The Intact and Sliced Brain


Book Description

Connecting in vitro and in vivo studies of the mammalian brain.




Brain Slices


Book Description

In little less than a decade brain slices have gained prominence among neurobiologists as appropriate tools to study cellular electrophysiolog ical aspects of mammalian brain function. The purpose of this volume is to present in some detail several inquiries in the brain sciences that have benefited greatly by the use of brain slices. The book is directed primarily toward advanced students and researchers wishing to evaluate the impact these in vitro preparations of the mammalian brain are having on neurobiology. The term brain slice has come to refer to thin (100-700 j. Lm) sections of a brain region prepared from adult mammals and maintained for many hours in vitro, for either electrophysiological or biochemical stud ies. In addition to good accessibility, slices feature relatively intact syn aptic connections that allow a variety of experiments not feasible with standard in vivo or tissue culture preparations. Certain electrophysiol ogical studies once practical only with invertebrate models are becoming routine with mammalian brain slices. The ability to perform both bio chemical and electro physiological experiments on the same piece of CNS tissue provides additional bright prospects for future research. Although most of the electrophysiological studies have dealt with hippocampal slices, it should be evident from this book that slice methodology is not limited to the hippocampus. The Appendix, "Brain Slice Methods," is a multiauthored treatment of the technical aspects of brain slice work, collected into one document.




The Intact and Sliced Brain


Book Description

Connecting in vitro and in vivo studies of the mammalian brain. In this book Mircea Steriade cautions against the tendency of some neuroscientists to infer global brain functions such as arousal and sleep, epileptic events, and even conscious thinking from the properties of single cells. Based on his lifetime of research on intact brains, Steriade emphasizes the need to understand isolated networks within the context of the whole mammalian brain and to understand the brain of a behaving animal in terms of its fully dissected circuits. As much as knowledge of brain anatomy and function has progressed, Steriade is highly skeptical about the quest to relate consciousness to specific neuronal types. The book's sections are Changing Concepts of Localization of Brain Function, Evolution of Methods in Brain Studies, Similar and Contrasting Results from Studies in the Intact and Sliced Brain, Building Blocks of Synaptic Networks Underlying Normal and Paroxysmal States, and Of Neurons and Consciousness.




Encyclopedia of Neuroscience


Book Description

This 5000-page masterwork is literally the last word on the topic and will be an essential resource for many. Unique in its breadth and detail, this encyclopedia offers a comprehensive and highly readable guide to a complex and fast-expanding field. The five-volume reference work gathers more than 10,000 entries, including in-depth essays by internationally known experts, and short keynotes explaining essential terms and phrases. In addition, expert editors contribute detailed introductory chapters to each of 43 topic fields ranging from the fundamentals of neuroscience to fascinating developments in the new, inter-disciplinary fields of Computational Neuroscience and Neurophilosophy. Some 1,000 multi-color illustrations enhance and expand the writings.




Brain Slices in Basic and Clinical Research


Book Description

Brain Slices in Basic and Clinical Research describes advancements in the field of brain function and dysfunction through use of central nervous system slice preparations. Topics are authored by leading scientists and include the following: Mechanisms of synaptic plasticity as the basis of memory processes Chaos and synaptic variability Brain calcium currents Glutamate receptors Pathophysiology of excitotoxins Cerebral hypoxia-ischemia Neuronal injury Free radicals Optical methods of measuring brain metabolism Voltammetry in brain slices Calcium imaging Patch-clamp recording and application of macromolecules through patch-clamp pipettes in brain slices Intracellular double labeling of various neuronal populations Use of brain slices in teaching neurophysiological methods Most of the topics are published in book format for the first time, and some of the techniques are more fully detailed than in any other book.




Phantoms in the Brain


Book Description

Neuroscientist V.S. Ramachandran is internationally renowned for uncovering answers to the deep and quirky questions of human nature that few scientists have dared to address. His bold insights about the brain are matched only by the stunning simplicity of his experiments -- using such low-tech tools as cotton swabs, glasses of water and dime-store mirrors. In Phantoms in the Brain, Dr. Ramachandran recounts how his work with patients who have bizarre neurological disorders has shed new light on the deep architecture of the brain, and what these findings tell us about who we are, how we construct our body image, why we laugh or become depressed, why we may believe in God, how we make decisions, deceive ourselves and dream, perhaps even why we're so clever at philosophy, music and art. Some of his most notable cases: A woman paralyzed on the left side of her body who believes she is lifting a tray of drinks with both hands offers a unique opportunity to test Freud's theory of denial. A man who insists he is talking with God challenges us to ask: Could we be "wired" for religious experience? A woman who hallucinates cartoon characters illustrates how, in a sense, we are all hallucinating, all the time. Dr. Ramachandran's inspired medical detective work pushes the boundaries of medicine's last great frontier -- the human mind -- yielding new and provocative insights into the "big questions" about consciousness and the self.




