This is the first comprehensive treatise on the rapidly developing field of papillomaviruses. In the last few years, these viruses have attracted particular interest because of their role in human cancer of the skin and the genital tract. The book summarizes the present knowledge about the viral components and their interactions with target cells leading to benign and malignant proliferations. Several chapters deal with epidemiology, pathology and biological behaviour of papillomavirus-associated lesions of the skin, the oral mucosa, the respiratory or anogenital tract. The role of papillomaviruses in the malignant conversion of primarily benign human or animal proliferations and the immune-response of the host to the viral infections are discussed. Cell culture systems as a tool to understanding the biology of papillomaviruses are described and the increasing knowledge about molecular state and expression of the genomes in tumor cells is presented. In view of the growing importance of clinical aspects, individual chapters on the diagnosis of viral infections and on the treatment of the lesions have been included. Extensive, yet concise reviews, up-to-the-minute data and useful bibliography make this book the most accessible and informative source on papillomaviruses available.