From Neuron to Brain

Introduction to the Fifth Edition.- PART I: INTRODUCTION TO THE NERVOUS SYSTEM.- Principles of Signaling and Organization.- Signaling in the Visual System.- Functional Architecture of the Visual Cortex.- PART II: ELECTRICAL PROPERTIES OF NEURONS AND GLIA.- Ion Channels and Signaling.- Structural Basis of Ion Channel Function.- The Ionic Basis of the Resting Potential.- The Ionic Basis of the Action Potential.- Electrical Signaling in Neurons.- Transport across Cell Membranes.- Properties and Functions of Neuroglian Cells.- PART III: INTERCELLULAR COMMUNICATION.- Mechanisms of Direct Synaptic Transmission.- Indirect Mechanisms of Synaptic Transmission.- Release of Neurotransmitters.- Neurotransmitters in the Central Nervous System.- Transmitter Synthesis, Transport, Storage, and Inactivation.- Synaptic Plasticity.- PART IV: INTEGRATIVE MECHANISMS.- Autonomic Nervous System.- Cellular Mechanisms of Behavior in Ants, Bees, and Leeches.- PART V: SENSATION AND MOVEMENT.- Sensory Transduction.- Transduction and Transmission in the Retina.- Touch, Pain, and Texture Sensation.- Auditory and Vestibular Sensation.- Constructing Perception.- Circuits Controlling Reflexes, Respiration, and Coordinated Movements.- PART VI: DEVELOPMENT AND REGENERATION OF THE NERVOUS SYSTEM.- Development of the Nervous System.- Critical Periods in Sensory Systems.- Regeneration of Synaptic Connections after Injury.- PART VII: CONCLUSION.- Open Questions.- Clinical relevance emphasized.- Appendices.- Current Flow in Electrical Circuits.- Metabolic Pathways for the Synthesis and Inactivation of Low Molecular Weight Transmitters.- Structures and Pathways of the Brain.

John G. Nicholls, A. Robert Martin, Paul A. Fuchs, David A. Brown, Mathew E. Diamond and David A. Weisblat