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What is Behavioral Neuroscience?

Chapter One

• Neuroscience – “The scientific study of the brain and nervous

system, in health and in disease” (UCLA, 2000)

– Incorporates the fields of psychology, biology, chemistry, medicine, mathematics, physics, engineering, and computer science

Neuroscience as an Interdisciplinary Field

• The functions of the brain and nervous system are studied on many different levels

From Molecules to Behavior

• Ancient milestones – Trepanation – Egyptian medical papyrus; mummification – Ancient Greeks: Hippocrates, Galen

• The dawn of scientific reasoning – Descartes (1596-1650): mind-body dualism – Van Leeuwenhoek – Galvani and du Bois-Reymond – Bell and Magendie

Historical Highlights in Neuroscience

Prehistoric Brain Surgery

Galvani – the Role of Electricity in Neural Communication

• Santiago Ramón y Cajal and Camillo Golgi – The Neuron Doctrine

• Gall and Spurzheim: phrenology • Paul Broca • Fritsch and Hitzig • John Hughlings-Jackson (1835-1911)

– Founding of modern neuroscience • Sherrington, Loewi, Eccles, Katz, Huxley,

Hodgkin

Modern Neuroscience Begins

Phrenology Bust

• The study of microscopic structures and tissues

• Provides the means for observing structure, organization, and connections of individual cells

• Tissue fixation, microtome machine, and specialized stains

Behavioral Neuroscience Research Methods – Histology

Tissue Sectioning using a Microtome

• Examination of the body after death • Correlational method that must be

interpreted carefully and precisely

Behavioral Neuroscience Research Methods – Autopsy

• Types of imaging technologies – Computerized tomography (CT) – Positron emission tomography (PET) – Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI)

• Functional MRI (fMRI) • Diffusion tensor imaging (DTI)

• Advantage of imaging over autopsy – Can watch the living brain as it behaves

Behavioral Neuroscience Research Methods – Imaging

CT Scans – Historical and Modern

PET Scans Show Patterns of Brain Activation

Functional MRI (fMRI) Tracks Cerebral Blood Flow

Diffusion Tensor Imaging (DTI) Constructs Maps of the Brain’s Fiber Pathways

• Records electrical and magnetic output from the brain – Electroencephalogram (EEG) – Event-related potentials – Magnetoencephalography (MEG) – Single-cell recordings

Recording

Event-Related Potentials (ERPs)

Magnetoencephalography (MEG)

• Artificial stimulation of specific brain regions and observation of resulting behavior – Surface electrodes during neurosurgery – Surgically implanted electrodes – Repeated transcranial magnetic stimulation

(rTMS) – Optogenetics

Brain Stimulation

Deep Brain Stimulation and rTMS

• Lesion: injury to neural tissue • Naturally occurring • Deliberately produced

• Ablation – Surgical removal of neural tissue

Lesions

• Biochemical methods – Use of chemical stimulation and microdialysis

• Genetic methods – Twin studies (concordance rates) – Adoption studies (heritability) – Studies of genetically-modified animals

(knockout genes) – Epigenetics (gene expression due to external

factors)

Other Research Methods

• Stem cells – Undifferentiated cells that can divide and

differentiate into other types of cells – One of the most promising approaches to

understanding neural development, regeneration, and disease

– Embryonic or adult: advantages and disadvantages of both

– Can be used to repair the nervous system

Other Research Methods (cont’d.)

• Mechanisms for protection of human participants and animal research subjects – Hippocrates – Federal government and the Common Rule – University review and institutional review

boards

Research Ethics in Behavioral Neuroscience

• Coercion of research participants is unacceptable

• Benefits to participants should not be “excessive or inappropriate”

• Participants must be informed that they can leave without penalty at any time

• Participants must be told enough about the experiment to make an informed decision about participating

Research Ethics – Human Participants

• Participants must receive contact information in case they have questions

• Participants must be assured their data will be confidential

Research Ethics – Human Participants (cont’d.)

• Animal research should have a clear scientific purpose

• Excellent care and housing should be provided

• Experimental procedures should cause as little pain and distress as possible

Research Ethics – Animal Subjects