Diversity in the Neuronal Machine: Order and Variability in Interneuronal Microcircuits

by Ivan Soltesz

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This book is a colorful journey into the fascinatingly diverse world of interneurons, an important class of highly heterogeneous cells found in all cortical neuronal networks. Interneurons are known to play key roles in many brain functions, from sensory processing to neuronal oscillations linked to learning and memory. The central aim of the volume is to provide new insights into the striking degree of cellular diversity found in interneuronal microcircuits. The book discusses the history of research into interneuronal variability, the developmental origins of interneuronal diversity, the functional roles of heterogeneity in neuronal circuits, contemporary interneuronal classification systems, and the genetic and homeostatic mechanisms that shape the degree of cell to cell variability within interneuronal populations. It elaborates on new ideas about interneuronal diversity that rest upon theoretical and experimental results, with arguments touching upon evolution, animal behavior, and the mathematical theory of small world networks. This engaging volume is invaluable to neuroscientists and others interested in how neuronal newtworks function; electrical engineers, computational modelers, and physicists interested in neuronal network theory; neurologists and psychiatrists working on mechanisms of neurological and psychiatric disorders; and students and trainees in all of these fields.

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Interneurons: A relatively unexplored area in brain research, 2007-07-10
"Diversity in the Neuronal Machine" provides valuable insights into the topic of interneurons (formally classified by the author as "using GABA as its primary fast neurotransmitter in the normal, non-pathological state") as opposed to the principal excitatory projection neurons of the nervous system. Beginning with the studies and hypotheses of the Nobel laureate Santiago Ramon y Cajal, Dr Soltesz explores the roles of "the so-called neurons with short axons..." as the "elemental components" of cerebral activity.

Interneuronal complexity is clearly explained by an in-depth evaluation of several classification schemes that demonstrate the existence of a large variety of interneuronal types. This leads the author to propose a statistical quantification of interneuronal diversity. The question of whether this diversity could explain the evolution of higher intelligence is addressed by the novel applications of network theory to neuronal microcircuit function. Using both mammalian and invertebrate models and computer simulations as examples, Cajal's hypotheses on functional neuroanatomy are extended to incorporate cell-to-cell interneuronal variability as an important factor in the study of interneuronal heterogeneity.

In all, this book provides a compelling insight into the relatively unexplored subject of interneurons and their physiological and even evolutionary significance. An added bonus is the inter-disciplinary nature of this book which opens the neuroscientist to novel insights emanating from the fields of computer modeling, network theory and even artificial intelligence. Fascinating reading!!!

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