This book demonstrates that the systematic study of gene expression patterns in embryonic and adult brains, in combination with selected data from earlier studies, can pave the way for a new neuromorphology, the most salient features of which may be summarized as follows: (1) Causal analysis of molecular patterning at neural plate and early neural tube stages has shown that the CNS is essentially organized into transverse neural segments or neuromeres and longitudinal zones which follow the curved axis of the brain. (2) The FMUs initially represent thin neuroepithelial fields; in the course of further development they are transformed into three-dimensional radial units, extending from the ventricular surface to the meningeal surface of the brain. (3) The principal histogenetic processes, including cellular proliferation, cell migration and differentiation, essentially take place within the confines of these radial units, controlled by characteristic sets of developmental regulatory genes. (4) Although most developing neurons migrate radially and settle within their own FMU, at many locations neuroblasts leave the FMU where they were produced and migrate tangentially to other nearby or remote territories, colonizing parts of foreign FMUs. (5) Many structural complexes in the adult brain, including the cerebral and cerebellar cortices, are the products of radial and tangential intermingling of migrated cell contingents. (6) By using appropriate molecular markers, all neuron types in the adult CNS can be traced back to a specific progenitor zone within a specific FMU, and the progeny of any FMU can be traced to their final positions with the help of selective labeling approaches. (7) Early outgrowing axons form bundles, which tend to pass close to the border zones of the radial units. By means of their molecularly diversely tuned growth cones, these extending axons decide how to behave at each boundary they encounter, sometimes even reorienting at right angles. Collectively these early axonal bundles form a checkerboard-like scaffold, which accentuates the molecular regionalization of the CNS and leads to the formation of topographically ordered synaptic fields. The book covers all of these aspects in detail, providing a morphologic model (blueprint) that highlights the natural coordinates of CNS structure resulting from the conserved molecularly controlled shaping phenomena within morphogenetic fields.

This book encourages readers to view similarities and differences in various species as fundamental to a comprehensive understanding of nervous systems.

The use of models has been important to the historical and contemporary study of the human brain, yet very little study by social scientists has been dedicated to how the brain sciences develop and use models to better understand what brains are and how they work, including the complex entanglements between brains, bodies and their environments. Vital Models: The Making and Use of Models in the Brain Sciences explores the history and use of brain models from clinical psychiatry to psychopharmacology and cybernetics, as well as developments in digital brain modeling, simulation, imaging and connectomics. This timely volume helps both scientists and students better understand the variety, strengths, weaknesses and applicability of models in neuroscience. - Presents a timely update on the topic of brain research and modeling techniques - Contains sections from true authorities in the field

This book presents a detailed examination of the current state of knowledge in the field of paleoneurology in the main amniote groups (reptiles, birds and mammals), and advances resulting from new non-invasive technologies. The study of fossil endocasts is an area of considerable current interest, and has long been central to our understanding of the evolution of the brain, development of senses and behavioral adaptations in diverse vertebrate groups and across vertebrates as a whole. Recent advances in non-invasive imaging have significantly increased the number of fossil taxa for which brain morphology is known, and it may now be possible to quantitatively analyze the relative size of brain regions. Providing a general overview of current perspectives and problems in evolutionary neuroanatomy, this book is intended for a wide range of readers, including undergraduate and graduate students, teachers, and anyone with a special interest in paleoneurology. It is also useful as supplementary reading for courses in digital anatomy, vertebrate comparative anatomy, computed morphometrics, paleontology, neurology and radiology as well as evolution programs

This book is an overview of primary sensory maps of vertebrates, characterized by continuous and discrete properties. The eight primary sensory maps of vertebrates have unique features and use distinct molecular cues, cell cycle exit, and activity combinations during development, regeneration, and plasticity. As an introduction and overview, the book provides a short overview for all eight sensory senses and presents through evolution and gene regulatory networks, the molecular cues needed for sensory processing. Independent contributions are included for olfactory, vision, trigeminal, taste, vestibular, auditory, lateral line, and electroreception.

