This volume contains papers presented at the Fourth International
Altschul Sympo- sium, held June 27-29, 1996, at the University of
Saskatchewan in Saskatoon, Saskatche- wan, Canada. The Altschul Symposia
Series are held in memory of Rudolf Altschul, a graduate of the
University of Prague and a pioneer in the fields of vascular and nervous
system biology. Dr. Altschul was head of the Department of Anatomy at
the University of Saskatchewan from 1955 to 1963. The Altschul Symposia
are made possible by an endow- ment left by Anni Altschul, Dr.
Altschul's wife, and by other contributions given by the sponsors listed
at the end of this Preface. The objective of the Fourth Altschul
Symposium, entitled Cell Biologv and Pathol- ogv of Myelin: Evolving
Biological Concepts and Therapeutic Approaches, was to facili- tate the
transfer of ideas on the biology and pathology of myelin from the
research laboratory to the clinic by providing a forum for discussing
the evolving biological con- cepts regarding myelin function in health
and disease.