A brief history of Russian research on the autonomic nervous system.

The first information on the structure and function of the autonomic nervous system dates back to the time of Galen (second century), while the beginning of the study of the autonomic nervous system in Russia can be traced back to the mid-19th century. This review is devoted to the professional achievements of Russian researchers in the 19th and 20th centuries who were active in the field of the autonomic nervous system at different stages of the development of neuromorphology and neurophysiology. In addition, recent achievements of modern Russian researchers active in this domain are also highlighted. This review is mainly devoted to research on the autonomic nervous system in Russia, but it would be unfair not to mention the scientists who made a significant contribution to this field of science and worked in the republics of the former USSR. Russian morphology and physiology developed under the significant influence of well-known western scientific schools. I sincerely hope that cooperation between Russian and foreign colleagues will continue and will be fruitful for global science.

Neuroscience history interview with Professor Wolf Singer, emeritus director at the Department of Neurophysiology, Max Planck Institute for Brain Research in Frankfurt am Main.

Dr. Wolf Singer (b. 1943) is one of Germany's most renowned brain researchers and neurophysiologists. His accomplishments in the creation of new research centers for neuroscience as well as his commitment to European scientific organizations for integrative brain research are highly valued as significant moments of advancement in the neurosciences. Before his appointment as a scientific member of the Max Planck Society and director at the Frankfurt Max Planck Institute for Brain Research, he gained deep insight into the chances and pitfalls of translational initiatives at the Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry in Munich. From the late 1950s onward, the institute adapted to emerging international trends and successfully integrated neurochemistry, neurophysiology, and neuroanatomy into the fledgling interdisciplinary field of neuroscience. This agenda of reorientation was an undertaking of Otto Detlev Creutzfeldt, Detlev Ploog, Gerd Peters, and Horst Jatzkewitz, among others. In the 1970s, Munich's laboratories attracted scientists from several countries in Europe and abroad. This article examines whether specific styles of conducting (neuro)science research existed in the Max Planck Society.

One hundred years from Otto Loewi experiment, a dream that revolutionized our view of neurotransmission.

One hundred years ago, a 4-page paper published in the Pflüger's Archiv fur die Gesamte Physiologie des Menschen und der Tiere dramatically changed our view on synaptic transmission. The paper reported an ingenious, yet straightforward experiment made by Professor Otto Loewi in 1920 and published in 1921, which constitutes the first clear-cut proof for the chemical nature of transmission of the nerve impulse from nerve to muscle. The approach to this experiment was, however, tortuous and long.

The death of the cortical column? Patchwork structure and conceptual retirement in neuroscientific practice.

In 1981, David Hubel and Torsten Wiesel received the Nobel Prize for their research on cortical columns-vertical bands of neurons with similar functional properties. This success led to the view that "cortical column" refers to the basic building block of the mammalian neocortex. Since the 1990s, however, critics questioned this building block picture of "cortical column" and debated whether this concept is useless and should be replaced with successor concepts. This paper inquires which experimental results after 1981 challenged the building block picture and whether these challenges warrant the elimination "cortical column" from neuroscientific discourse. I argue that the proliferation of experimental techniques led to a patchwork of locally adapted uses of the column concept. Each use refers to a different kind of cortical structure, rather than a neocortical building block. Once we acknowledge this diverse-kinds picture of "cortical column", the elimination of column concept becomes unnecessary. Rather, I suggest that "cortical column" has reached conceptual retirement: although it cannot be used to identify a neocortical building block, column research is still useful as a guide and cautionary tale for ongoing research. At the same time, neuroscientists should search for alternative concepts when studying the functional architecture of the neocortex. keywords: Cortical column, conceptual development, history of neuroscience, patchwork, eliminativism, conceptual retirement.

One hundred years of phase polymorphism research in locusts.

