Mirror neurons

Hadjikhani N, Joseph RM, Snyder J, Tager-Flusberg H (2006) Anatomical differences in the mirror neuron system and social cognition network in autism. Cereb Cortex (New York) 16 1276-1282. 

Can autistic behavior be related to specifics about nerve cells A neuron fires nerve impulses either spontaneously or as a result of input of nerve impulses from other neurons. Mirror neurons are those in the brain cortex of animals (and presumably also in humans) that fire both when movements of the body occur in the animal and when the animal observes movements in another animal.64 Several regions of the animal cortex apparently contain mirror neurons, and in the analogous regions in human brain cortex of autistic patients, neuron activity is evidently depressed. This has led to the idea that autism is caused by a lack of mirror neurons, the deficiency leading to deficits in social skills, imitation, empathy, and so on. The idea is speculative. Other... 

Buccino, G. Amore, M. (2008). Mirror neurons and the understanding of behavioural symptoms in psychiatric disorders. Curr. Opin. Psychiatry. 21 281—285. 

Siegel, D. J. (2006). An interpersonal neurobiology approach to psychotherapy Awareness, mirror neurons, and neural plasticity in the development of well-being. Psychiatric Annals, 36, 248-256. 

Kilner, J.M. et al., 2007. The mirror-neuron system a Bayesian perspective. Neuro-Report 18(6) 619-623. 

The presence of polymer, solvent, and ionic components in conducting polymers reminds one of the composition of the materials chosen by nature to produce muscles, neurons, and skin in living creatures. We will describe here some devices ready for commercial applications, such as artificial muscles, smart windows, or smart membranes other industrial products such as polymeric batteries or smart mirrors and processes and devices under development, such as biocompatible nervous system interfaces, smart membranes, and electron-ion transducers, all of them based on the electrochemical behavior of electrodes that are three dimensional at the molecular level. During the discussion we will emphasize the analogies between these electrochemical systems and analogous biological systems. Our aim is to introduce an electrochemistry for conducting polymers, and by extension, for any electrodic process where the structure of the electrode is taken into account. 

An inhibitory input increases the influx of Cl to make the inside of the neuron more negative. This hyperpolarisation, the inhibitory postsynaptic potential (IPSP), takes the membrane potential further away from threshold and firing. It is the mirror-image of the EPSP and will reduce the chance of an EPSP reaching threshold voltage. 

Most of the work has been based on opioids since it is the easiest system to manipulate as administration of the antagonist, naloxone, precipitates withdrawal. Flere, the idea that physical dependence results from opposing changes in the neuronal systems depressed by the drug of dependence is borne out by consideration of the acute effects of an opioid and the withdrawal symptoms. They are mirror images of each other ... 

In the human brain, it is the combined efforts of many neurons acting in concert that creates complex behavior this is mirrored in the structure of an ANN, in which many simple software processing units work cooperatively. It is not just these artificial units that are fundamental to the operation of ANNs so, too, are the connections between them. Consequently, artificial neural networks are often referred to as connectionist models. 

The appropriateness of using platelets, as a cell mirroring some neurochemical processes, finds its rationale in the numerous similar features of platelets and neurones Platelets store and release neurotransmitters and express appropriate neurotransmitter transporters and some neurone-related proteins such as NMDA receptors. Along these lines, different authors reported abnormalities in platelets physiology and function in AD. At first, Zubenko and colleagues described an alteration in platelet membrane fluidity in AD patients [99]. Other studies, performed on platelets obtained from patients with moderate to severe AD, reported cytoskeletal abnormalities, cytochrome oxidase deficiency, abnormal cytoplasmic calcium... 

Spatial leaning and memory deficits without loss of visual association ability in homozygous sdy mice mirrors the water maze deficits of rodents with hippocampal lesions (see D Hooge De Deyn, 2001, Sloan et al., 2006, and Morris, 2007). Such deficits may be caused by the decreased responsiveness of hippocampal CA1 pyramidal neurons to excitatory input from CA3 found in sdy mice by Chen et al. (2008, see O Section 2.2.6A.2.8). Normal responsiveness to such input is important for spatial, but not visual association memory as shown by the finding that CAl-specific knockout of NMDA glutamate receptors impairs location of the hidden, but not the visible, platform in the water maze (Tsien et al., 1996). 

Formisano E, Kim DS, Di Salle F, van de Moortele PF, Ugurbil K, et al. 2003. Mirror-symmetric tonotopic maps in human primary auditory cortex. Neuron 40(4) 859-869. Foundas AL, Leonard CM, Gilmore R, Fennell E, Heilman KM. 1994. Planum temporale asymmetry and language dominance. Neuropsychologia 32(10) 1225-1231. 

Lodovichi C, Belluscio L, Katz LC (2003) Functional topography of connections linking mirror-symmetric maps in the mouse olfactory bulb. Neuron 38(2) 265-276 Lomvardas S, Barnea G, Pisapia DJ, Mendelsohn M, Kirkland J, Axel R (2006) Interchromosomal interactions and olfactory receptor choice.Cell 126(2) 403 U3 Luo L, Flanagan JG (2007) Development of continuous and discrete neural maps.Neuron 56(2) 284-300... 

Lodovichi C, Belluscio L, Katz LC. 2003. Functional topography of connections linking mirror-symmetric maps in the mouse olfactory bulb. Neuron 38 265-276. 

Both in Alzheimer s disease and older Down s syndrome subjects, a decrease in serum sialyltransferase activity was observed [1099,1100]. This was found to affect only the a-2,3-sialyltransferase, also leading to a decrease of a-2,3-linked sialic acid in serum glycoproteins. It can only be assumed at present that this observation mirrors reduced activity of sialyltransferase and decreased sialoglycoconjugate biosynthesis in neuronal tissue subjected to these degenerative diseases. Serum sialyltransferase may thus be an early biochemical marker of neurodegeneration. 

Fig. 111. Typical distribution of glutamate-like and GABA-like immunoreactive neurons in the nucleus lateralis of rat cerebellum. Consecutive sections immunostained for glutamate (A) and GABA (B) are shown as mirror images. Note the difference in size of the stained neurons. Batini et al. (1992).

Famiglietti, E, V., Jr. (1983). Starburst amicrinc cells and cholinergic neurons mirror ON and OFF. symmetric amicrinc cells of rabbit retina. Brain Res. 261, 138-144. 

There are two types of neurons within the MLBN, the EBN and the inhibitory burst neurons (IBN). The EBN and IBN label describe the synaptic activity upon the motoneurons the EBN excite and are responsible for the burst firing, and the IBN inhibit and are responsible for the pause. A mirror image of these neurons exists on both sides of the midline. The IBN inhibit the EBN on the contralateral side. 

Figure 1. Immunohistological demonstration of comparative topography and intensity of immunoreaction products of ChAT- and NGF-R-positive neurones in the basal forebrain. Control rats (a) ChAT-positive and (b) NGF-R-positive cells. Rehabilitated neonatally hypothyroid rats (c) ChAT-positive and (d) NGF-R-positive cells. Two immediately adjacent 80 ym thick Vibratome cut coronal sections are processed for ChAT or NGF-R immunohistochemically as described by Kiss et al. The sections are mounted in mirror position. In the insets, cells are shown at high magnification to demonstrate the intensity of the immunoreaction product more clearly. Bars = 50 ym.

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