الصفحة 3
الصفحة 3
Dipeptidyl Aminopeptidases : Basic Science and Clinical Applications
Dipeptidyl Aminopeptidases exert a potent modulatory role at an interface between immune mechanisms, metabolic responses, and neuroendocrine pathways. Experimental models and clinical studies addressing the role of these enzymes and the effect of specific inhibitors pave the way to novel therapeutic concepts in immunology, rheumatology, oncology, reproductive medicine and diabetes. Leading experts in the field will contribute to this book, which will present a state-of-the-art view on these enzymes at a time when our understanding of their function is growing ever more rapidly and therapeutic options have become imminent. The sections of the book will focus on various topics including DP IV and related enzymes in: expression and function, metabolic disorders, immune mechanisms and immune disorders, neuronal diseases and cancer, and related drug development.
Development and Plasticity in Sensory Thalamus and Cortex
This book intends to bring together systems and molecular approaches on various fundamental issues on thalamocortical development and plasticity. Functional cortical circuits cannot be appreciated without thalamocortical circuits and cortical development cannot be considered without thalamocortical pathway development. The 16 chapters address key questions with diversity of techniques; ranging from molecular genetics, in vitro and in vivo methods to classical anatomical, electrophysiological and imaging procedures. The conceptual approaches formulated in these chapters should be a rich source for future research in this area.
Dendritic Neurotransmitter Release
This book presents recent developments in the neurophysiology of dendritic release of several chemical classes of transmitters in a number of different areas of the mammalian central nervous system. Once released from a neuron, these substances can act as neurotransmitters and/or neuromodulators, to autoregulate the original neuron, its synaptic inputs, and adjacent cells or, by volume transmission, to affect distant cells.
Cyclin Dependent Kinase 5 (Cdk5)
Cyclin Dependent Kinase 5 provides a comprehensive and up-to-date collection of reviews on the discovery, signaling mechanisms and functions of Cdk5, as well as the potential implication of Cdk5 in the treatment of neurodegenerative diseases. Since the identification of this unique member of the Cdk family, Cdk5 has emerged as one of the most important signal transduction mediators in the development, maintenance and fine-tuning of neuronal functions and networking. Further studies have revealed that Cdk5 is also associated with the regulation of neuronal survival during development as well as in neurodegenerative diseases. These observations indicate that precise control of Cdk5 is essential for the regulation of neuronal survival. The pivotal role that Cdk5 appears to play in both the regulation of neuronal survival and synaptic functions thus raises the interesting possibility that Cdk5 inhibitors may have therapeutic potential for the treatment of a number of neurodegenerative diseases.
Corticofugal Modulation of Sensory Information
Sensory signals reach the cerebral cortex after having made synapses in different relay stations along the sensory pathway. The flow of sensory information in subcortical relay stations is controlled by the action of precise topographic connections from the neocortex. Several lines of research indicate that the massive corticifugal system improves ongoing subcortical sensory processing and reorganizes the receptive fields in visual, auditory and somatosensory systems. In all these sensory systems cortical neurons mediate both the highly focused positive feedback to subcortical neurons with ove
Consciousness : A Mathematical Treatment of the Global Neuronal Workspace Model
This book brings together the fundamental ideas of information theory and the statistical mechanics of phase transitions within the context of the neurosciences, culture, immunology and socio-psychological studies. Outlined is a program pertaining to a dynamic and semantic extension of current models for the global neuronal workspace as were previously introduced by Baars, Dretske and others.
Mammalian Subventricular Zones : Their Roles in Brain Development, Cell Replacement, and Disease
This text provides a comprehensive summary of research and findings that have lead to the current understanding of the subventricular zones. It provides an overview of the roles of subventricular zones in normal development and in disease and a foundation from which current and future studies can be evaluated.