Evolutionary Neuroscience, Second Edition, is a collection of chapters on brain evolution that combines selected topics from the recent comprehensive reference, Evolution of Nervous Systems (Elsevier, Academic Press, 2017, 9780128040423). The selected chapters cover a broad range of topics, from historical theory, to the most recent deductions from comparative studies of brains. The articles are organized in sections focused on history, concepts and theory, the evolution of brains from early vertebrates to present-day fishes, amphibians, reptiles and birds, the evolution of mammalian brains, and the evolution of primate brains, including human brains. Each chapter is written by a leader or leaders in the field. Specific topics include brain character reconstruction, principles of brain scaling, basic features of vertebrate brains, the evolution of the major sensory systems, other parts of brains, what we can learn from fossils, the origin of neocortex, and the evolution of specializations of human brains. The collection of articles will be interesting to anyone who is curious about how brains evolved from the simpler nervous systems of the first vertebrates into the many different complex forms now found in present-day vertebrates. - Provides the most comprehensive, authoritative and up-to-date single volume collection on brain evolution - Presents a full color treatment, with many illustrations - Written by leading scholars and experts - Features chapters on brain character reconstruction, principles of brain scaling, basic features of vertebrate brains, the evolution of the major sensory systems, and other parts of brains - Discusses what we can learn from fossils, the origin of neocortex, and the evolution of specializations of human brains

Evolution of Nervous Systems, Second Edition, Four Volume Set is a unique, major reference which offers the gold standard for those interested both in evolution and nervous systems. All biology only makes sense when seen in the light of evolution, and this is especially true for the nervous system. All animals have nervous systems that mediate their behaviors, many of them species specific, yet these nervous systems all evolved from the simple nervous system of a common ancestor. To understand these nervous systems, we need to know how they vary and how this variation emerged in evolution. In the first edition of this important reference work, over 100 distinguished neuroscientists assembled the current state-of-the-art knowledge on how nervous systems have evolved throughout the animal kingdom. This second edition remains rich in detail and broad in scope, outlining the changes in brain and nervous system organization that occurred from the first invertebrates and vertebrates, to present day fishes, reptiles, birds, mammals, and especially primates, including humans. The book also includes wholly new content, fully updating the chapters in the previous edition and offering brand new content on current developments in the field. Each of the volumes has been carefully restructured to offer expanded coverage of non-mammalian taxa, mammals, primates, and the human nervous system. The basic principles of brain evolution are discussed, as are mechanisms of change. The reader can select from chapters on highly specific topics or those that provide an overview of current thinking and approaches, making this an indispensable work for students and researchers alike. Presents a broad range of topics, ranging from genetic control of development in invertebrates, to human cognition, offering a one-stop resource for the evolution of nervous systems throughout the animal kingdom Incorporates the expertise of over 100 outstanding investigators who provide their conclusions in the context of the latest experimental results Presents areas of disagreement and consensus views that provide a holistic view of the subjects under discussion

The hearing organs of non-mammals, which show quite large and systematic differences to each other and to those of mammals, provide an invaluable basis for comparisons of structure and function. By taking advantage of the vast diversity of possible study organisms provided by the "library" that is biological diversity, it is possible to learn how complex functions are realized in the inner ear through the evolution of specific structural, cellular and molecular configurations. Insights from Comparative Hearing Research brings together some of the most exciting comparative research on hearing and shows how this work has profoundly impacted our understanding of hearing in all vertebrates.

This atlas – and its accompanying text - is the most comprehensive work on avian neuroanatomy available so far. It identifies more than 900 hundred structures (versus ca. 250 in previous avian atlases), 180 of them for the first time. It correlates avian and mammalian neuroanatomy on the basis of homologies and applies mammalian terms to homologous avian structures. This is the first atlas that represents the fundamental histogenetic domains of the vertebrate neuroaxis on the basis of sound fate-mapping and gene expression data. This results in a substantial increase in accuracy of delineations. Developmental molecular biologists will find it easier to extrapolate early neural tube patterns into mature structures. The modern trend to shift avian neuroanatomical nomenclature toward mammalian terminology by reference to postulated homologies has been expanded to the entire brain, but is not yet complete. This creates a new standard for comparative cross-reference, which can also be applied to reptilian-mammalian comparisons. - Color photographs and matching diagrams of 65 coronal, 23 sagittal and 9 horizontal 140 micron-thick sections reacted histochemically for acetylcholinesterase (AChE). - Thoroughly revised drawings. Updated view of the pallium, including the new concept of homology between the lateral pallium and the mammalian claustro-insular complex. - Extensive introductory text and bibliography, presenting the background information, methodology and justification of delineations. - For the first time in any species, this atlas depicts the fate-mapped natural embryonic boundaries in the postnatal brain. For the first time, we present color images of all the 6 histological stains (AChE, Nissl, TH, calbindin, calretinin and parvalbumin) on which delineations are based (accompanying Expert Consult eBook). - Includes the Expert Consult eBook version, compatible with PC, Mac, and most mobile devices and eReaders, which allows readers to browse, search, and interact with content. - The eBook also contains annotatable AI files of diagrams for use by researchers.