A
α-synuclein, 152–153
AC. See Adenylate cyclase
Acetylcholine (ACh), 30–31, 147
Acetylcholine receptor inducing activity (ARIA), 31
ACh. See Acetylcholine
Adenosine monophosphate. See Cyclic AMP
Adenosine triphosphate (ATP), 102
Adenylate cyclase (AC), 102, 104
controversies over new neurons, genes and behavior, 111–136
plasticity of and learning in, 83–109
vs. young, 2
Age-related neurodegenerative diseases
Age-related macular degeneration (AMD), 140, 155–156
Alzheimer’s disease, 146–150
Parkinson’s disease, 150–153
Aging.
See also Disease model of aging in the brain
cognitive changes with, 142–143
neuronal changes with, 140–142
Aging of the brain, 3, 137–173
conclusions/speculations about, 161–173
Aguayo, Albert, 120
Alcohol use and IQ, 134
binge drinking and fetal alcohol syndrome, 162
Alzheimer’s disease, 3, 139–142, 146–150, 152, 156, 167
genetic predisposition to, 149
AMD. See Age-related macular degeneration
Amputees, 88–89
Amyloid precursor protein (APP), 149–150
Anaerobic survival of cells, 112
Animals, clues from cold-blooded, 118–120
APP. See Amyloid precursor protein
ARIA. See Acetylcholine receptor inducing activity
ATP. See Adenosine triphosphate
Atrophy
cortical, 147
neuronal, 141
Attention factor, 108–109
training in focusing, 109
Auditory imprinting, 79
Autonomic ganglia, 38
rearrangement of synapses during maturation of, 35
Autosomal dominant disorder, 146
Awakenings, 154
Axonal growth, effect of NGF on, 39
Axonal pathfinding, 29
Axons
CNS, 25
finding their way, 25–29
from the HVC, 116
from the LGN, 92
myelination of, 13
retinal, 27
B
β-amyloid, 147–150
β-catenin, 17
BDNF. See Brain-derived growth factor
Behavioral traits. See also Cognitive behaviors
heritability of, 130
Berson, Eliot, 157
Betz cells, 142
Binge drinking and fetal alcohol syndrome, 162
Binocularity, visual neurons, 47, 52
Birdsong, 66–73
neural control of, 70–73
neurogenesis and, 116–118
Bliss, Timothy, 95
BMP, 16
Bonhoeffer, Friedrich, 27
Boss mutant, 24
Bouchard, Thomas, 129, 133, 168–169
Braille readers, 91
Brain, 1–4
development of, 4–79
gender differences in, 10
glucose utilization by, 14
major subdivisions of, 8
oxygen utilization by, 112
sculpting, 56
tumors in, 113–114
Wernicke’s area of, 59–60
Brain building, 7–31
differentiation of neurons, 19–24
how axons find their way, 25–29
mechanisms underlying, 14–16
migration of young neurons, 19
proliferation of neural cells, 16–18
synapse formation, 29–31
Brain-derived growth factor (BDNF), 37, 117
Brain development, mechanisms underlying, 14–16
Brain maturation, 13, 33–56, 163
and enriched visual environments, 53–56
mechanisms of trophic interactions in, 36–38
visual system development, 38–53
Brain synapses. See Synapses
Broca, Pierre Paul, 59
Brody, Harold, 141
Bruer, John, 2
Burt, Cyril, 129
C
CA1 and CA3 pyramidal cells, 95–96
CAG repeats. See Cytosine-adenine-guanosine repeats
Cajal, Santiago Ramón y, 84
Calmodulin, 100–102
cAMP. See Cyclic AMP
Cancers of the brain, 18
Cell-cell recognition, 25
