Prefaces tend to be platitudinous and unconducive to perusal. To this
hardened Editor, the appearance of the book represents the end of a
stamina-testing saga surpassing any past experience. Amongst the
numerous authors - a notably eminent bevy - some were angelic and others
suffered harassment to produce, amidst day-to-day pressures, an eventual
article in the cause of receptor investigation; few took exception to
the strong editing that their material underwent. The reader of this
book will be interested rather in its aims and ba- ground.- Does it
merit a n his bookshelf? The book is not a 'Proceedings', but has
sponsored-meeting parentage. Wi th company support, notably from BetaHED
Pharmaceuti- cals of Indianapolis, the 8th International Subcellular
Hethodology Forum was held in July 1982 at the University of Surrey in
Guildford. The vigorous debates, partly on aspects such as hormonal
receptors and drug targeting, then narrowed to Neuroreceptor Hethodology
at a NATO Advanced Research Workshop, perforce set up at short notice.
But 'Proceedings' are proverbially ephemeral material reflecting an
array of solo performances, whereas this book is hopefully more like an
orchestra's performance, of classical together with new material.
Retrievability of receptor 'know-how' has been a key aim. Locations in
the text, including comments and supplementary material (designated
'NC'), are thoroughly indexed, whilst for some aspects a 'Retrieval Key'
(p. 545) should be used. Related to receptor methodo- logy, receptor
features and phenomena get due attention in the text.