NEUROSCIENCE AS AN INTEGRATED DISCIPLINE

BASIC NEUROSCIENCES• NEUROCHEMISTRY• MOLECULAR NEUROBIOLOGY• NEUROCYTOLOGY• CELLULAR NEUROPHYSIOLOGY• NEUROHISTOLOGY• NEUROPHARMACOLOGY (NEUROTOXICOLOGY, NEUROTERATOLOGY)• NEUROANATOMY (CONNECTIONAL, CHEMICAL, COMPARATIVE)• DEVELOPMENTAL NEUROBIOLOGY• ELECTROPHYSIOLOGY• NEUROENDOCRINOLOGY• BEHAVIORAL NEUROSCIENCE (PHYSIOLOGICAL PSYCHOLOGY)• NEROETHOLOGY• PSYCHOPHARMACOLOGY (BEHAVIORAL PHARMACOLOGY)• “COGNITIVE NEUROSCIENCE” (IMAGING)• EVOLUTIONARY NEUROBIOLOGY

CLINICAL NEUROSCIENCES

• NEUROLOGY• NEURORADIOLOGY• NEUROSURGERY• NEUROPSYCHOLOGY• PSYCHIATRY• NEUROREHABILATION• NEUROPATHOLOGY • NEURAL ENGINERING

WHY ARE THERE SO MANY NEUROSCIENCES

• DIFFERENT THINGS STUDIES– NORMAL STRUCTURE – NORMAL FUNCTION – ABNORMAL STRUCTURE & FUNCTION – EVOLUTION (OF STRUCTURE OR

FUNCTION)

• DIFFERENT LEVELS EXAMINED

RULES OF LIFE

EMERGENCE

LEVELS OF ORGANIZATION OF THE NERVOUS SYSTEM

• MOLECULES• CELLS• LOCAL CIRCUITS (NUCLEI)• “BRAIN”

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The neuron - all neurons - are very polarized. They receive inputs in the dendrites and transmit information to the axon terminals

NEURONAL CLASSIFICATIONS

• NUMBER OF DENDRITES• SHAPE OF CELL BODY & DENDRITES• PRESENCE OR ABSENCE OF SPINES• AXONAL MORPHOLOGY• CHEMICAL IDENTITY

NEUROPIL

From Peters, Palay & Webster (1976).

The cell biology of different neuronal compartments also vary substantially.

For example, the soma and dendrites contain the Golgi apparatus, but not the axons.

This simple fact has implications for signaling, and neurodegenerative disorders

The complex neuronal structure is underpinned by three different filamentous proteins.

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The vertebrate adaptation of myelination has very profound implications for signaling and scaling in

the nervous system

Even when represented simply, neuronal structure may be very complex