Cell cycle, 17–18
Cells. See Axons;
Betz cells;
Ganglion cell axons;
Glial cells;
Granule cells;
Mesodermal cells;
Neural cells;
Neural crest cells;
Neural plate cells;
Neural progenitor cells;
Neurons;
Photoreceptor cells;
Precursor cell;
Pyramidal cells
Central nervous system (CNS), 8
axons, 25
Central nucleus of the inferior colliculus (ICC), 76
Cerebellum, 13
Chemical signaling, 16, 25, 36–37
Chemical therapy, 159
Chemoaffinity hypothesis, 25
Children, learning English, 65
Chinese children, learning English, 65
Chomsky, Noam, 61
Chordin, 15
CNS. See Central nervous system
Cognitive behaviors, 125–126
changing with aging, 142–143
Cohen, Stanley, 37
Cold-blooded animals, clues from, 18, 25, 45, 84, 118–120
Complex behaviors, 125–126
Conclusions, 161–173
about what the future holds, 170–173
regarding genes and behavior, 166–169
Confusion in Alzheimer’s disease, 146
Consolidation of memories, the hippocampus and, 93–95
consciousness, 58
Controversies, 111–136
over generating new neurons, 112–122
over genes and behavior, 122–132
over IQ and genetics, 132–136
Cortex. See also Cerebral cortex;
Mammalian cortex
LTP in, 102–103
motor area of, 86
somatosensory area of, 86, 88, 92, 103
Cortical atrophy, 147
Cortical circuitry, modifying, 50–51
Cortical neurons, 41–42
Cortical plasticity, 83–92, 106–107
Cortical surfaces, 11
Corticosterone, 115
Cortisol, 155
Creolization of language, 61–62
Critical periods
in birdsong learning, 68–70
in imprinting, 78
in language development, 63–66
in owl sound localization, 74
in visual system development, 50–51
Cross-eyed vision, 52
Cyclic AMP (cyclic adenosine monophosphate) (cAMP), 102, 104
Cytoplasmic inclusion bodies. See Lewy bodies
Cytosine-adenine-guanosine (CAG) repeats, 124–125, 166
D
Deafferentation, 87–88
Decade of the Brain, 1
Degeneration and Regeneration of the Nervous System, 84
Dendrites, effect of NGF on formation of, 39
Dendritic arbors, 38–39
Dendritic growth, 10
Depolarization, of a postsynaptic cell, 97, 99
Deprivation, during visual system development, 46–49
of language, 64
Developing brain, 4–79
brain building, 7–31
brain maturation, 33–56
and genes and behavior, 126–129
Developmental behaviors, 57–79
birdsong, 66–73
imprinting and parent recognition, 77–79
language, 57–66
sound localization in owls, 73–77
Developmental directives, inherited, 21
Differentiation
of neurons, 19–24
of sounds reaching the inferior colliculus (ICDs), 76
Direction selectivity, 40–41
Disease model of aging in the brain, 139–160
Alzheimer’s disease, 146–150
cognitive changes with aging, 142–143
environment and neurodegenerative diseases, 153–155
and longevity, 143–146
neuronal changes with age, 140–142
Parkinson’s disease and other age-related
neurodegenerative diseases, 150–153
retinitis pigmentosa, a model neurodegenerative disease, 155–160
DLM. See Dorsolateral thalamic nucleus
DNA
code for glutamine in, 124
synthesis of, 17
transcribing, 102
transcription factors and, 24, 62, 102
Dominance, behavioral, 127–128.
