At the end of the 20th century, a tremendous progress was made in
biotechnology in its widest sense. This progress was largely possible as
a result of joint efforts of top academic researchers in both pure
fundamental sciences and applied research. The surplus value of such
interdisciplinary approaches was clearly highlighted during the 9th
European Congress on Biotechnology that was held in Brussels, Belgium
(11-15 July, 1999). The present volume in the 'Focus on Biotechnology'
series, entiteld 'Physics and Chemistry Basis for Biotechnology'
contains selected presentations from this meeting, A collection of
experts has made serious efforts to present some of the latest
developments in various scientific fields and to unveil prospective
evolutions on the threshold of the new millenium. In all contributions
the emphasis is on emerging new areas of research in which
physicochemical principles form the foundation. In reading the different
chapters, it appears that more than ever significant advances in
biotechnology very often depend on breakthroughs in the biotechnology
itself (e.g.