This volume is number four in a series of proceedings volumes from the International Symposia on Fractals in Biology and Medicine in Ascona, Switzerland. It highlights the potential that fractal geometry offers for elucidating and explaining the complex make-up of cells, tissues and biological organisms either in normal, abnormal and tumoral conditions. It discusses present and future applications of fractal geometry, bringing together cellular and molecular biology, engineering, mathematics, physics, medicine and other disciplines and allowing an interdisciplinary vision. The book should be of interest to researchers and students from molecular and cell biology, biomedicine, biomathematics, analytical morphology, immunology and neurology who are interested in the combination of mathematics and life sciences.

In March 2000 leading scientists gathered at the Centro Seminariale Monte Verita, Ascona, Switzerland, for the Third International Symposium on "Fractals 2000 in Biology and Medicine." This interdisciplinary conference was held over a four-day period and provided stimulating contributions from the very topical field Fractals in Biology and Medicine. This Volume III in the MBI series highlights the growing power and efficacy of the fractal geometry in understanding how to analyze living phenomena and complex shapes. Many biological objects, previously considered as hopelessly far from any quantitative description, are now being investigated by means of fractal methods. Researchers currently used fractals both as theoretical tools, to shed light on living systems self-organization and evolution, and as useful techniques, capable of quantitatively analyzing physiological and pathological cell states, shapes and ultrastructures. The book should be of interest to researchers and students from Molecular and C"

"Fractals in Biology and Medicine" explores the potential of fractal geometry for describing and understanding biological organisms, their development and growth as well as their structural design and functional properties. It extends these notions to assess changes associated with disease in the hope to contribute to the understanding of pathogenetic processes in medicine. The book is the first comprehensive presentation of the importance of the new concept of fractal geometry for biological and medical sciences. It collates in a logical sequence extended papers based on invited lectures and free communications presented at a symposium in Ascona, Switzerland, attended by leading scientists in this field, among them the originator of fractal geometry, Benoit Mandelbrot. "Fractals in Biology and Medicine" begins by asking how the theoretical construct of fractal geometry can be applied to biomedical sciences and then addresses the role of fractals in the design and morphogenesis of biological organisms as well as in molecular and cell biology. The consideration of fractal structure in understanding metabolic functions and pathological changes is a particularly promising avenue for future research.

In March 2000 leading scientists gathered at the Centro Seminariale Monte Verita, Ascona, Switzerland, for the Third International Symposium on "Fractals 2000 in Biology and Medicine." This interdisciplinary conference was held over a four-day period and provided stimulating contributions from the very topical field Fractals in Biology and Medicine. This Volume III in the MBI series highlights the growing power and efficacy of the fractal geometry in understanding how to analyze living phenomena and complex shapes. Many biological objects, previously considered as hopelessly far from any quantitative description, are now being investigated by means of fractal methods. Researchers currently used fractals both as theoretical tools, to shed light on living systems self-organization and evolution, and as useful techniques, capable of quantitatively analyzing physiological and pathological cell states, shapes and ultrastructures. The book should be of interest to researchers and students from Molecular and C"

"Fractals in Biology and Medicine" explores the potential of fractal geometry for describing and understanding biological organisms, their development and growth as well as their structural design and functional properties. It extends these notions to assess changes associated with disease in the hope to contribute to the understanding of pathogenetic processes in medicine. The book is the first comprehensive presentation of the importance of the new concept of fractal geometry for biological and medical sciences. It collates in a logical sequence extended papers based on invited lectures and free communications presented at a symposium in Ascona, Switzerland, attended by leading scientists in this field, among them the originator of fractal geometry, Benoit Mandelbrot. "Fractals in Biology and Medicine" begins by asking how the theoretical construct of fractal geometry can be applied to biomedical sciences and then addresses the role of fractals in the design and morphogenesis of biological organisms as well as in molecular and cell biology. The consideration of fractal structure in understanding metabolic functions and pathological changes is a particularly promising avenue for future research.