Kenneth W. McKerns

Near the end of September 1980, the contributors to Hormonally Active Brain Pep tides: Structure and Function met to discuss their chapters for the monograph. This meeting was the eighth sponsored by the International Foundation for Biochemical Endocrinology and was held at the Hotel Plakir in Dubrovnik, Yugoslavia. Several months were allowed after the meeting for the contributors to revise their manuscripts and for editing. Professor Dr. Vladimir Pantie and the Serbian Academy of Sciences and Arts were in charge of the local arrangements and social activities. The Foundation is grateful for the splendid job that was done and for the out- standing scientific, cultural, and social activities. I thank the Serbian Acad- emy of Sciences and Arts and the Yugoslav Council of Academies for spon- soring my stay in Yugoslavia. I greatly enjoyed giving lectures, visiting laboratories, and discussing research projects in a number of centers in Yugoslavia. A diverse group of topics was presented in Dubrovnik concerning cer- tain brain peptides. The topics included "Structure, Function, and Confor- mation of Neuropeptides," "Distribution of Peptides in the Brain," "Reg- ulation of the Release of Peptide Hormones," "The Active Center of Gonadotropins," "In Vitro Synthesis of Hypothalamic Hormones," "Stud- ies on Gonadotropin-Releasing Hormone," "Studies on the Biosynthesis, Release, and Degradation of LH-RH," "Genesis and Properties of Pitu- itary ACTH, Prolactin, and Growth Hormone Producing Cells," "Precur- sors to Oligopeptide Hormones," and "Stress Effects on Peptide Hormone Synthesis.

This monograph represents the eighth sponsored by the International Society for Biochemical Endocrinology. The topics should be of interest to basic research scientists, medical practitioners, and students of repro­ ductive biology. It complements our monograph published in 1979 on Structure and Function of the Gonadotropins. The monograph is organized in ten topic areas relative to the general theme of reproduction and contraception. There are several chapters in each area. Obviously, all aspects of each area could not be covered. An attempt was made to seek interesting basic research ideas and concepts that might in the future be applicable to fertility regulation. The topics are: interactions in gonadotropin regulation; GnRH analogues as contra­ ceptive agents; receptors in cellular localization of hormones; uterine and mammary receptors; germ-cell regulation and secretory proteins; control mechanisms and metabolic regulations; hCG peptides and anti­ sera as antifertility agents; ieutinization, oocyte maturation, and early pregnancy; steroids and cell growth; and finally, prostaglandins and cell function. The studies encompass many disciplines and techniques in anatomy, physiology, biochemistry, and endocrinology in animals and humans, both in vitro and in vivo. A conference of contributors was held in Maine at the Asticou Inn in Northeast Harbor during the week of September 9-13, 1979. The chapters as written for the monograph were presented for discussion by the participants, who were selected for their knowledge of, and contri­ butions to, this area of scientific investigation.

The 13th Annual Meeting of the Foundation was held in Edinburgh during September 1985. The subject was neuroendocrine molecular biology which brought together leading scientists in the fields of molecular genetics, neuroendocrinology and developmental neuro- biology. The conference was most stimulating and as the Proceedings show, novel data presented was of the highest quality. The topics presented were grouped under the headings;, "Molecular Biology of the Nervous System", "IlIRH - New Perspectives', "Neuropeptides", "Oxytocin and Vasopressin", "Transcriptional and Post-Translational Regulation of Neuropeptide Synthesis", "Neuroendocrine Mechanisms at the Cellular Level", "Receptors - Cellular and Molecular Biology" and "Clinical Applications". The