Immediate Early Genes And Inducible Transcription Factors In Mapping Of The Central Nervous System Function And Dysfunction

That molecular neurobiology has become a dominant part of neuroscience research can be credited to the discovery of inducible gene expression in the brain and spinal cord. This volume deals with genes, whose expression patterns in the vertebrate central nervous system were the first to be revealed and then the most extensively investigated over the last 15 years. Immediate early genes (IEG) and their protein products, especially those acting as regulators of transcription (inducible transcription factors, ITF) have proven to be very valuable tools in functional neuroanatomy and neurophysiology, as they are rapidly and transiently induced in specific neurons in response to various modes of stimulation. Thus, they have been used to map neuronal populations selectively responsive to a variety of conditions, such as sensory and learning experience, electrical stimulation of specific circuits, seizures, and neurodegeneration. This single volume, written by the most prominent authors in the field, brings together for the first time information about the most widely studied IEG/ITF in a whole variety of phenomena of neuronal activation. It starts with a critical appraisal of the technologies employed for the studies on gene, protein, and transcription factor activity in the nervous system. Several chapters present exhaustive examples of expression patterns of the ITF in "vocal" avian brain, mammalian brain sensory regions, areas involved in regulation of circadian rhythms, and the spinal cord. The next parts cover functional and regular aspects of individual IEG/ITF expression: c-fos in learning and memory, c-jun and others in neuropathology and neuronal stress responses, Elk-1, egr family, and CREB in neuronal plasticity and learning. This volume will be useful as a major reference on this topic. Furthermore, it attempts to unravel the seemingly overwhelming complexity of the phenomena of gene expression in the central nervous system.

This book provides a compilation of the most up-to-date literature on the topic of immediate early genes (IEGs). It reviews and details experiments and theories that challenge the reader to expand their view on how IEG research is currently being used to advance our understanding of static and active brain circuits. In addition, the book explores roles of IEGs in clinical neuropathology.

This book brings together information about the most widely studied IEG/ITF involved in a variety of neuronal activation. Written by a prominent group of authors, it attempts to unravel the complexity of the phenomena of gene expression in the central nervous system.

Immediate-early genes are believed to be involved in the neuron's ability to con vert short-term synaptic stimulation into long-lasting responses and thus contribute to the adaptive alterations involved in neuronal plasticity. Cellular immediate-early genes share a close structural homology with some viral oncogenes. Recent advances in cellular biology have identified the activation and deactivation of immediate-early genes as molecular mechanisms to control regulated and deregulated growth, cellular differentiation and development. In this view immediate-early genes may function as third messengers in a stimulus transcription cascade transferring extracellular information into changes in target gene transcription, thereby changing the phenotype of neurons. Immediate-Early Genes in the Central Nervous System provides a comprehensive up-to-date overview of current methodology in the research of immediate-early genes and includes a wide range of neurobiological topics, such as regeneration, memory formation, epilepsia and nociception. The contributors to this book have been selected from among the leading experts in their field of research. T.R. TOLLE J. SCHADRACK W. ZIEGLGANSBERGER Contents Immediate-early genes -how immmediate and why early? G./. Evan .............................................. . Immediate-early gene activation as a window on mechanism in the nervous system S.P. Hunt, L.A. McNaughton, R. Jenkins, and W. Wisden. . . . . . . . . .. . . . 18 of immediate-early genes during Differential expression synaptic plasticity, seizures and brain injury suggests specific functions for these molecules in brain neurons M. Dragunow . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . 35 . . . . . . . . . .

Mechanisms of neural plasticity enable the encoding and memorization of information based on sensory inputs and can be harnessed to partially restore function after CNS assault such as stroke or head trauma. In the present book, experts from the field of visual system plasticity describe and evaluate the evidence for neural mechanisms proposed to underlie CNS plasticity in the major divisions of the brain dedicated to visual processing, the retina, sub-cortical structures and cortex. We present studies from a wide variety of disciplines that range from molecular biology to neurophysiology and computer modeling. Leading investigators discuss their own work, and integrate this research with colleagues from other specializations. The book points out future applications for this research including clinical uses and engineering within the biomedical sciences. This book is an exciting and thought provoking read for all levels of science enthusiast interested in the physical basis of learning and cognition.

This book builds a novel bridge from molecular research to clinical therapy. This approach reveals the functional features of neurons and glia in the particular context of vulnerability and self-protection, intracellular properties and extracellular matrix. Arising from this platform, this volume unfolds the molecular and systemic processes underlying migration disorders, axonal injury, repair and regeneration.