Discovering Neurons Experimental Basis of Neuroscience

This is a collection of investigative laboratory experiments designed for the advanced undergraduate and the first- or second-year graduate student. In the first of its three major sections, neurons are studied as individual cells, including topics such as intracellular recording, immunocytochemistry, and HPLC. The second section studies neurons as forming connections, with experiments on tract tracing, information coding, and LTP, and the third section looks at neurons as co-ordinators of behaviour, through approaches such as pharmacology, lesioning, and ethology. The fourth and final section focuses on techniques applicable to several experiments in the collection, including electrophysiological recording, surgery, anaesthetics, and staining methods. The experiments are designed to introduce students to the techniques used in neuroscience research laboratories. They have been tested and should be easily integrated into existing neuroscience courses of any length or emphasis.