This volume contains the lectures and seminars presented at the NATO Advanced Study Institute on Lasers in Biology and Medicine organized by the International School of Quantum Electronics at the Villa Le Pianore, Camaiore, Italy, August 19-31, 1979. Most laser applications in biology and medicine are highly interdisciplinary in nature, drawing from and pertaining to such diverse fields as the physical sciences ( (bio)physics, (bio)chemi stry) , engineering, the biological sciences (cellular research, photobiology) and finally theoretical and clinical medicine. Indeed the group of participants of the summer school did reflect this diversity both in background and interest. The presentations con tained in this volume mainly fall into two categories: tutorial lectures on the most important general subjects, intended to lay a common base for all participants, and a number of more advanced con tributions, serving the purpose of exemplifying selected but typical applications in their current state of development. Intense inter communication, lively discussion, and here and there even future cooperation were the general aims more than a detailed in-depth discussion of one or the other aspect of this large field. In this sense it is the hope of the organizing committee that, despite the inevitable limitations, a broad and reasonably representative cov erage of the field has been achieved and that this volume may be a valuable aid for newcomers to get a good start into this complex subject area for some years to corne.

Inhalt
1 Laser Sources.- 2 Optics and Fibers.- 3 Interaction Between Laser Radiation and Biological Systems.- 4 Interaction of Laser Light with Living Systems: Some Basic Guide Lines.- 5 Thermal Modelling in Biological Tissues.- 6 Laser Related Heat Effects on Blood Vessels.- 7 Quasi Elastic Light Scattering from Macromolecules in Solution.- 8 Quasi Elastic Light Scattering Studies of Model Bile Systems.- 9 Time Resolved Fluorescence Spectroscopy and Diffusion of Biological Molecules.- 10 Lasers in Microfluorometry and Selective Photobiology.- 11 Flow Cytometry: An Overview.- 12 Vibrational Spectroscopy in Biology: Some New Concepts.- 13 Towards Selective Laser Photochemistry of Biomolecules.- 14 Fast Reactions in Photosynthesis.- 15 Laser Flash Photolysis of Molecules of Medical Relevance.- 16 Laser Microbeam Studies on the Structure and Function of the Cell Nucleus.- 17 Fluorescence Recovery after Photobleaching: Lateral Mobility of Lipids and Proteins in Model Membranes and on Single Cell Surfaces.- 18 Unsolved Problems in Photobiology.- 19 Photosensitization of Organisms, with Special Reference to Natural Photosensitizers.- 20 Perspectives of Laser Applications in Dermatology.- 21 Development of Instrumentation for Surgery with Carbon Dioxide Lasers.- 22 Laser Surgery: The State of the Art.- 23 CO2 Laser Surgery.- 24 The CO2Laser in Neurosurgery.- 25 Endoscopic High Power Neodynium-Yag Laser Irradiation for Control of Acute Gastrointestinal Haemorrhage.- 26 Laser in Ophthalmology.- 27 Ophthalmic Uses of Lasers.- 28 Laser Safety: Past and Present Problem Areas.- 29 Lasers in Medicine and Biology: Concluding Round Table Summary.- Contributors.