One hundred years ago in 1921, Sir Boris Uvarov recognized that two locust species are one species but appearing in two different phases, a solitarious and a gregarious phase. As locust swarms are still a big problem affecting millions of people, basic research has tried to understand the causes for the transition between phases. This phenomenon of phase polymorphism, now called polyphenism, is a very complex multifactorial process and this short review will draw attention to this important aspect of insect research.

El tracto cortico espinal: perspectiva histórica / The corticospinal tract: historical perspective

RESUMEN: La neuroanatomía y la neurofisiología han permitido en gran parte entender de forma más integrada las estructuras que conforman el sistema nervioso y los mecanismos asociados con la transmisión de los potenciales de acción, relacionados con la vía corticoespinal en la ejecución de movimientos voluntarios. Se realizó una revisión histórica sobre la vía corticoespinal, desde el punto de vista neuroanatómico y neurofisiológico mediante una revisión de literatura en distintas bases de datos y libros de texto dedicados a estas vías nerviosas. La información obtenida se ordenó cronológicamente, seleccionando los datos más relevantes que desde el punto de vista neuroanatómico y neurofisiológico han permitido comprender su mecanismo funcional. Actualmente se tiene un conocimiento muy depurado de los distintos elementos que componen la vía corticoespinal, lo que permitirá su aplicación en el campo de la salud y resolver múltiples problemas de la función motora.

SUMMARY: Neuroanatomy and Neurophysiology have, in large part, permitted a more thorough understanding of those structures that conform the nervous system and mechanisms associated with the transmission of action potentials associated with the corticospinal tract. This assertion is made based upon a literature review of various databases and textbooks dedicated to said nerve tracts. The information obtained was ordered chronologically, and data was selected that, from the neuroanatomical and neurophysiological viewpoints, were most relevant and have permitted the comprehension of its functional mechanism. The thorough understanding of those elements that compose the corticospinal tract will permit its application in the health field and resolve multiple motor function problems.

Lorente de Nó: From Neuroanatomy to Neurophysiology.

Rafael Lorente de Nó (1902-1990) was the youngest and last of Santiago Ramón y Cajal's students. With Fernando de Castro, Lorente de Nó helped to transition the focus of Ramón y Cajal's School from neuroanatomy to neurophysiology. His main contributions to neuroscience concerned the cytoarchitecture of the cerebral isocortex and hippocampus, neural networks, central vestibular system anatomy, vestibulo-ocular reflex physiology, cochlear nuclei anatomy, and synaptic transmission mechanisms. This article pays tribute to the memory of Lorente de Nó by providing a comprehensive review of the life and work of this giant of neuroscience. Anat Rec, 303:1221-1231, 2020. © 2019 American Association for Anatomy.

Pioneers in CNS inhibition: 2. Charles Sherrington and John Eccles on inhibition in spinal and supraspinal structures.

This article reviews the contributions of the English neurophysiologist, Charles Scott Sherrington [1857-1952], and his Australian PhD trainee and collaborator, John Carew Eccles [1903-1997], to the concept of central inhibition in the spinal cord and brain. Both were awarded Nobel Prizes; Sherrington in 1932 for "discoveries regarding the function of neurons," and Eccles in 1963 for "discoveries concerning the ionic mechanisms involved in excitation and inhibition in central portions of the nerve cell membrane." Both spoke about central inhibition at their Nobel Prize Award Ceremonies. The subsequent publications of their talks were entitled "Inhibition as a coordinative factor" and "The ionic mechanism of postsynaptic inhibition", respectively. Sherrington's work on central inhibition spanned 41 years (1893-1934), and for Eccles 49 years (1928-1977). Sherrington first studied central inhibition by observing hind limb muscle responses to electrical (peripheral nerve) and mechanical (muscle) stimulation. He used muscle length and force measurements until the early 1900s and electromyography in the late 1920s. Eccles used these techniques while working with Sherrington, but later employed extracellular microelectrode recording in the spinal cord followed in 1951 by intracellular recording from spinal motoneurons. This considerably advanced our understanding of central inhibition. Sherrington's health was poor during his retirement years but he nonetheless made a small number of largely humanities contributions up to 1951, one year before his death at the age of 94. In contrast, Eccles retained his health and vigor until 3 years before his death and published prolifically on many subjects during his 22 years of official retirement. His last neuroscience article appeared in 1994 when he was 91. Despite poor health he continued thinking about his life-long interest, the mind-brain problem, and was attempting to complete his autobiography in the last years of his life.

