The journal <STRONG>Biomaterials</STRONG> was launched in 1980. The subject of biomaterials science was then in its infancy, being largely cofined to the study of the characteristics of materials used for medical devices.<BR id="CRLF"><BR id="CRLF">Twenty-five years on, we can truly say that biomaterials science has matured at an incredible rate and now represents a formidable sector that bridges the materials sciences, advanced medical therapies, and molecular and cell sciences.<BR id="CRLF"><BR id="CRLF">This <STRONG>Silver Jubilee Compendium</STRONG> consists of reprinted versions of the top 25 papers, published during these 25 years, as judged by an international panel of biomaterials scientists.<BR id="CRLF"><BR id="CRLF">This book is published as a landmark in biomaterials science and it is to be hoped that it will serve as a stimulus to young biomaterials scientists of the early twenty-first century for their pioneering work of the future.
