The importance of competition for iron in the interactions between saprophytic microorganisms, pathogens and plants has been recognised for almost a decade. This has been reflected i.n an upsurge of publications on the topic over the last five years. Paradoxically, the subject was only touched upon during the International Congress of Plant Pathology held in 1983. In response to this apparent omission, a few of those most closely associated with the topic met one evening during which they resolved to organise a symposium devoted solely to the various aspects of iron uptake and its relation to plant disease. It was my privilege to be asked to undertake the task of convenor. &arly correspondence brought a wealth of positive replies to the proposal, particularly from Bob Schippers in Baarn. With the increasing costs of international symposia the need for a sponsor soon became apparent and an application to NATO was favourabiy received, following helpful advice from Dr. di Lullo, Advanced Research Workshop Programme Director, to whom all the participants in this Workshop owe a debt of gratitude.

Inhalt
Siderophores and Biological Systems: An Overview.- Iron Uptake Systems in Fungi.- Absorption, Transport and Metabolic Significance of Iron in Plants.- Iron-Efficiency Reactions of Monocotyledonous and Dicotyledonous Plants.- Siderophore Involvement in Plant Iron Nutrition.- The Effect of Pseudomonas Siderophores on Iron Nutrition of Plants.- The Facilitation of Iron Uptake in Bacteria and Plants by Substituted Catechols.- Diverse Effects of some Bacterial Siderophores on the Uptake of Iron by Plants.- Characterization and Structural Analysis of the Siderophore Produced by the PGPR Pseudomonas putida strain WCS358.- Physical, Biological and Host Factors in Iron Competition in Soils.- Importance of Siderophores in Microbial Interactions in the Rhizosphere.- Suppression of Root Diseases of Wheat by Fluorescent Pseudomonads and Mechanisms of Action.- Biological Control of Fusarium Wilts by Pseudomonasputida and its Enhancement by EDDHA.- Pyoverdine-Facilitated Iron Uptake among Fluorescent Pseudomonads.- Bacterial Siderophores: Structure of Pyoverdins and Related Compounds.- Methods of Studying Plant Growth Stimulating Pseudomonads: Problems and Progress.- Emergence-Promoting Rhizobacteria: Description and Implications for Agriculture.- Nature of Intrageneric Competition between Pathogenic and Non-Pathogenic Fusarium in a Wilt-Suppressive Soil.- Antagonism and Siderophore Production by Biocontrol Agents, Plant Growth Promoting Organisms and the General Rhizosphere Population.- Herbicide-Induced Interactions between Cereal Roots and Fluorescent Pseudomonas spp.- Iron as a Factor in Disease Development in Animals.- Stimulation of Disease Development by Siderophores and Inhibition by Chelated Iron.- A New Siderophore in Aeromonas hudrophila: Possible Relationship to Virulence.- Ferrous Complexes and Chelating Compounds in Suppression of Fungal Diseases of Cereals.- The Effect of Chelating Agents on a Rust Fungus Developing on Induced Resistant Plants.- High Affinity Iron Transport in Ustilago maydis.- Production of Fusarinine and Iron Assimilation by Pathogenic and Non-pathogenic Fusarium.- Cell Surface Mutants of Erwinia chrysanthemi: Possible Involvement of Iron Acquisition in Phytopathogenicity.- Iron and Phytotoxins as Exemplified by Stemphyloxins and other Toxins.- Characterization of Cell Envelope Protein Patterns of Crop Yield Increasing Root-Colonizing Pseudomonas spp.- A Saga of Siderophores.- Genetic Analysis of the Iron-Uptake System of Two Plant Groups Promoting Pseudomonas Strains.- Genotypic Diversity of Fluorescent Pseudomonads as Revealed by Southern Hybridization Analysis with Siderophore-Related Gene Probes.- Biological Control of Phytopathogens by Pseudomonas spp.: Genetic Aspects of Siderophore Production and Root Colonization.- Participants.