Dear Friends and Colleagues,

The 12th International Congress of Protozoology（ICOP XII） will be held in the beautiful city, Guangzhou, China, from July 10 – 15, 2005. The ICOP series has been the most important event in the field of protozoology and has attracted many well-known scientists to attend. We strongly believe that the ICOP XII will be once again an exciting meeting for the protozoologists and related researchers from all over the world.

The Chinese Protozoological Society will host the event organized by the International Commission of Protozoology.

In the past years, the complete sequences of the genomes of human, mouse, rice and many other important species have made a huge contribution in the understanding of life on earth. In addition, the sequences of the genomes of Plasmodium falciparum, Giardia lamblia, Trypanosoma brucei and Tetrahymena have also provided a great deal of data for us to increase our knowledge of these protozoa. There is no doubt that the development of protozoology will benefit greatly from these exciting and fascinating works.

The ICOP XII Organizing Committee has worked assiduously to develop an outstanding four days exciting program. Leading international protozoologists will be invited to present a wide range of cutting-edge topics, including functional genomics and proteomics of protozoa, systematics and evolution, ecology, opportunistic parasitic protozoa and AIDS, the development of antiprotozoan vaccines, drug-resistance and chemotherapy. The congress program will consist of plenary lectures, symposia, contributed paper sessions, poster sessions and workshops. The ICOP XII will be an indelible event in your academic career.

China has achieved a rapid development over the last decade, not only in science and technology, but also in many aspects of social and human culture. Guangzhou is a political, economic and cultural center in South China, with a history of over 2,000 years. The city perfectly combines modern buildings with ancient sites, and it has been chosen to host the 2010 Asia Olympic Games. The culture, the kind people, and the well-known Cantonese food in the city will definitely give you a lasting impression.

On behalf of International Commission on protozoology and Chinese Protozoological Society, we cordially welcome your participation and look forward to seeing you at ICOP XII in Guangzhou, 2005.

Sincerely yours,

Prof. Ming Li

President of ICOP XII