rotifer anatomy and biochemistry, as well as rotifer molecular biology, evolution and life histories. The book also contains an interesting article describing a hundred years of Polish contributions to rotiferology as well as papers discussing both general patterns of rotifer biogeography and rotifer distribution in different habitats, together with many aspects of the ecology of rotifer species, populations and communities. Audience: This update on rotifer taxonomy, biology and ecology will be of great interest to zoologists, especially hydrobiologists studying the structure and function of freshwater zooplankton.

Food webs describe the structure of communities and their energy flows, and they represent interactions between species in ecosystems. Recently, we have witnessed rapid development of techniques for both experimental studies and theoretical/computational studies on food webs as well as species interactions. This reprint book is focused on food chains and food webs in aquatic ecosystems, with seven papers published in the corresponding Special Issue of Applied Sciences. The topics include empirical studies on food chains and food webs as well as effects of environmental factors on organisms in aquatic ecosystems.

Marine Biopolymers: Processing, Functionality and Applications focuses on recent developments in the isolation, characterization, and processability of these materials for biomedical, nutraceutical, cosmetic, and regenerative medicine applications.The marine environment represents a huge single resource for the development of natural biobased materials with enhanced, well-characterized and multi-functional properties. The isolation, characterization, and processability of these materials are crucial for the development of the marine biotechnological industries. In recent years, novel biobased materials have been extracted from marine habitats that have been proven to have exceptional wound-healing characteristics and anti-cancer therapeutic benefits. Moreover, some components based on marine resources can play a key role in medicinal food applications, in cosmetics as well as in the pharmaceutical sector.Marine Biopolymers: Processing, Functionality and Applications is a valuable reference resource for scientific and academic researchers, industrial R&D and those working in the marine biotechnology industries that produce microalgae and natural bioproducts. The book will also be relevant for researchers working in aquaculture, biology, bioenergy, and biofuels production, as well as food and nutrition, cosmetics, and the pharmaceutical industry. - Provides key information on the characterization and functionalization of marine biopolymers - Covers processing, properties, and applications - Contains case study examples in a broad range of industrial sectors including biomedical, environmental, food science, agricultural, and textiles