The elementary information transfer between two neurons is represented by the generation of a synaptic current in the post-synaptic element due to the activation of post-synaptic receptors by a neurotransmitter quantum. The duration and the amplitude of such signals are largely dete ...
Functional properties of neuronal circuits can be best studied in vivo in the living mammalian brain. The use of optical methods, like two-photon calcium imaging, permits analyses of network function at single-cell resolution. This chapter provides a step-by-step description of this te ...
The acute slice preparation can be a powerful tool to study brain networks that would otherwise be difficult to manipulate at the synaptic and cellular levels. In the first part of this chapter, we discuss the specific challenges of preparing brain slices to study neural networks, and we review sol ...
From brain slice to freely moving mouse, optical methods are being used to probe single neuron physiology and neural circuit function. Efforts in physics, engineering, and genetics have resulted in novel techniques that permit more refined optical interrogation of brain function. The f ...
Brain rhythms are the most prominent signal measured noninvasively in humans with magneto-/electro-encephalography (MEG/EEG). MEG/EEG measured rhythms have been shown to be functionally relevant and signature changes are used as markers of disease states. Despite the importan ...
Excitability and effective connectivity are key parameters of cortical circuits’ functioning. Moreover, alterations of these parameters have been suggested to underlie neurologic and psychiatric conditions. Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS) combined with neu ...
The study of neuronal microcircuits with paired electrophysiological recordings from synaptically coupled neurons in brain slices has revealed a large variety of neuronal cell types with highly distinct and connection-specific characteristics of synaptic transmission. ...
Stereological techniques that estimate cell numbers require specific training and elaborate sampling strategies to infer total numbers of cells in well-defined structures of measurable volume. The isotropic fractionator is a fast and inexpensive method that requires little s ...
The purpose of this introductory chapter is to provide an overview of a number of techniques used to study the brain’s anatomical organization, with particular focus on the investigation of the mammalian neocortex, the large outer surface of the brain and the key structure responsible for com ...
Optical manipulation allows researchers to alter the activity of genetically defined neural populations with millisecond-scale temporal accuracy. This facilitates the activation and inactivation of functionally distinct subnetworks at precise times relative to beha ...
The ability to turn on and off specific cell types and neural pathways in the brain, in a temporally precise fashion, has begun to enable the ability to test the sufficiency and necessity of particular neural activity patterns, and particular neural circuits, in the generation of normal and abnorm ...
The zebrafish (Danio rerio) has been at the forefront of neurobiological research and is steadily gaining favor as a model organism for behavioral applications. The ease of handling, high yield of progeny, and efficient mode of drug delivery make this species a particularly useful model for be ...
Information is transmitted throughout the nervous system by chemical and electrical signals. The cacophony of neuronal signals does not end at the cell surface, but continues deep into cells via diffusible intracellular messenger molecules. The list of molecules that serve as intrac ...
The patch-clamp method was introduced in 1976 (Hamill et al., 1981; Neher and Sakmann, 1976). It has been widely used to study whole-cell and single-channel currents. In many cases, the experimenter needs to test how changing the pipet solution composition can affect membrane-channel function ...
“The determination of the three-dimensional structures of protein molecules showed for the first time in detail the construction of the molecular ’machines’ of the life cycle. If we want to learn how these ’machines’ work it is not sufficient only to know their construction. We actually have to see ...
The great advantage of patch clamp in cellular physiology is that it allows sensitive and reliable analysis of the electrical activity of cell membranes at the molecular level. Whole cell is the most popular variant of the patch-clamp technique. It is easy to obtain and it allows the use of intra- and ext ...
Brain slices have become an integral part of synaptic and cellular physiology since the pioneering studies by Henry McIlwain (Li and McIlwain, 1957; Yamamoto and McIlwain, 1966). The hippocampal slice preparation was first brought to the United States from Per Anderson’s lab-initially by ...
One of the main challenges for a better understanding of signaling mechanisms in the normal and diseased central nervous system (CNS) is to unravel the molecular basics of function on the cellular and systemic levels. Several important cellular processes, such as proliferation, differe ...
The purpose of this chapter is to describe the procedures used to record macroscopic currents from patches of biological membranes. Several variations of the classic patch-clamp recording procedure are available and described in other chapters of this book, however the procedure rep ...
As mentioned by Cole (1968) the connections between life and electricity have long held the attention of investigators, with observations dating from ancient examinations of the electric catfish Malapterurus in 2600 B.C to modern examinations of the structure/function relations ...
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