International Review of Connective Tissue Research, Volume 6 presents the relationship between structure and function in connective tissue. This book deals with articular cartilage, a connective tissue that depends for its function on the integrity of its surface. Organized into six chapters, this volume begins with an overview of the structure, biology, chemistry, and biochemistry of collagen. This text then summarizes the data on the construction and application of collagen products to medicine and surgery. Other chapters consider the characteristic of the amino acid composition of basement membranes and the structural features of the synovial joint. This book discusses as well the functional properties of collagenous tissues with emphasis on their behavior when internal or external mechanical stresses are applied. The final chapter deals with the structure of fresh connective tissue based on conventional histological procedures such as dehydration, fixation, embedding, and staining. This book is a valuable resource for biochemists, rheologists, and physicists.