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Computers and computations in the neurosciences
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Computers and Computations in the Neurosciences edited by P. Michael Conn, Academic Press, 1992. £40.00 (xvii + 584 pages) ISBN 0 12 185270 9
In the past decade, computers have steadily assumed a large and important role in the neurosciences. Increased access to computers, coupled with enhanced computational power, offers most of us the hope of extracting more information from our data. Furthermore, modeling, or simulations, are resurfacing as acceptable and necessary approaches to studying complex multifactorial processes. Thus, there is certainly a need for a 'methods' book that addresses these issues logically and substantively, particularly in terms of data acquisition and analysis, areas in which there has been a proliferation of commercially available hardware and software packages from which to choose, not to mention homemade packages distributed informally.
Neurotrophic Factors edited by Sandra E. Loughlin and James H. Fallon, Academic Press, 1993. $95.00 (xix + 607 pages) ISBN 0 12 455830 5
The prototypic neurotrophic factor, nerve growth factor (NGF), was first isolated by LeviMontalcini and Hamburger in the early 1950s and shown to elicit nerve fibre outgrowth from cultured neurons. Subsequent studies showed that treatment with antibodies to NGF caused massive reductions of sensory and sympathetic neurons in vivo, revealing that this peptide plays a vital role in shaping the early nervous system. Since that time, the family of neurotrophic factors has grown considerably to include the close relatives of NGF - brainderived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), neurotrophin 3 (NT-3) and NT-4/5 - and large numbers of other growth factors that appear able to regulate the survival of neurons. Many believe TINS, Vol. 16, No. 9, 1993
' ............
i!
b o o k s
Unfortunately, while the goal of this edited volume is to bring together an overview of contemporary techniques in the neurosciences that depend on computers, and to do so with flow-charts, summary diagrams and discussions of fine details and short-cuts, most of the 33 chapters in this book do not achieve these objectives. Rather, the majority of the articles in this volume describe the authors' individualized systems, without providing a detailed analysis of the requirements posed by their specific problems and the options available to the investigator who is about to assemble his or her own system. There are, however, worthwhile exceptions in each section, such as the chapters on computer-based motion control for light microscopy, on confocal fluorescence microscopy, and on the algorithms and devices available for analysing records obtained simultaneously from assemblies of neurons in the section on data collection. The section on data analysis is also
quite uneven, with the best chapters being those concerned with the rigorous analysis of quantitative data or, in one case, computerized optimization of experimental design. Their common strength is that they coherently describe the theory involved, that is, the model being tested by or, alternatively, used for the data analysis, and they consider other formulations or methods as well. One that I strongly recommend is that by Veldhuis et al. on deconvolution-based assessment of in vivo neuroendocrine secretory events. The final, and shortest section is concerned with data modeling and simulations, and it has a number of good chapters. The majority of these are concerned with modeling that either produces testable predictions or, more often, is used to mimic published findings, and they are illustrative, but not very critical. In summary, too few of the chapters in this volume meet the goals of a methods book, but the exceptions will be quite helpful to a number of people.
that as well as telling us about how the nervous system is first laid down in development, studying the mechanism of neurotrophic factor action will also provide the tools for therapeutic intervention in the neurodegenerative diseases. The neurotrophic factors and their receptors have been big news recently. Indeed three of the top ten most cited papers of 1991 reported the identification of the proto-oncogene trk as coding for the signal-transducing receptor for NGF. More recently still, there has been significant interest in how neurons deprived of trophic factors undergo programmed cell death or apoptosis. So this book is extremely timely. The first two chapters by the editors, Fallon and Loughlin, and by Hefti eta/. are interesting and lay down a clear conceptual framework for the book. The subsequent eighteen chapters are of variable quality, covering all of the factors believed capable of promoting and enhancing neur-
onal cell survival, including adhesion proteins and neurotransmitters. Even some growth factors barely shown to be neurotrophic, like epidermal growth factor (EGF) and transforming growth factor ff (TGF-ff) are included for good measure! Most of the authors have made significant contributions to the fields that they review. But there are some very noticeable absentees why no chapters by Eric Shooter or Hans Thoenen for example? The trk receptor story is covered well by the chapter on NGF '...mechanism of action'. The authors of this chapter, Altin and Bradshaw, present a comprehensive review of the pathways of NGF signal transduction, discussing, without bias, the controversial issues in the field, particularly the role of the low-affinity NGF receptor (p75'NGFR), which appears to bind all of the neurotrophins equally well but cannot signal responses by itself. Other particularly noticeable and useful reviews are those by
Donald S. Faber
Deptof Anatom),and Neurobiology,The MedicalCollegeof Pennsylvania,3200 HenryAve, Philadelphia, PA 19129,USA.
Catherine Nobes
MRCLaboratoryfor MolecularCell Biology,University CollegeLondon, GowerStreet, London,UK WC1E6BT.
