Current biology : CB
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Current biology : CB · Sep 2005
ReviewDeciphering the neural and molecular mechanisms of C. elegans behavior.
Because of its small and well-characterized nervous system and amenability to genetic manipulation, the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans offers the promise of understanding the mechanisms underlying a whole animal's behavior at the molecular and cellular levels. In fact, this goal was a primary motivation behind the development of C. elegans as an experimental organism 40 years ago. Yet it has proven surprisingly difficult to obtain a mechanistic understanding of how the C. elegans nervous system generates behavior, despite the existence of a 'wiring diagram' that contains a degree of information about neural connectivity unparalleled in any organism. This review describes three types of information--molecular data on cellular neurochemistry, temporal information about neural activity patterns, and behavioral data on the consequences of neural ablation and manipulation--that, along with genetic analysis, may ultimately lead to a complete functional map of the C. elegans nervous system.
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Current biology : CB · Jan 2005
ReviewCognitive neuroscience: resolving conflict in and over the medial frontal cortex.
The medial surface of the brain's frontal lobe has been implicated both in the voluntary initiation of action and in monitoring actions in situations where several conflicting responses are possible. Recent work casts light on how these functions are parcelled out in the medial frontal cortex.
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Current biology : CB · Aug 2004
ReviewNeural networks: models and neurons show hybrid vigor in real time.
Hybrid networks in which living neurons interact with digital or analog model neurons are providing insights into the role of neural and synaptic properties in shaping neural network activity.