D.F. Swaab – författare

The prevalence of obesity in developed countries is fast becoming a health issue on par with infectious diseases and malnutrition. Research in this area has grown substantially and includes the neurochemical pathways of the hypothalamus and its role in regulating energy expenditures in the body. This volume in the Progress in Brain Research series examines the emerging role of the hypothalamus as a crucial link between the sensing of nutrients and the control of insulin sensitivity, glucose uptake, and glucose production, the integrative role of the hypothalamus in thyroid and bone metabolism, the interaction between circadian information and energy metabolism, and the important interplay between the immune system and energy metabolism.· All contributors are recognized experts in their respective specialities· Provides expanded coverage of hypothalamic mechanisms involved in energy metabolism· Includes many outstanding full-colour illustrations· Contains special sections on circadian rhythms, immune system, thyroid and bone metabolism

In the past decade neuronal plasticity has become a major theme of modern neurobiology, from cellular and molecular mechanisms of synapse formation in worms and insects to behavioural recovery from strokes in elderly humans. For this reason the focus of interest in the present volume of Progress in Brain Research is on the topic of neuroplasticity in mature organisms, including humans. Contributions range from neurogenesis and synaptic plasticity in the adult primate brain, to neural mechanisms of learning and memory, and the influence of environmental factors and aging on the functional potential of the central nervous system. Several contributions focus on recent developments in neural regeneration and brain repair, providing challenging evidence that the use of stem cell neurotherapy may be beneficial to humans suffering from various neurological and psychiatric diseases. This volume integrates new information on the cellular and molecular mechanisms of neuroplasticity and highlights challenging future questions in this exciting and topical area of neuroscience.