ARTICLES; Preface; Introduction; The global epidemiology of HIV/AIDS; Evolutionary and immunological implications of contemporary HIV-1 variation; HIV-1 receptors and cell tropism; The pathogenesis of HIV-1 infection; Demography and economics of HIV/AIDS; Paediatric HIV infection: correlates of protective immunity and global perspectives in prevention and management; HIV-1 transmission and acute HIV-1 infection; Interventions against sexually transmitted infections (STI) to prevent HIV infection; Behavioural interventions to prevent HIV infection: rapid evolution, increasing rigour, moderate success; HIV care in non-industrialised countries; Immune interventions; Prospect of a prophylactic vaccine for HIV