What's new in the importance of receptors in pathology?

Highly organized multicellular organisms require a complex system of intercellular communication to coordinate the great variety of physiological functions. Major components of this system are the (i) signalling substances delivering the information and (ii) the corresponding cellular receptors recognizing the information and translating them to special intracellular organelles of the target cell. For the process of signal binding and transmission various types of receptor proteins are known playing a key role in the mutual understanding between cells. The present paper comprehends lectures on functions and deficiencies of the different types of cell receptors given during the Symposion on "Receptors in Pathology" during the 11th European Congress of Pathology. Each section is written under the personal responsibility of the author indicated.