Medical molecular biology is a comprehensive and rapidly progressing field dealing with the structure/function relationship of bio-macromolecules, providing a general basis for or an important linkage between disciplines. Intensive studies in medical molecular biology may not only help to expound the nature of eukayotic cell growth, differentiation, development, and apoptosis, but may also allow a completely new understanding of the mechanisms underlying the progression and prognosis of diseases. With an e ye to the trends of basic medical research in China, research is directed at such important topics as the structure, function, expression of human genes and their protein products, the regulation of eukaryotic gene expression as well as signal transduction n.