Under the Mind's Hood: What We Have Learned by Watching the Brain at Work.

Imagine you were asked to investigate the workings of an engine, but to do so without ever opening the hood. Now imagine the engine fueled the human mind. This is the challenge faced by cognitive neuroscientists worldwide aiming to understand the neural bases of our psychological functions. Luckily, human ingenuity comes to the rescue. Around the same time as the Society for Neuroscience was being established in the 1960s, the first tools for measuring the human brain at work were becoming available. Noninvasive human brain imaging and neurophysiology have continued developing at a relentless pace ever since. In this 50 year anniversary, we reflect on how these methods have been changing our understanding of how brain supports mind.

The Sherrington-Cushing connection: A bench to bedside collaboration at the dawn of the twentieth century.

British physiologist Charles Sherrington (1857-1952) and American neurosurgeon Harvey Cushing (1869-1939) were seminal figures in the history of neuroscience. The two came from different worlds, one laboratory-based and the other largely clinical. Their scientific intersection, beginning in July 1901, provides a glimpse into a nascent form of "bench to bedside" collaboration, which carried with it the potential to extend the arm of neurophysiological experimentation from Sherrington's laboratory to Cushing's operatory. I reviewed extensive primary source materials archived at Yale University School of Medicine Library. Sherrington viewed Cushing's bedside work as an opportunity, in humans, to extend his bench-side physiological observations on higher primates, at times almost directing Cushing in the clinic. Cushing would indeed take Sherrington's observations on apes and extend them to his patients, and the work would eventually overturn the prevailing notion that the motor and sensory cortex were intermixed across the Rolandic fissure.

Luigi Luciani (1840-1919) - the Italian Claude Bernard with German shaping, and his studies on the cerebellum with projections to nowadays / Luigi Luciani (1840-1919) - o italiano Claude Bernard com formação alemã, e seus estudos sobre o cerebelo com projeções na atualidade

Luigi Luciani (1840-1919) was an illustrious Italian citizen and physiologist whose research scope covered mainly cardiovascular subjects, the nervous system, and fasting. He published in 1891 a modern landmark of the study of cerebellar physiology - "Il cervelletto: nuovistudi di normal and pathología physiology" / "The cerebellum: new studies on normal and pathological physiology." In his experiment, a dog survived after cerebellectomy, reporting a triad of symptoms (asthenia, atonia, and astasia). In this way, the eminent neurophysiologist improved the operative technique and sterile processes to redirect the issue of cerebellar symptoms. Luciani died at age 78, a hundred years ago, and left mainly the understanding of the role of the cerebellum in regulating postural tone and muscle strength, which represented a step forward in understanding cerebellar motor physiology. In recent decades, cognitive / affective function has been added to the cerebellar motor, and there has also been a better understanding of cerebellar circuits.

Luigi Luciani (1840-1919) foi um ilustre cidadão e fisiologista italiano, cujo escopo de pesquisa abrangia principalmente assuntos cardiovasculares, sistema nervoso e jejum. Ele publicou em 1891 um marco moderno do estudo da fisiologia do cerebelo - "Il cervelletto: nuovistudi di fisiologia normale and patologica" / "O cerebelo: novos estudos sobre fisiologia normal e patológica". Em seu experimento, um cão sobreviveu após a cerebelectomia, com o relatório de uma tríade de sintomas (astenia, atonia e astasia). Dessa maneira, o eminente neurofisiologista aprimorou a técnica operatória e os processos estéreis para redirecionar a questão dos sintomas cerebelares. Luciani morreu aos 78 anos, cem anos atrás, e deixou principalmente a compreensão do papel do cerebelo na regulação do tônus postural e da força muscular, o que representou um passo adiante na compreensão da fisiologia motora cerebelar. Nas últimas décadas, a função cognitivo / afetiva foi adicionada à motora cerebelar e, também, houve uma melhor compreensão dos circuitos do cerebelo.