Les douleurs abdominales en questions : Rôle physiopathologique de la sensibilité viscérale = Abdominal pain in question : The pathophysiological role of visceral sensitivity
The gut-brain axis refers to the network of nerve pathways that connect the myenteric plexus, the veritable "gut brain," to the central nervous system. Nearly 80% of these neurons are sensory neurons, and the afferent pathways that transmit information from the digestive tract to the central nervous system play a crucial role in the physiological regulation of digestive functions, as well as in certain pathological conditions. A large majority of these sensations remain unconscious and give rise to reflex responses. Only those requiring a conscious response reach the level of awareness in a normal state (hunger, thirst, the urge to defecate). In pathological situations, the same is true for painful sensations of digestive origin. Functional bowel disorders are a frequent reason for consultation. Their pathophysiology is now based on a model integrating the various etiological factors around the brain-gut axis. These patients frequently present with visceral hypersensitivity, which manifests as an increased perception of digestive sensations, notably the onset of pain in response to stimuli that are not painful in normal subjects. Recognizing the role of visceral hypersensitivity has made it possible to explain the mechanism of action of medications used to treat functional bowel disorders and paves the way for the development of new molecules acting on digestive afferents. In this book, we will describe the anatomical and physiological basis for understanding the concept of visceral sensitivity and the role of digestive afferents in the pathophysiology of acute and chronic abdominal pain, particularly irritable bowel syndrome.
Lectures in Supercomputational Neurosciences : Dynamics in Complex Brain Networks
The present volume is an introduction, largely from the physicists' perspective, to the subject matter with in-depth contributions by system neuroscientists. A conceptual model for complex networks of neurons is introduced that incorporates many important features of the real brain, such as various types of neurons, various brain areas, inhibitory and excitatory coupling and the plasticity of the network. The computational implementation on supercomputers, which is introduced and discussed in detail in this book, will enable the readers to modify and adapt the algortihm for their own research.
Keyhole Approaches in Neurosurgery : Vol. I Concept and surgical technique
Offers a detailed systematic overview of the different approaches for minimally invasive craniotomies. After a description of the historical development of the particular craniotomy, each chapter illustrates the anatomical construction of the target region and the surgical approach itself with artistic illustrations and photographs of human cadaver dissections.
Communication in Plants : Neuronal Aspects of Plant Life
Plant neurobiology is a newly emerging field of plant sciences. It covers signalling and communication at all levels of biological organization – from molecules up to ecological communities. In this book, plants are presented as intelligent and social organisms with complex forms of communication and information processing. Authors from diverse backgrounds such as molecular and cellular biology, electrophysiology, as well as ecology treat the most important aspects of plant communication, including the plant immune system, abilities of plants to recognize self, signal transduction, receptors, plant neurotransmitters and plant neurophysiology. Further, plants are able to recognize the identity of herbivores and organize the defence responses accordingly. The similarities in animal and plant neuronal/immune systems are discussed too. All these hidden aspects of plant life and behaviour will stimulate further intense investigations in order to understand the communicative plants in their whole complexity.
Cerebral Hemorrhage
Cerebral hemorrhage is a common and often fatal subtype of stroke. while in the past it has received relatively little attention compared to ischemic stroke, there have been major advances in our understanding of this devastating form of stroke. The papers by world experts cover the field from molecular biology to clinical trials.
Cell-Cycle Mechanisms and Neuronal Cell Death
This book serves to gain new insights into the molecular determinants of neuronal death and to establish new targets for therapeutic intervention.
Cell-Cell Channels
The biological sciences are dominated by the idea that cells are the functionally autonomous, physically separated, discrete units of life. This concept was propounded in the 19th century by discoveries of the cellular structuring of both plants and animals. Moreover, the ap parent autonomy of unicellular eukaryotes, as well as the cellular basis of the mammalian brain (an organ whose anatomy for a long while defied attempts to validate the idea of the cellular nature of its neurons), seemed to provide the final conclusive evidence for the completeness of *cell theory', a theory which has persisted in an almost dogmatic form up to the present day. However, it is very obvious that there are numerous observations which indicate that it is not the cells which serve as the basic units of biological life but that this property falls to some other, subcellular assemblage. To deal with this intricate problem concerning the fundamental unit of living matter, we proposed the so-called Cell Body concept which, in fact, devel ops an exceedingly original idea proposed by Julius Sachs at the end of the 19th century. In the case of eukaryotic cells, DNA-enriched nuclei are intimately associated with a microtubular cytoskeleton. In this configuration—as a Cell Body—these two items comprise the fundamental functional and struc tural unit of eukaryotic living matter. The Cell Body seems to be inherent to all cells in all organisms.
