Preface D. Rollinson; Snail-trematode life history interaction: past trends and future directions R. E. Sorensen and D. J. Minchella; Trematode infection and the distribution and dynamics of parthenogenetic snail populations C. M. Lively; Genetic structure in natural populations of flukes and snails: a practical approach and review P. Jarne and A. Theron; Coevolution and compatability in the snail-schistozome system J. P. Webster and C. M. Davies; A perspective on the ecology of trematode communities in snails G. W. Esch, L. A. Curtis and M. A. Barger; Seasonality in the transmission of schistosomiasis and in populations of its snail intermediate hosts in and around a sugar irrigation scheme at Richard Toll, Senegal R. F. Sturrock, O.-T. Diaw, I. Talla, M. Niang, J.-P. Piau and A. Capron; Contributions to and review of dicrocoeliosis, with special reference to the intermediate hosts of Dityostelium M. Y. Manga-Gonzalez, C. Gonzalez-Lanza, E. Cabanas and R. Campo; Fasciola hepatica and lymnaeid snails occurring at very high altitude in South America S. Mas-Coma, I. R. Funatsu and M. D. Bargues; Multiple strategies of schistozomes to meet their requirements in the intermediate snail host M. De Jong-Brink, M. Bergamin-Sassen and M. Solis Soto; Receptor-ligand interactions and cellular signalling at the host-parasite interface T. P. Yoshino, J. P. Boyle and J. E. Humphries; Mechanisms of molluscan host resistance and of parasite strategies for survival C. J. Bayne, U. K. Hahn and R. C. Bender; The relationship between Schistosoma mansoni and Biomphalaria glabrata: genetic and molecular approaches F. A. Lewis, C. Patterson, M. Knight and C. S. Richards; Molecular approaches in the study of Biomphalaria glabrata-Schistosoma mansoni interactions: linkage analysis and gene expression profiling C. S. Jones, A. E. Lockyer, D. Rollinson and L. S. Noble; Genetic variability and molecular identification of Brazilian Biomphalaria species (Mollusca: Planorbidae) O. S. Carvalho, R. L. Caldeira, A. J. G. Simpson and T. H. D. A. Vidigal; Schistosoma mansoni and Biomphalaria: past history and future trends J. A. T. Morgan, R. J. De Jong, S. D. Snyder, G. M. Mkoji and E. S. Loker; Evolutionary relationships between trematodes and snails emphasizing schistosomes and paragonimids D. Blair, G. M. Davies and B. Wu; Interactions between intermediate snail hosts of the genus Bulinus and schistosomes of the Schistosoma haematobium group D. Rollinson, J. R. Stothard and V. R. Southgate; Bulinus species on Madagascar: molecular evolution, genetic markers and compatability with Schistosoma haematobium J. R. Stothard, P. Bremond, L. Andriaamaro, B. Sellin, E. Sellin and D. Rollinson; Molecular evolution of freshwater snail intermediate hosts within the Bulinus forskalii group C. S. Jones, D. Rollinson, R. Mimpfoundi, J. Ouma, H. C. Kariuki and L. R. Noble.