27th International Congress of Pure and Applied Chemistry is a collection of lectures presented at the 27th Congress of the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry, held in Helsinki, Finland, on August 27-31, 1979. The event covers a wide range of topics relating to chemistry, including biotechnology and bioengineering; trace element analysis; modern methods in clinical chemistry; and analysis and structure of cell membrane carbohydrates. Chemometrics is also discussed, along with the chemistry and technology of natural polymers and their degradation products. This book consists of 36 chapters and opens with an assessment of prospects for biotechnology amid the resource problems facing industrialized countries. The reader is then introduced to the main principles of screening effective anticancer drugs based on the methods and concepts of biology, chemistry, physics, and mathematics; the fundamental principles involved in steroid immunoassay for clinical chemistry applications; fractionation and determination of trace elements in plants, soils, and sediments; and trace metal analysis in exploration geochemistry. The following chapters explore clinical applications of steroid hormone receptor assays; asparagine-linked sugar chains of glycoproteins; chemistry and technology of starch; and use of high-performance liquid chromatography in the analysis of red blood cell glycolipids. This monograph will be a valuable source of information for practitioners and research workers in the field of pure and applied chemistry.