This textbook provides an introduction to neuroscience, focusing particularly on the rapidly developing molecular aspects. The techniques of molecular biology are introduced and described in the context of their role in elucidating brain function at the molecular level.

An understanding of the nervous system at virtually any level of analysis requires an understanding of its basic building block, the neuron. From Molecules to Networks provides the solid foundation of the morphologic, biochemical, and biophysical properties of nerve cells. All chapters have been thoroughly revised for this second edition to reflect the significant advances of the past 5 years. The new edition expands on the network aspects of cellular neurobiology by adding a new chapter, Information Processing in Neural Networks, and on the relation of cell biological processes to various neurological diseases. The new concluding chapter illustrates how the great strides in understanding the biochemical and biophysical properties of nerve cells have led to fundamental insights into important aspects of neurodegenerative disease. - Written and edited by leading experts in the field, the second edition completely and comprehensively updates all chapters of this unique textbook - Discusses emerging new understanding of non-classical molecules that affect neuronal signaling - Full colour, professional graphics throughout - Includes two new chapters: Information Processing in Neural Networks - describes the principles of operation of neural networks and the key circuit motifs that are common to many networks in the nervous system. Molecular and Cellular Mechanisms of Neurodegenerative Disease - introduces the progress made in the last 20 years in elucidating the cellular and molecular mechanisms underlying brain disorders, including Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS), Parkinson disease, and Alzheimer's disease

The field of cellular, molecular, and developmental neuroscience repre sents the interface between the three large, well established fields of neu roscience, cell biology, and molecular biology. In the last 10 to 15 years, this new field has emerged as one of the most rapidly growing and exciting subdisciplines of neuroscience. It is now becoming possible to understand many aspects of nervous system function at the molecular level, and there already are dramatic applications of this information to the treatment of nervous system injury, disease, and genetic disorders. Moreover, there is great optimism that new strategies will emerge soon as a result of the explosion of information. This book was written to introduce students to the major issues, ex perimental strategies, and current knowledge base in cellular, molecular, and developmental neuroscience. The concept for the book arose from a section of an introductory neuroscience course given to first-year medical students at the University of Virginia School of Medicine. The text pre sumes a basic, but not detailed, understanding of nervous system orga nization and function, and a background in biology. It is intended as an appropriate introductory text for first-year medical students or graduate students in neuroscience, neurobiology, psychobiology, or related pro grams;··and for advanced undergraduate students with appropriate back ground in biology and neuroscience. While some of the specific information presented undoubtedly will be outdated rapidly, the "gestalt" of this emerging field of inquiry as presented here should help the beginning stu dent organize new information.

Basic Neuroscience Protocols: Tips, Tricks, and Pitfalls contains explanatory sections that describe the techniques and what each technique really tells the researcher on a scientific level. These explanations describe relevant controls, troubleshooting, and reaction components for some of the most widely used neuroscience protocols that remain difficult for many neuroscientists to implement successfully. Having this additional information will help researchers ensure that their experiments work the first time, and will also minimize the time spent working on a technique only to discover that the problem was them, and not their materials. - Describes techniques in very specific detail with step-by-step instructions, giving researchers in-depth understanding - Offers many details not present in other protocol books - Describes relevant controls for each technique and what those controls mean - Chapters include references (key articles, books, protocols) for additional study - Describes both the techniques and the habits necessary to get quality results, such as aseptic technique, aliquoting, and general laboratory rules

This textbook is the first to bring together and synthesize the neuropeptide research of the past decade in such a comprehensive, scholarly manner. In recent years there has been increasing interest and, subsequently, active research in neuropeptides. These neuroactive molecules coordinate, integrate, and regulate physiological processes in all organisms, throughout all phases of development. Acting as neurohormones, neurotransmitters, and/or neuromodulators, they maintain physiological homeostasis and influence important behavioral patterns. This textbook is the first to bring together and synthesize the neuropeptide research of the past decade in such a comprehensive, scholarly manner. The book is divided into two parts. In Part I the author defines the basic principles of neuropeptide action, including their biosynthesis, processing, transport, distribution, and interactions with receptors and second messenger systems. Strand also discusses the intimate interaction between the neuropeptides, stress, and the immune system. In Part II she discusses the regulatory functions of the families of neuropeptide in sufficient detail to provide both the advanced student and senior investigator with a thorough understanding of the most important neuropeptides. The text also contains a complete and up-to-date reference/reading list.

