Neurons Circuitry And Plasticity In The Spinal Cord And Brainstem Volume 1279

The brain and the spinal cord, together, compose the central nervous system. Only relatively recently has research shifted focus to consider the integral functions at the individual neuronal and network levels that are mediated by the spinal cord. In this volume, recent work is presented addressing developments in this emerging area. Short reviews examine motor neuron synaptic plasticity, molecular signaling in motor circuits, advances in in vivo and in vitro imaging of spinal cord injury, inhibitory and excitatory locomotor programs, and mapping the circuitry of tactile and sensory functions, including nociception and pain relief. Collectively, these papers provide an overview of some of the most exciting topics in spinal cord research—spanning basic cellular mechanisms to translational approaches. NOTE: Annals volumes are available for sale as individual books or as a journal. For information on institutional journal subscriptions, please visit http://ordering.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/subs.asp?ref=1749-6632&doi=10.1111/(ISSN)1749-6632. ACADEMY MEMBERS: Please contact the New York Academy of Sciences directly to place your order (www.nyas.org). Members of the New York Academy of Science receive full-text access to Annals online and discounts on print volumes. Please visit http://www.nyas.org/MemberCenter/Join.aspx for more information about becoming a member.

This volume represents edited material that was presented at a conference on brainstem modulation of spinal nociception held in Beaune, France during July, 1987. Pain Modulation, Volume 77 in the series Progress in Brain Research reviews, analyses and suggests new research strategies on several relevant topics including: the endogenous opioid peptides; sites of action of opiates; the role of biogenic animes and non-opioid peptides in analgesia; dorsal horn circuitry; behavioural factors in the activation of pain modulating networks and clinical studies of nociceptive modulation.

In the late 1960s and early 1970s David Marr produced three astonishing papers in which he gave a detailed account of how the fine structure and known cell types of the cerebellum, hippocampus and neocortex perform the functions that they do. Marr went on to become one of the main founders of Computational Neuroscience. In his classic work 'Vision' he distinguished between the computational, algorithmic, and implementational levels, and the three early theories concerned implementation. However, they were produced when Neuroscience was in its infancy. Now that so much more is known, it is timely to revisit these early theories to see to what extent they are still valid and what needs to be altered to produce viable theories that stand up to current evidence. This book brings together some of the most distinguished scientists in their fields to evaluate Marr's legacy. After a general introduction there are three chapters on the cerebellum, three on the hippocampus and two on the neocortex. The book ends with an appreciation of the life of David Marr by Lucia Vaina.

Neuroscience is a comprehensive textbook created primarily for medical and premedical students; it emphasises the structure of the nervous system, the correlation of structure and function, and the structure/function relationships particularly pertinent to the practice of medicine. Although not primarily about pathology, the book includes the basis of a variety of neurological disorders. It could serve equally well as a text for undergraduate neuroscience courses in which many of the students are premeds. Being both comprehensive and authoritative, it is also appropriate for graduate and professional use. The new edition offers a host of new features including a new art program and the completely revised Sylvius for Neuroscience: Visual Glossary of Human Neuroanatomy, an interactive CD-ROM reference guide to the human nervous system. Major changes to the new edition also include: additional neuroanatomical content, including two appendices-(1) The Brainstem and Cranial Nerves and (2) Vascular Supply, the Meninges, and the Ventricular System; and updated and new boxes on neurological and psychiatric diseases.

Medical Physiology, in its updated 2nd edition, firmly relates molecular and cellular biology to the study of human physiology and disease. Drs. Walter Boron and Emile Boulpaep and a team of leading physiologists present you with practical, accurate coverage, continually emphasizing the clinical implications of the material. Each chapter explains the principles and organization of each body system, while more than 1400 high-quality, full-color line drawings and prominently featured clinical examples clarify every concept. This exceptionally detailed and comprehensive guide to physiology is ideal for a rich, straightforward, state-of-the-art understanding of this essential subject. Quickly review important content using prominent boxes included throughout the text to provide clinical examples of disordered physiology. Master difficult concepts with the use of 800 color drawings that feature balloon captions explaining key processes. Find information easily with the intuitive organization by body system and consistent style. Get up-to-date coverage of physiology with updated text and figures. Access the fully searchable text online at www.StudentConsult.com, along with Webnotes, Image Bank, 150 Self-assessment questions, and 10 physiology animations. Stay current thanks to updated material, including a new chapter on Physiology of Aging and a new section on hemostasis. Gain a clear visual understanding with a revised and updated art program of high-quality, full color line drawings and prominently featured clinical examples.

Activity of the multi-functional networked neurons depends on their intrinsic states and bears both cell- and network-defined features. Firing patterns of a neuron are conventionally attributed to spatial-temporal organization of inputs received from the network-mates via synapses, in vast majority dendritic. This attribution reflects widespread views of the within-cell job sharing, such that the main function of the dendrites is to receive signals and deliver them to the axo-somatic trigger zone, which actually generates the output pattern. However, these views are now revisited due to finding of active, non-linear properties of the dendritic membrane practically in neurons of practically all explored types. Like soma and axon, the dendrites with active membrane are able to generate self-maintained, propagating depolarizations and thus share intrinsic pattern-forming role with the trigger zone. Unlike the trigger zone, the dendrites have complex geometry, which is subject to developmental, activity-dependent, or neurodegenerative changes. Structural features of the arborization inevitably impact on electrical states and cooperative behavior of its constituting parts at different levels of organization, from sub-trees and branches to voltage- and ligand-gated ion channels populating the dendritic membrane. More than two decades of experimental and computer simulation studies have brought numerous phenomenological demonstrations of influence of the dendritic structure on neuronal firing patterns. A necessary step forward is to comprehend these findings and build a firm theoretical basis, including quantitative relationships between geometrical and electrical characteristics determining intrinsic activity of neurons. The articles in this eBook represent progress achieved in a broad circle of laboratories studied various aspects of structure and function of the neuronal dendrites. The authors elucidate new details of dendritic mechanisms underlying intrinsic activity patterns in neurons and highlight important questions that remain open in this important domain of cellular and computational neuroscience.

The brain is the most complex organ in our body. Indeed, it is perhaps the most complex structure we have ever encountered in nature. Both structurally and functionally, there are many peculiarities that differentiate the brain from all other organs. The brain is our connection to the world around us and by governing nervous system and higher function, any disturbance induces severe neurological and psychiatric disorders that can have a devastating effect on quality of life. Our understanding of the physiology and biochemistry of the brain has improved dramatically in the last two decades. In particular, the critical role of cations, including magnesium, has become evident, even if incompletely understood at a mechanistic level. The exact role and regulation of magnesium, in particular, remains elusive, largely because intracellular levels are so difficult to routinely quantify. Nonetheless, the importance of magnesium to normal central nervous system activity is self-evident given the complicated homeostatic mechanisms that maintain the concentration of this cation within strict limits essential for normal physiology and metabolism. There is also considerable accumulating evidence to suggest alterations to some brain functions in both normal and pathological conditions may be linked to alterations in local magnesium concentration. This book, containing chapters written by some of the foremost experts in the field of magnesium research, brings together the latest in experimental and clinical magnesium research as it relates to the central nervous system. It offers a complete and updated view of magnesiums involvement in central nervous system function and in so doing, brings together two main pillars of contemporary neuroscience research, namely providing an explanation for the molecular mechanisms involved in brain function, and emphasizing the connections between the molecular changes and behavior. It is the untiring efforts of those magnesium researchers who have dedicated their lives to unraveling the mysteries of magnesiums role in biological systems that has inspired the collation of this volume of work.