Handbook Of The Behavioral Neurobiology Of Serotonin

Serotonin (5-hydroxytryptamine, often cited as 5-HT) is one of the major excitatory neurotransmitter, and the serotonergic system is one of the best studied and understood transmitter systems. It is crucially involved in the organization of virtually all behaviours and in the regulation of emotion and mood. Alterations in the serotonergic system, induced by e.g. learning or pathological processes, underlie behavioural plasticity and changes in mood, which can finally results in abnormal behaviour and psychiatric conditions. Not surprisingly, the serotonergic system and its functional components appear to be targets for a multitude of pharmacological treatments - examples of very successful drugs targeting the serotoninergic system include Prozac and Zoloft. The last decades of research have not only fundamentally expanded our view on serotonin but also revealed in much more detail an astonishing complexity of this system, which comprises a multitude of receptors and signalling pathways. A detailed view on its role in basal, but also complex, behaviours emerged, and, was presented in a number of single review articles. Although much is known now, the serotonergic system is still a fast growing field of research contributing to our present understanding of the brains function during normal and disturbed behaviour. This handbook aims towards a detailed and comprehensive overview over the many facets of behavioural serotonin research. As such, it will provide the most up to date and thorough reading concerning the serotonergic systems control of behaviour and mood in animals and humans. The goal is to create a systematic overview and first hand reference that can be used by students and scholars alike in the fields of genetics, anatomy, pharmacology, physiology, behavioural neuroscience, pathology, and psychiatry. The chapters in this book will be written by leading scientists in this field. Most of them have already written excellent reviews in their field of expertise. The book is divided in 4 sections. After an historical introduction, illustrating the growth of ideas about serotonin function in behaviour of the last forty years, section A will focus on the functional anatomy of the serotonergic system. Section B provides a review of the neurophysiology of the serotonergic system and its single components. In section C the involvement of serotonin in behavioural organization will be discussed in great detail, while section D deals with the role of serotonin in behavioural pathologies and psychiatric disorders. The first handbook broadly discussing the behavioral neurobiology of the serotonorgic transmitter system Co-edited by one of the pioneers and opinion leaders of the past decades, Barry Jacobs (Princeton), with an international list (10 countries) of highly regarded contributors providing over 50 chapters, and including the leaders in the field in number of articles and citations: K. P. Lesch, T. Sharp, A. Caspi, P. Blier, G.K. Aghajanian, E. C. Azmitia, and others The only integrated and complete resource on the market containing the best information integrating international research, providing a global perspective to an international community Of great value not only for researchers and experts, but also for students and clinicians as a background reference

Handbook of the Behavioral Neurobiology of Serotonin, Second Edition, builds on the success of the first edition by continuing to provide a detailed and comprehensive overview of the many facets of behavioral serotonin research. The text expands on the two key topics, behavioral control (sensory processing, ultrasonic vocalization, and melatonin and sleep control) and psychiatric disorders, including its role on psychostimulant abuse and addiction. The new edition includes two new sections on the serotonin systems interactions and the involvement of serotonin in neurological disorders and associated treatment. Serotonin is a major neurotransmitters in the serotonergic system which one of the best studied and understood transmitter systems. Both are critically involved in the organization of all behaviors and in the regulation of emotion and mood. Features two new sections on serotonin systems interactions and serotonin in neurological disorders Focuses on ionotropic and metabotropic 5-HT receptor involvement in behavior Maps receptors and receptor signaling pathways to neurochemical and behavioral outcomes Covers the interactions between serotonin, melatonin and kynurenine pathways

