Ginkgo biloba, a global treasure

Among living plants there may be no more striking example of a genus that recalls the past than Ginkgo, a "living fossil" virtually unchanged for 125 million years or more. Long designated a sacred tree in shrines and temples of the East, more recently the ginkgo has been cultivated in many other parts of the world for its aesthetic value. In 1896 the Japanese botanist Sakugoro Hirase became the first to observe the ciliated sperm of Ginkgo. This discovery of motile sperm in a seed plant was a revolutionary event in biology, and in the succeeding century, Ginkgo has attracted the attention of numerous researchers. On the centenary of Hirase's groundbreaking work, Ginkgo Biloba - A Global Treasure presents in one volume the latest findings of research on a broad range of topics that include cell biology, biochemistry, morphology, paleobotany, environmental engineering, and cultural history, as well as possible applications in chemistry and medicine.