Cannabinoids and the brain
Cannabinoids and the Brain gives a comprehensive overview of all the essential literature concerning the endocannabinoid and related systems in the nervous tissue. It is a rapidly expanding research field and the widespread presence of cannabinoids in most physiopathological mechanisms appear to hinder the effort to fully cover the subject. By the end of the book, the reader will have a solid knowledge of the genetics, molecular biology, anatomy, pharmacology, and physiology of the endocannabinoid system and its involvement in neurological and psychiatric disorders, and will eventually discover a natural relationship among marijuana, aspirin, and chili pepper.
Breathing, feeding, and neuroprotection
New findings in brain research are being revealed on an almost daily basis, and the focus of this book is the fields of breathing, neuroprotection, and higher brain functions. An unresolved issue within respiration research and hence a topic of much interest is Where and how respiratory rhythm is generated in the brainstem, detailed analysis of which is presented herein. Chapters on neuroprotection examine the functional significance of the blood – brain barrier as an interface of blood and the central nervous system; other chapters look at health and disease in relation to the hypothalamic and limbic systems. In addition to animal experiments, research on the human brain is included, with a focus on the recently developed EEG/dipole tracing method. This book will be an invaluable reference for researchers in neuroscience and related fields.
Branching Morphogenesis
Branching morphogenesis, the creation of branched structures in the body, is a key feature of animal and plant development. This book brings together, for the first time, expert researchers working on a variety of branching systems to present a state-of-the-art view of the mechanisms that control branching morphogenesis. Systems considered range from single cells, to blood vessel and drainage duct systems to entire body plans, and approaches range from observation through experiment to detailed biophysical modelling. The result is an integrated overview of branching.
Brain, vision, and artificial intelligence ; 1st International Symposium, BVAI 2005, Naples, Italy, October 19-21, 2005, Proceedings
This book constitutes the refereed proceedings of the First International Symposium on Brain, Vision and Artificial Intelligence, BVAI 2005, held in Naples, Italy in October 2005. The 48 revised papers presented together with 6 invited lectures were carefully reviewed and selected from more than 80 submissions for inclusion in the book. The papers are addressed to the following main topics and sub-topics: brain basics - neuroanatomy and physiology, development, plasticity and learning, synaptic, neuronic and neural network modelling; natural vision - visual neurosciences, mechanisms and model systems, visual perception, visual cognition; artificial vision - shape perception, shape analysis and recognition, shape understanding; artificial inteligence - hybrid intelligent systems, agents, and cognitive models.
Brain thoughts recognition
Humans controlling machines with their minds may sound like something from a scifi movie, but it’s becoming a reality through brain-computer interfaces BCI. Where BCI technology allows a human brain and an external device to talk to each other—to exchange signals. It gives humans the ability to directly control machines, without the physical constraints of the body. There are two ways to implement the BCI: Noninvasive tools often use sensors applied on or near the head to track and record brain activity, or Invasive BCI would require surgery. Electronic devices would need to be implanted beneath the skull, directly into the brain, to target specific sets of neurons. In order to implement a non-invasive BCI in a mobile phone, this study developed a mobile application to help paralyzed people who do not have the ability to use their phones to spend their basic daily needs, such as using the keyboard and interacting with PDF, etc.
Brain Dynamics : Synchronization and Activity Patterns in Pulse-Coupled Neural Nets with Delays and Noise
This book addresses a large variety of models in mathematical and computational neuroscience.He devotes the main part to the synchronization problem. He presents neural net models more realistic than the conventional ones by taking into account the detailed dynamics of axons, synapses and dendrites, allowing rather arbitrary couplings between neurons. He gives a complete stabile analysis that goes significantly beyond what has been known so far. He also derives pulse-averaged equations including those of the Wilson--Cowan and the Jirsa-Haken-Nunez types and discusses the formation of spatio-temporal neuronal activity pattems. An analysis of phase locking via sinusoidal couplings leading to various kinds of movement coordination is included.