Anxiety disorders have long been a research subject for scientists in different areas of inquiry, and the particular role of serotonin – the neurotransmitter which has probably most captured the imagination of laymen and academics alike – is as elusive as the clinical aspects of serotonergic medications. Why are drugs acting at certain serotonin receptors efficacious against generalized anxiety disorder, but not panic disorder? Why is the inverse true for monoamine oxidase inhibitors? These clinically relevant issues are clarified by the neurochemical, anatomical and physiological organization of the serotonergic system. In this book, the author summarizes the latest findings regarding the role of serotonin in modulating the activity of brain regions which organize behavioral patterns associated with fear, anxiety and stress. The emergent picture is one of far greater complexity than previously thought: while the serotonergic innervation of those brain regions arises from the same structure – the dorsal raphe nucleus – that structure is not homogeneous from anatomical, physiological and neurochemical points of view, nor are its projections to the cerebral aversive and behavioral inhibition systems. The diverse findings which compose this picture of complexity – whether they arise from developmental neurobiology, electrophysiology, neurochemistry, neuroendocrinology, neuropsychopharmacology or behavioral neuroscience – are integrated in this book. Advanced undergraduate, graduate students, and researchers will benefit from the information. The result sheds light on many important questions regarding the neuroanatomical, pharmacological and functional aspects of the role of serotonin in anxiety disorders, and points to future avenues of research.

Stress is such an over-used word that it is at time difficult to define its core features. When is an environment stressful? What does a stressful environment do to the brain and to the body? What are the biological mechanisms by which a stressor affects us? How does stress contributes to the onset and the progression of mental disorders? How do the effects of stress change over the life-time of an individual? These are just some of the overarching questions addressed by this book, thanks to the contribution of some of the world leading experts on the neurobiology of stress at the pre-clinical and clinical levels. Topics include current advances on the neurobiology of stress on various neurobiological systems such as immune, hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis, neurogenesis and neuroplasticity, neurotransmitter (glutamate, noradrenaline, dopamine, serotonin and endocannabinoid), neuropeptides, cognition and emotional processing as well as in utero and early postnatal effects. The clinical chapters deal with the relationship of stress and mental disorders such as depression, posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), anxiety disorders, schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, substance abuse and addiction, dementia and age-related cognitive decline as well as resilience to stress. Thus, this book brings together some of the most updated and authoritative views on the effects of stress of brain and behavior.

The book is part of a series on Current Topics in Behavioral Neurosciences, which has as its focus anxiety and its treatment. We have brought together a distinguished cadre of authors with the aim of covering a broad array of topics related to anxiety disorders, ranging from clinical diagnosis, epidemiology, preclinical neuroscience, and animal models to established and innovative therapeutic approaches. The book aims at bridging these disciplines to provide an update of literature relevant to understanding anxiety, its consequences, and its management. Following is a brief overview of the chapters and their content, meant to serve as a guide to navigating the book. The ?rst section covers clinical aspects of anxiety disorders. Joe Bienvenu and colleagues provide an incisive overview of diagnostic considerations in the anxiety disorders in which they emphasize the strengths and shortcomings of our current nosologic systems. This is followed by a review and update of the epidemiology of anxiety disorders by Ron Kessler and colleagues, which provides an authoritative survey of anxiety disorder incidence, prevalence, and risk factors. This is comp- mented by a comprehensive review of the literature on disorders that co-occur with anxiety disorders by Kathleen Merikangas and Sonja Alsemgeest Swanson. Their review highlights the tremendous comorbidity that occurs not only within the anxiety disorders, but also with other mental and physical health conditions.

As technology has made imaging of the brain noninvasive and inexpensive, nearly every psychologist in every subfield is using pictures of the brain to show biological connections to feelings and behavior. Handbook of Neuroscience for the Behavioral Sciences, Volume II provides psychologists and other behavioral scientists with a solid foundation in the increasingly critical field of neuroscience. Current and accessible, this volume provides the information they need to understand the new biological bases, research tools, and implications of brain and gene research as it relates to psychology.

The intention of this book was to have investigators describe an expert opinion on their field of research and cutting-edge work in their laboratory on the neurobiology and treatment of eating disorders.

Handbook of Behavioral State Control: Cellular and Molecular Mechanisms provides the first synthesis of information on the neurobiology of behavioral states, ranging from normal stress and sleep deprivation to debilitating neuropsychiatric disorders. This book presents a working reference on the cellular and molecular mechanisms generating arousal states; pharmacological and non-pharmacological methods of behavioral state control; and the bi-directional interaction between arousal state and the neurobiology of pain, and between sleep and the immune system.