See also Ocular dominance columns
Dopamine, 151–152
Dorsolateral thalamic nucleus (DLM), 70–72
Drosophila melanogaster, 22, 27, 152
Drug use, 133
Dryja, Thaddeus, 157
E
E-LTP. See Short-term (or early) forms of LTP
Electrical activity
of ganglion cells, 44
recording, 45
Electron microscopy, 19
Embryonic stem cells, transplantation of, 145, 173
Enriched visual environments, in brain maturation, 53–56, 164
Environmental factors, 161
and genes and behavior, 126–129
and neurodegenerative diseases, 153–155
“Epigenetic” factors, 128–129
Estrogen, 115
Excitation, of synapses, 106
F
Fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS), 162
Filial imprinting. See Imprinting
Finches zebra, 68–69
Flynn, James, 134
Flynn effect, 134–135
fMRI. See Functional magnetic resonance imaging
Follistatin, 15
Forced usage of amblyopic eyes, 52
medial neostriatum and hyperstriatum (MNH) region of, 79
Forgetfulness in Alzheimer’s disease, 146
Formation
of new synapses, mechanisms of, 92–93
of synapses, 29–31
Frontal lobes, 13
Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), 113, 121, 173
Future perspectives, 170–173
G
G-proteins, 104
Gage, Fred, 114
Ganglion cells, electrical activity of, 44
Gardner, Howard, 133
Gene penetrance, 124
Gene therapy, 159
Generation of new neurons, 112–122
clues from cold-blooded animals, 118–120
controversies over, 112–122
neurogenesis and birdsong, 116–118
neuron generation, 114–115
plasticity of the mammalian brain, 121–122
Genes and behavior, 3, 122–132
complex and cognitive behaviors, 125–126
conclusions regarding, 166–169
controversies over, 122–132
environment and development, 126–129
Huntington’s disease, 123–125
twin studies, 129–132
“Genie,” language deprivation in, 64
Germinal zone, 18
Gilbert, Charles, 91–92
growth of, 55
proliferation of, 10, 19, 113–114
radial, 20
tumors arising from, 114
Glucose, utilization by the brain, 14
Glutamine, 124–125
Goldberg, Michael, 109
Granule cells, 95–96
Greenough, William, 54
Growth cones, 29
Gusella, James, 123
H
Hamburger, Viktor, 37
Hamer, Dean, 168
Harlow, Harry, 130–131
Higher-order association brain areas, 13
Higher vocal center (HVC), 70–73, 116–117
Hindbrain, 8
Hippocampus
and consolidating memories, 93–95
eliciting LTP in, 102
long-term potentiation in, 95–100
and mechanisms of new synapse formation, 92–93, 115
neural circuitry of, 18
Huntingtin, 124
Huntington’s disease, 123–125, 147, 152, 156, 166
HVC. See Higher vocal center
I
ICC. See Central nucleus of the inferior colliculus
ICDs. See Differentiation of sounds reaching the inferior colliculus
ICX. See Inferior colliculus
Imprinting
auditory, 79
and parent recognition, 77–79
Inferior colliculus (ICX), 75–76
central nucleus of, 76
differences of sounds reaching, 76
Inherited developmental directives, 21
Inhibition, of synapses, 106
Injury, spinal cord, 120
Interaction, of R8 cell with precursor cell, 23
Intermediate zone, neurons from, 20
IQ scores
and genetics, controversies over, 132–136
influence of schooling on, 134
influence of television on, 135
rising over time, 134–135
J
Japanese people
life expectancy among, 144
sound discrimination in, 63, 170
K
Kissinger, Henry, 63
Korean children, learning English, 65
L
L-dopa therapy in Parkinson’s disease, 151–152, 154
L-LTP. See Long-term (or late) LTP
Language, 57–66
creolization of, 61–62
in infants, 62–63
language areas, 59–61
learning, 61–66
teaching to primates, 58
Language deprivation, case studies of, 64
Language Instinct, The, 58