The field of neurology is being transformed, from a therapeutically nihilistic discipline with few effective treatments, to a therapeutic specialty which offers new, effective treatments for disorders of the brain and spinal cord. This remarkable transformation has bridged neuroscience, molecular medicine, and clinical investigation, and represents a major triumph for biomedical research. This book, which contains chapters by more than 29 internationally recognized authorities who have made major contributions to neurotherapeutics, tells the stories of how new treatments for disabling disorders of the nervous system, such as stroke, multiple sclerosis, Parkinson's disease, and migraine, were developed, and explores evolving themes and technologies that offer hope for even more effective treatments and ultimately cures for currently untreatable disorders of the brain and spinal cord. The first part of this book reviews the development of new therapies in neurology, from their inception in terms of basic science to their introduction into the clinical world. It also explores evolving themes and new technologies. This book will be of interest to everyone – clinicians and basic scientists alike – interested in diseases of the brain and spinal cord, and in the quest for new treatments for these disorders.* Presents the evolution of the field of neurology into a therapeutic discipline * Discusses lessons learned from past successes and applications to ongoing work* Explores the future of this field

Basic Neurochemistry, Eighth Edition, is the updated version of the outstanding and comprehensive classic text on neurochemistry. For more than forty years, this text has been the worldwide standard for information on the biochemistry of the nervous system, serving as a resource for postgraduate trainees and teachers in neurology, psychiatry, and basic neuroscience, as well as for medical, graduate, and postgraduate students and instructors in the neurosciences. The text has evolved, as intended, with the science. This new edition continues to cover the basics of neurochemistry as in the earlier editions, along with expanded and additional coverage of new research from intracellular trafficking, stem cells, adult neurogenesis, regeneration, and lipid messengers. It contains expanded coverage of all major neurodegenerative and psychiatric disorders, including the neurochemistry of addiction, pain, and hearing and balance; the neurobiology of learning and memory; sleep; myelin structure, development, and disease; autism; and neuroimmunology. - Completely updated text with new authors and material, and many entirely new chapters - Over 400 fully revised figures in splendid color - 61 chapters covering the range of cellular, molecular and medical neuroscience - Translational science boxes emphasizing the connections between basic and clinical neuroscience - Companion website at http://elsevierdirect.com/companions/9780123749475

Modern neuroscience research is inherently multidisciplinary, with a wide variety of cutting edge new techniques to explore multiple levels of investigation. This Third Edition of Guide to Research Techniques in Neuroscience provides a comprehensive overview of classical and cutting edge methods including their utility, limitations, and how data are presented in the literature. This book can be used as an introduction to neuroscience techniques for anyone new to the field or as a reference for any neuroscientist while reading papers or attending talks. - Nearly 200 updated full-color illustrations to clearly convey the theory and practice of neuroscience methods - Expands on techniques from previous editions and covers many new techniques including in vivo calcium imaging, fiber photometry, RNA-Seq, brain spheroids, CRISPR-Cas9 genome editing, and more - Clear, straightforward explanations of each technique for anyone new to the field - A broad scope of methods, from noninvasive brain imaging in human subjects, to electrophysiology in animal models, to recombinant DNA technology in test tubes, to transfection of neurons in cell culture - Detailed recommendations on where to find protocols and other resources for specific techniques - "Walk-through" boxes that guide readers through experiments step-by-step

A wide variety of powerful molecular techniques have been applied to biology in recent decades, ranging from recombinant DNA technologies to state-of-the-art imaging methods. But the plethora of techniques available combined with the complexities of neurobiological systems can make it difficult for neuroscientists to select and carry out an experimental procedure to effectively address the question at hand. This laboratory manual serves as a comprehensive practical guide to molecular and cellular methods for neuroscientists. It consists of five major sections: Working with Cells, Working with DNA, Working with RNA, Gene Transfer, and Imaging. Each includes step-by-step protocols and discussions of basic and cutting-edge procedures for working in that area. Fundamental techniques include maintaining a sterile working environment, purifying and culturing neural cells, isolating and manipulating DNA and RNA, and understanding and using a microscope. Advanced topics include single-neuron isolation and analysis, in vivo gene delivery and imaging, optogenetics, RNA interference, transgenic technologies, high-throughput analysis of gene expression (e.g., RNA-Seq), and constructing and imaging fluorescent proteins. The manual includes protocols developed in the Advanced Techniques in Molecular Neuroscience course offered annually at Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, as well as protocols drawn from its best-selling lab manuals. It is an essential resource for all neuroscientists, from graduate students upward, who seek to use molecular techniques to probe the complexities of the nervous system.