377
Computers and Computations in the Neurosciences edited by P. Michael Conn, Academic Press, 1992. £40.00 (xvii + 584 pages) ISBN 0 12 185270 9
In the past decade, computers have steadily assumed a large and important role in the neurosciences. Increased access to computers, coupled with enhanced computational power, offers most of us the hope of extracting more information from our data. Furthermore, modeling, or simulations, are resurfacing as acceptable and necessary approaches to studying complex multifactorial processes. Thus, there is certainly a need for a 'methods' book that addresses these issues logically and substantively, particularly in terms of data acquisition and analysis, areas in which there has been a proliferation of commercially available hardware and software packages from which to choose, not to mention homemade packages distributed informally.
Neurotrophic Factors edited by Sandra E. Loughlin and James H. Fallon, Academic Press, 1993. $95.00 (xix + 607 pages) ISBN 0 12 455830 5
The prototypic neurotrophic factor, nerve growth factor (NGF), was first isolated by LeviMontalcini and Hamburger in the early 1950s and shown to elicit nerve fibre outgrowth from cultured neurons. Subsequent studies showed that treatment with antibodies to NGF caused massive reductions of sensory and sympathetic neurons in vivo, revealing that this peptide plays a vital role in shaping the early nervous system. Since that time, the family of neurotrophic factors has grown considerably to include the close relatives of NGF - brainderived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), neurotrophin 3 (NT-3) and NT-4/5 - and large numbers of other growth factors that appear able to regulate the survival of neurons. Many believe TINS, Vol. 16, No. 9, 1993
' ............
i!
b o o k s
Unfortunately, while the goal of this edited volume is to bring together an overview of contemporary techniques in the neurosciences that depend on computers, and to do so with flow-charts, summary diagrams and discussions of fine details and short-cuts, most of the 33 chapters in this book do not achieve these objectives. Rather, the majority of the articles in this volume describe the authors' individualized systems, without providing a detailed analysis of the requirements posed by their specific problems and the options available to the investigator who is about to assemble his or her own system. There are, however, worthwhile exceptions in each section, such as the chapters on computer-based motion control for light microscopy, on confocal fluorescence microscopy, and on the algorithms and devices available for analysing records obtained simultaneously from assemblies of neurons in the section on data collection. The section on data analysis is also
quite uneven, with the best chapters being those concerned with the rigorous analysis of quantitative data or, in one case, computerized optimization of experimental design. Their common strength is that they coherently describe the theory involved, that is, the model being tested by or, alternatively, used for the data analysis, and they consider other formulations or methods as well. One that I strongly recommend is that by Veldhuis et al. on deconvolution-based assessment of in vivo neuroendocrine secretory events. The final, and shortest section is concerned with data modeling and simulations, and it has a number of good chapters. The majority of these are concerned with modeling that either produces testable predictions or, more often, is used to mimic published findings, and they are illustrative, but not very critical. In summary, too few of the chapters in this volume meet the goals of a methods book, but the exceptions will be quite helpful to a number of people.
that as well as telling us about how the nervous system is first laid down in development, studying the mechanism of neurotrophic factor action will also provide the tools for therapeutic intervention in the neurodegenerative diseases. The neurotrophic factors and their receptors have been big news recently. Indeed three of the top ten most cited papers of 1991 reported the identification of the proto-oncogene trk as coding for the signal-transducing receptor for NGF. More recently still, there has been significant interest in how neurons deprived of trophic factors undergo programmed cell death or apoptosis. So this book is extremely timely. The first two chapters by the editors, Fallon and Loughlin, and by Hefti eta/. are interesting and lay down a clear conceptual framework for the book. The subsequent eighteen chapters are of variable quality, covering all of the factors believed capable of promoting and enhancing neur-
onal cell survival, including adhesion proteins and neurotransmitters. Even some growth factors barely shown to be neurotrophic, like epidermal growth factor (EGF) and transforming growth factor ff (TGF-ff) are included for good measure! Most of the authors have made significant contributions to the fields that they review. But there are some very noticeable absentees why no chapters by Eric Shooter or Hans Thoenen for example? The trk receptor story is covered well by the chapter on NGF '...mechanism of action'. The authors of this chapter, Altin and Bradshaw, present a comprehensive review of the pathways of NGF signal transduction, discussing, without bias, the controversial issues in the field, particularly the role of the low-affinity NGF receptor (p75'NGFR), which appears to bind all of the neurotrophins equally well but cannot signal responses by itself. Other particularly noticeable and useful reviews are those by
Donald S. Faber
Deptof Anatom),and Neurobiology,The MedicalCollegeof Pennsylvania,3200 HenryAve, Philadelphia, PA 19129,USA.
Catherine Nobes
MRCLaboratoryfor MolecularCell Biology,University CollegeLondon, GowerStreet, London,UK WC1E6BT.
377