Lateral geniculate nucleus (LGN), 42–47, 53, 91–92
Lateral portion of the magnocellular nucleus of the anterior nidopallium (LMAN), 70–72
Lead exposure and IQ, 133–134
the hippocampus and consolidating memories, 93–95
long-term potentiation (LTP) in the hippocampus, 95–100
and mechanisms of new synapse formation, 92–93
Learning language, 61–66
in children, 65
Learning new behaviors, 89–92
Learning vocabulary, 66
Levi-Montalcini, Rita, 37
Lewy bodies, 152–153
LGN. See Lateral geniculate nucleus
Life expectancy, 143–146, 172–173
among the Japanese people, 144–146
history of, 143–144
Limb buds, 36
LMAN. See Lateral portion of the magnocellular nucleus of the anterior nidopallium
Lømo, Terje, 95
Long-term depression (LTD), 97
Long-term (or late) LTP (L-LTP), 96, 100–102, 106
mechanisms underlying, 101
Long-term potentiation (LTP), 95–103
elsewhere in the cortex, 102–103
in the hippocampus, 95–100, 102
long-term forms of, 96, 100–102
short-term forms of, 100–101
synaptic mechanisms underlying, 97–100
Longevity, 143–146
Lorenz, Konrad, 78
LTD. See Long-term depression
LTP. See Long-term potentiation
M
Macular degeneration
Malattia Leventinese, 156
Magnetoencephalography (MEG), magnetic source imaging, 90–91, 173
Malattia Leventinese macular degeneration, 156
Mammalian cortex
and learning new behaviors, 89–92
plasticity of, 84–92
Mangold, Hilde, 15
Maturation. See Brain maturation
McClelland, Jay, 170
Mechanisms
of new synapse formation, 92–93
underlying brain development, 14–16
Medial neostriatum and hyperstriatum (MNH), region of the forebrain, 79
MEG. See Magnetoencephalography
consolidating, and the hippocampus, 93–95
and mechanisms of new synapse formation, 92–93
Mesodermal cells, neural plate induction by, 15
Messenger RNA (mRNA), 102
nucleus of, 75
Migration of young neurons, 19
Milner, Brenda, 94–95
Mind, Brain and Behavior program (Harvard) , 1
Missing hand, 88–89
MNH. See Medial neostriatum and hyperstriatum
Motor area, of the cortex, 86
MPTP, MPP+, and Parkinson’s disease, 154
mRNA. See Messenger RNA
Myelination of axons, 13
Myth of the First Three Years, The, 2
N
Nerve growth factor (NGF), 37–38
effect on formation of dendrites and axonal growth, 39
Neural cells
proliferation of, 16–18
unchecked proliferation of, 18
Neural control, of birdsong, 70–73
Neural crest, 8
Neural crest cells, 18
Neural pathways, for birdsong production, 71
Neural plasticity, 104–105
Neural plate, 8
Neural plate cells, 14–16
Neural plate inducers, 15
chordin, 15
follistatin, 15
noggin, 15
Neural processing, 40
Neural progenitor cells, 17, 113
Neuroblastomas, 18
Neurodegenerative diseases
characterizing carefully, 160
environment and, 153–155
retinitis pigmentosa as a model, 155–160
working to cure, 173
Neurogenesis, 114–115
and birdsong, 116–118
Neuromodulation
pathways of, 104
and silencing synapses, 103–109
Neuromuscular junction (NMJ), 30
Neuronal atrophy, 141
Neurons, 7
altering responsiveness of, 109
changing with age, 140–142
cortical, 41
differentiation of, 19–24
elaboration of, 12
generation of, 114–115
from intermediate zone, 20
mammalian, 112
size of, 55
young, migration of, 19
NGF. See Nerve growth factor
Nitric oxide (NO), 100
NMDA (n-methyl-d-aspartate) channels, 98–100, 102–103, 142, 171
NMJ. See Neuromuscular junction
NO. See Nitric oxide
Noggin, 15
Non-NMDA channels, 98–100
Nottebohm, Fernando, 116
Nucleus, brain, 42
Nucleus basalis, 147
O
Ocular dominance columns, 42–43, 47–48, 103, 171
Opiates, 131.
