History of Neuroscience – Serie

This is the first English-language publication of the complete works of the great Spanish neurohistologist, Santiago Ramon y Cajal, on the cerebral cortex. The new translations include all Cajal's very early contributions on the cortex of small mammals, relevant chapters from his definitive textbook, and all his great works on the human cerebral cortex made at the peak of his career. The book also presents Cajal's surveys of cortical structure, which date from his later years. The book is extensively annotated, and the authors have verified and completed all Cajal's references. Special introductory chapters review the state of knowledge during each period covered, and the work concludes with an extensive essay on modern cortical neurohistology in which the quality and lasting significance of Cajal's contributions are highlighted.

For a century, the neuron doctrine has been the basis for our concepts of nervous organization and brain function, stating that the cell theory applies to the nervous system. Santiago Ramon y Cajal, Spain's greatest scientist, was its main architect; his main tool being a capricious nerve cell stain discovered by Camillo Golgi. This book reviews the original papers on which the neuron doctrine was based, showing that the evidence came from such contributors as Albrecht Kolliker, Sigmund Freud, Wilhelm His, August Forel, Fritdjof Nansen and Gustav Retzius. Many questions were raised which remain relevant today. Electron microscopical studies in the 1950s appeared to confirm the classical doctrine but subsequent studies revealed unsuspected complexities. This book reviews the new studies against the classical work and suggests new directions for revising our concept of the neuron as a basis for the functional organization of the nervous system.

This book is a reprint of an English translation of Cajal's original work, with abundant notes and commentaries by the editor. Cajal's fundamental contributions to neuroscience continue to be important today and this account accurately details his ideas and data. It also provides readers with the opportunity to learn what he thought about his research career and the significance of his observations. Excerpts from Tello's memorial lectures also provide a contemporary view of Cajal's work.

In terms of breadth, depth, and originality, this work ranked Cajal with Pasteur and Darwin as giants of 19th century biology. Summarizing almost 20 years of intense research, Cajal systematically described the cellular organization of almost every part of the nervous system in all five classes of vertebrate, and provided a synthetic account of their embryogenesis as well. This revolutionary work laid a broad foundation for modern neuroscience. Neuroscientists, neurologists, psychologists, computer and cognitive scientists, and nonspecialists will find this work of great use. Modern neuroanatomical terminology is used wherever possible, while attempting to preserve the style of the original text. Summarizing almost 20 years of intense research, Cajal systematically described the cellular organization of almost every part of the nervous system in all five classes of vertebrate, and provided a synthetic account of their embryogenesis as well. This work was revolutionary and laid a broad foundation for modern neuroscience because two new concepts - the neuron doctrine and the law of functional polarity - were used to interpret the data, and because the resulting interpretations opened vast new fields of research with profound clinical implications in neurology and psychiatry. In terms of breadth, depth and originality, this work is second only to that of Vesalius in the history of anatomy, and ranked Cajal with Pasteur and Darwin as the giants of 19th century biology. In many ways, the Histology is as valuable today as when it was written, and these volumes will be of use to a broad spectrum of neuroscientists, neurologists, psychologists, and computer and cognitive scientists. To make this work accessible to non specialists, the translators have used modern neuroanatomical terminology wherever possible, while attempting to preserve the style of the original text. They have also provided extensive cross-referencing of synonyms in the index, and notes to clarify difficult passages.

During the First World War many soldiers suffered brain injuries, mostly from gunshot wounds. The localized nature of these injuries made them of special significance for neuropsychological studies and they were the subject of research by British and German psychologists and neurologists working in military hospitals.The work done by Walther Poppelreuter in Germany is of particular interest. He was one of the first to design and use precise experimental methods for neuropsychological assessment and analysis. He was also one of the first to suggest a relatively specific processing of visual submodalities such as movement, depth, form, and colour in the prestriate areas. Much of his practical advice on the management of patients is still of value. Anyone concerned with brain injuries, especially of the occipital lobe, can still benefit from his contribution. Professor Zihl's translation makes this classic now available to a wider audience.