Brain Banking


Book Description

Brain Banking, Volume 150, serves as the only book on the market offering comprehensive coverage of the functional realities of brain banking. It focuses on brain donor recruitment strategies, brain bank networks, ethical issues, brain dissection/tissue processing/tissue dissemination, neuropathological diagnosis, brain donor data, and techniques in brain tissue analysis. In accordance with massive initiatives, such as BRAIN and the EU Human Brain Project, abnormalities and potential therapeutic targets of neurological and psychiatric disorders need to be validated in human brain tissue, thus requiring substantial numbers of well characterized human brains of high tissue quality with neurological and psychiatric diseases. - Offers comprehensive coverage of the functional realities of brain banking, with a focus on brain donor recruitment strategies, brain bank networks, ethical issues, and more - Serves as a valuable resource for staff in existing brain banks by highlighting best practices - Enhances the sharing of expertise between existing banks and highlights a range of techniques applicable to banked tissue for neuroscience researchers - Authored by leaders from brain banks around the globe – the broadest, most expert coverage available




The Cerebral Circulation


Book Description

This e-book will review special features of the cerebral circulation and how they contribute to the physiology of the brain. It describes structural and functional properties of the cerebral circulation that are unique to the brain, an organ with high metabolic demands and the need for tight water and ion homeostasis. Autoregulation is pronounced in the brain, with myogenic, metabolic and neurogenic mechanisms contributing to maintain relatively constant blood flow during both increases and decreases in pressure. In addition, unlike peripheral organs where the majority of vascular resistance resides in small arteries and arterioles, large extracranial and intracranial arteries contribute significantly to vascular resistance in the brain. The prominent role of large arteries in cerebrovascular resistance helps maintain blood flow and protect downstream vessels during changes in perfusion pressure. The cerebral endothelium is also unique in that its barrier properties are in some way more like epithelium than endothelium in the periphery. The cerebral endothelium, known as the blood-brain barrier, has specialized tight junctions that do not allow ions to pass freely and has very low hydraulic conductivity and transcellular transport. This special configuration modifies Starling's forces in the brain microcirculation such that ions retained in the vascular lumen oppose water movement due to hydrostatic pressure. Tight water regulation is necessary in the brain because it has limited capacity for expansion within the skull. Increased intracranial pressure due to vasogenic edema can cause severe neurologic complications and death.




Into the Gray Zone


Book Description

"From renowned neuroscientist Adrian Owen comes a thrilling, heartbreaking tale of discovery in one of the least-understood scientific frontiers: the twilight region between full consciousness and brain death. People who inhabit this middle region called the 'gray zone' have sustained traumatic brain injuries or are the victims of stroke or degenerative diseases, such as Alzheimer's and Parkinson's. Many are oblivious to the outside world, and their doctors and families often believe they're incapable of thought. But a sizable number of patients--as many as twenty percent--are experiencing something different: intact minds adrift within damaged brains and bodies. In 2006, Adrian Owen led a team that discovered this lost population and made medical history, provoking an ongoing debate among scientists, physicians, and philosophers about the meaning, value, and purpose of life. In Into the Gray Zone, we follow Owen as he pushes forward the boundaries of science, using a variety of sophisticated brain scans, auditory prompts, and even Alfred Hitchcock film clips to not only 'find' patients who are trapped inside their heads but to actually communicate with them and elicit answers to moving questions, such as 'Are you in pain?' and 'Do you want to go on living?' and 'Are you happy?' (Many gray zone patients do, in fact, claim to be satisfied with their quality of life.) Into the Gray Zone shines a fascinating light on how we think, remember, and pay attention. And it shows us how the field of brain-computer interfaces is about to explode, radically changing prognoses for people with impaired brain function and creating, for all of us, the tantalizing possibility of telepathy and augmented intelligence. Ultimately; this is not just a spellbinding story of scientific discovery but a deeply human, affirming book that causes us to wonder anew at the indomitable bonds of love."--Jacket.




The Influential Mind


Book Description

A cutting-edge, research-based inquiry into how we influence those around us and how understanding the brain can help us change minds for the better. In The Influential Mind, neuroscientist Tali Sharot takes us on a thrilling exploration of the nature of influence. We all have a duty to affect others—from the classroom to the boardroom to social media. But how skilled are we at this role, and can we become better? It turns out that many of our instincts—from relying on facts and figures to shape opinions, to insisting others are wrong or attempting to exert control—are ineffective, because they are incompatible with how people’s minds operate. Sharot shows us how to avoid these pitfalls, and how an attempt to change beliefs and actions is successful when it is well-matched with the core elements that govern the human brain. Sharot reveals the critical role of emotion in influence, the weakness of data and the power of curiosity. Relying on the latest research in neuroscience, behavioral economics and psychology, the book provides fascinating insight into the complex power of influence, good and bad. Praise for The Influential Mind Winner of the 2018 British Psychological Society Book Award Selected as a Best Book of 2017 by Forbes, The Times (UK), The Huffington Post, Bloomberg, Greater Good Magazine, Inc., Stanford Business School,and more “Sharot . . . covers the topic more fully and more authoritatively in a book whose title gives appropriately equal billing to thought, behavior and neurons. . . . Her book is a witty survey of techniques to influence and guide human behavior.” —The New York Times Book Review “This timely, intriguing book explains why it’s so difficult to shift the attitudes and actions of others—and what we can do about it.” —Adam Grant, New York Times–bestselling author of Originals and Give and Take