See also Drug use
Orientation selectivity, 40, 107
Owls, sound localization in, 73–77, 165
Oxygen requirement of brain cells, 112
P
Parent recognition, imprinting and, 77–79
Parkinson’s disease, 118, 140, 151–153, 156
and other age-related neurodegenerative diseases, 3, 150–153
Penfield, Wilder, 85
Perceptual phenomena, 106
Peripheral visual stimuli, 107–109
PET. See Positron emission tomography scanning
“Phantom pain,” 89
Photoreceptor cells, 22–24, 166
Pinker, Steven, 58
Placebo effect, 2
Plaques, in Alzheimer’s disease, 148
Plasticity
cortical, 106–107
of the fetal brain, 163
of the mammalian brain and cortex, 83–92, 121–122
neural, 104–105
Positron emission tomography (PET) scanning, 14, 113, 147, 173
Postsynaptic cells, 97
membrane of, 99
Precursor cell, interaction of R8 cell with, 23
Primates, teaching language to, 58
Proliferation of neural cells, 16–18
Pyramidal cells, 95–96
R
R7, R8, retinular cells, 22–24, 27, 37
RA. See Robust nucleus of the arcopallium
Radial glial cells, 19–20
Ramachandran, Vilayamur, 88
Rasmussen’s encephalitis, 121–122
Recovery, from visual deprivation, 51–53
from stroke, 113
Responsiveness of neurons, altering, 109
Retina, 18–19, 27, 44–45, 91, 118–119, 142
periphery of, 118
Retinal axons, 27
Retinal stimulation, 91
Retinitis pigmentosa (RP)
as a model neurodegenerative disease, 155–160
progress of, 156
therapies for, 158–160
Ribosomes, 102
RNA, 102
Robust nucleus of the arcopallium (RA), 70–73, 116
Rod cell density, 118–119
Romanian orphans, 130–131
Rosensweig, Mark, 54
RP. See Retinitis pigmentosa
Rumbaugh, Duane, 59
S
Sacks, Oliver, 154
Savage-Rumbaugh, Sue, 59
Schooling, influence on IQ, 134
Senile dementia, 140
Sevenless mutant, 22–25
Sexual maturity, and birdsong production, 72, 74
Short-term (or early) forms of LTP (E-LTP), 100–101
Sign language, 58–59
Silencing synapses, neuromodulation and, 103–109
Smoking and AMD, 155
and IQ, 134
Somatosensory area, of the cortex, 86, 88, 92, 103
Song memorization, 68
Song vocalization, 68–70
Sound localization in owls, 73–77, 165
Sparrows, white-crowned, 66–67, 69
Spemann, Hans, 15
Sperry, Roger, 25–26
Stem cells, transplantation of, 145, 173
Stimuli, peripheral, visual, 107–109
Strabismus, 52
Subventricular zone (SVZ), 114–115
Synapses, 12–13
alteration of, 92
excitation and inhibition of, 106, 109
silencing, and neuromodulation of, 77, 103–109
size of, 55
Synaptic density per neuron, 55
Synaptic mechanisms underlying LTP, 97–100
Synaptic sites, competition for, 48
T
Tau protein, 149
Teaching language to primates, 58
tectum, 25–27
Television, influence on IQ scores, 135
Thalamus, 42
dorsolateral nucleus in, 71
Tobacco use, 155
Toxic protein aggregates, 125, 152
Training, to focus attention, 109
Transcription factors, 24
phosphorylation of, 102
Transplantation
of embryonic stem cells, 145
of mesodermal cells, 15
Trk. See Tyrosine kinase-containing receptors
Trophic interactions, mechanisms of, in brain maturation, 36–38
Tumors, brain, 113–114
Twin studies, 129–132, 168–169
Tyrosine kinase-containing (Trk) receptors, 36–37
V
“Victor,” language deprivation in, 64
Visual deprivation, during visual system development, 46–49
Visual distortion, with prisms, 75, 84
Visual environments, enriched, 53–56
Visual system development, 38–53
in brain maturation, 38–53
critical periods, 50–51
recovery from deprivation, 51–53