The White Paper: Wilder Penfield, the Stream of Consciousness, and the Physiology of Mind.

Wilder Penfield is justly famous for his contributions to our understanding of epilepsy and of the structure-function relationship of the brain. His theory on the relationship of the brain and mind is less well known. Based on the effects of the electrical stimulation of the cortex in conscious patients, Penfield believed that consciousness and mind are functions of what he referred to as the centrencephalic integrating system. This functional system comprised bidirectional pathways between the upper brainstem, the thalami, and the cerebral cortex of both hemispheres, and was the physical substrate from which memory, perception, initiative, will, and judgment arose. It was the source of the stream of consciousness and the physical basis of mind. This paper reviews how Penfield arrived at this conception of the mind-brain relationship. Although Penfield ultimately felt that he had failed in his attempt to unify brain and mind, his work shed new light on the relationship of memory to the mesial temporal structures and to the temporal cortex; and his association of consciousness and the brainstem preceded the conceptualization of the reticular activating system by a generation. In these, as in so many aspects of neurobiology, Penfield was prescient.

Albert von Kölliker, Santiago Ramón y Cajal and Camillo Golgi, the main protagonists in the Neuron Theory debate

In the second half of the 19th century Spain was rather isolated from the rest of Europe, although there was remarkable scientific activity. In the midst of this scenario, the figure of Cajal emerged on the scene. During a visit to the laboratory of Luis Simarro in Madrid in 1887, Cajal became acquainted with a paper published by Golgi in 1873 dealing with his famous method. Cajal immediately recognized the value of this method and applied it with much success to the study of the nervous tissue. In the triennium 1887-1889 Cajal's discoveries were so sensational that he decided to attend the meeting of the Anatomische Gesellschaft (Germany Anatomical Society) in Berlin in 1889 in order to present them abroad. The trip proved a great success, and he was able to establish close relations with the president of the society, Alexander von Kölliker, who, in turn, mediated contacts with further renowned scientists such as Retzius, His, Waldeyer, van Gehuchten, etc. Prior to his trip to Berlin, he had already contacted Golgi, but the fact that Cajal's neuronal theory conflicted with Golgi's reticular theory not only prevented a normal relationship between them, but was also -especially on Golgi's part- the source of bitter rivalry between them. Von Kölliker immediately recognized and admired Cajal's stature as a scientist and generously helped him to publicize his ideas throughout the scientific world, and to attain the recognition he deserved. Von Kölliker's relationship with Golgi was of a different nature, and could be described as sincere friendship. Von Kölliker, in fact, proposed both Golgi and Cajal as candidates for the Nobel Prize in 1906, which was subsequently awarded to them jointly. Thanks to Von Kölliker, Cajal's great mentor, the neuronal theory entered the scientific world through the main door and continues to occupy a prevailing position

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The laryngoscope and nineteenth-century British understanding of laryngeal movements.

The source of the human voice is obscured from view. The development of the laryngoscope in the late 1850s provided the potential to see the action of the vocal folds during speaking for the first time. This new instrument materially contributed to the understanding of vocal fold neuroanatomy, neurophysiology, and neuropathology. The laryngoscope led to elaborated understanding of disorders that previously were determined by changes in sound. The objective of this paper is to detail the consequences of this novel visualization of the larynx, and to trace how it aided in the development of understanding of the movements of the vocal folds. This is demonstrated through an examination of the activities and practices of a group of London clinicians in the second half of the nineteenth century.