Trends in neurosciences
-
Trends in neurosciences · Jun 1998
Biography Historical ArticleRembrandt's 'The anatomy lesson of Dr. Joan Deijman'.
Rembrandt's striking painting of a human brain being dissected by a headless figure is actually a fragment of a larger work. The original was both a commissioned group portrait of a surgeons' guild and an account of a public dissection. Such dissections served both educational and entertainment functions in 17th century Holland.
-
Trends in neurosciences · Feb 1996
ReviewIntrinsic neuromodulation: altering neuronal circuits from within.
There are two sources of neuromodulation for neuronal circuits: extrinsic inputs and intrinsic components of the circuits themselves. Extrinsic neuromodulation is known to be pervasive in nervous systems, but intrinsic neuromodulation is less recognized, despite the fact that it has now been demonstrated in sensory and neuromuscular circuits and in central pattern generators. By its nature, intrinsic neuromodulation produces local changes in neuronal computation, whereas extrinsic neuromodulation can cause global changes, often affecting many circuits simultaneously. Studies in a number of systems are defining the different properties of these two forms of neuromodulation.
-
Trends in neurosciences · Dec 1995
ReviewAnesthetic actions within the spinal cord: contributions to the state of general anesthesia.
The behavioral state known as general anesthesia is the result of actions of general anesthetic agents at multiple sites within the neuraxis. The most common end point used to measure the presence of anesthesia is absence of movement following the presentation of a noxious stimulus. ⋯ Studies in the spinal cord are likely to increase our understanding of the pharmacology by which general anesthetics alter the transmission of somatomotor information. It now appears that the pharmacology responsible for the production of anesthesia is agent- and site-selective, and not the result of a unitary mechanism of action.