Reviewer: Celso Agner, MD, MS, MSc (Michigan Neurology Partners)
Description: This book addresses the main aspects of homeostasis in the nervous system and the possible relationship between current scientific discoveries and the etiology of diseases of the nervous system.
Purpose: The purpose is to address how external changes affect the behavior of neurons in the central nervous system. The alteration of ion concentrations, external temperature, and degree of acidity are addressed as possible agents affecting the behavior of nerve cells. The objectives are worthy and these topics deserve to be addressed in a summarized way. The objectives are clearly met by the authors.
Audience: The book targets researchers, graduate students, and educators who face constant challenges on how to modify the external environment of a specific neuron in order to obtain specific behavioral results. The author is a credible authority on the subject but I think the scope of the book has an audience beyond that proposed by the author. Neurology and neurosurgery residents would also find it useful to better understand the mechanisms of control of the central nervous system.
Features: The 15 chapters in this book are written by 31 authors. The book is divided into four sections. The first section addresses basic neurophysiological concepts regarding the control of neuronal activity. The second section incorporates some of the concepts developed in the first part to address the mechanisms of control of the microenvironment of neurons. The third section develops the first concept a little further to explain how the internal environment of neurons is capable of being modified by external changes, i.e., ionic and perfusion changes overtime. The last section deals with the interaction between the immune system and neurons, a topic of much current development. In all situations, there is a discussion of the correlation between the external environment of neurons and neurological diseases.
Assessment: This is a good contribution to the field of neuroscience. Besides the initial aim signalled by the authors, I would extend the list of readers to neurology and neurosurgery residents, who are daily questioned on the genetic-physiologic correlation of diseases dealed with on a daily basis.
"This book is a timely collection of reviews of fundamental processes in the compartments and chemical components of the cerebral micro-environments...its contents prove rewarding reading for the neuroclinician." - Clinical Neurology and Neurosurgery
"The book targets researchers, graduate students, and educators who face constant challenges on how to modify the external environment of a specific neuron in order to obtain specific behavioral results. The author is a credible authority on the subject but I think the scope of the book has an audience beyond that proposed by the author. Neurology and neurosurgery residents would also find it useful to read this book in order to better understand the mechanisms of control of the central nervous system...This is a good contribution to the field of neuroscience. Besides the initial aim signaled by the authors, I would extend the list of readers to neurology and neurosurgery residents, who are daily questioned on the genetic-physiologic correlation of diseases dealt with on a daily basis." -Doody's Health Sciences Book Review Journal
"...not just a textbook on neuroscience, as readers might imagine from the book title, but rather an essential guide for experts, beginners and students in the field of cell biology and pharmacology...written by experts who have made major contributions in their field..." - Journal of Chemical Neuroanatomy
"...this volume is not just a textbook on neuroscience, as readers might imagine from the book title, but rather an essential guide for exerts, beginners and students in the field of cell biology and pharmacology...written by experts who have made major contributions in their field..." - Journal of Chemical Neuroanatomy
"Once one begins to read in greater depth, it becomes clear that this volume is not just a textbook on neuroscience, as readers might imagine from the book title, but rather an essential guide for experts, beginners and students in the field of cell biology and pharmacology...written by experts who have made major contributions in their field...this book, besides being an excellent learning tool, is to enjoy." -Elsevier
