Review coverage of all publications relevant to the chemistry of monosaccharides and oligosaccharides published up to the end of 2000. Each volume in this series brings together references to all published work in given areas of the subject and serves as a comprehensive database for the active research chemist. The amount of research in this field appearing in the organic chemical literature is increasing because of the enhanced importance of the subject, especially in areas of medicinal chemistry and biology. In no part of the field is this more apparent than in the synthesis of oligosaccharides required by scientists working in glycobiology. Glycomedicinal chemistry and its reliance on carbohydrate synthesis is now very well established, for example, by the preparation of specific carbohydrate-based antigens, especially cancer-specific oligosaccharides and glycoconjugates. Coverage of topics such as nucleosides, amino-sugars, alditols and cyclitols also covers much research of relevance to biological and medicinal chemistry.