Research Links

Historical Significance of the Nervous System

http://psychclassics.yorku.ca/James/Principles/
Web version of William James' Principles of Psychology.

The Neuron

http://www.ultranet.com/~jkimball/BiologyPages/N/Neurons.html
An excellent web page about the neuron. Includes information on the sensory, motor, and interneurons.

http://faculty.purduenc.edu/rhengst/histolog/nerve/n_index.htm
Examples of stained neurons viewed through a microscope.

http://www.physiol.cam.ac.uk/staff/lamb/Papers/TALM95/TALM95.html
An article that compares and contrasts the sensory transduction of vision, hearing, and smell.

http://faculty.washington.edu/chudler/invert.html
An explanation of invertebrate nervous systems with a breakdown by species.

http://www.nobel.se/medicine/articles/golgi/
The Nobel e-Museum's excellent synopsis of Camillo Golgi's life and works; includes photos of brain matter stained with the Golgi stain.

http://www.psu.edu/nasa/cajal.htm
A brief biography of Santiago Ramón y Cajal and a discussion of his accomplishments in the study of the brain.

http://www.nobel.se/medicine/laureates/1906/cajal-bio.html
The Nobel e-Museum's biography of Ramón y Cajal (Nobel Prize winner 1906).

http://www.hhmi.org/senses/b/b110b-1g.htm
Ramón y Cajal's anatomical drawing of the retina cells.

http://www.nobel.se/medicine/laureates/1932/sherrington-bio.html
The Nobel e-Museum's biography of Sir Charles Sherrington (Nobel Prize winner 1932).

The Synapse

http://www.anatomy.usyd.edu.au/online/neuroanatomy/neurons/L8_Synapses.html
An excellent and thorough look at synapses from a University of Sydney Anatomy and Histology course lecture.

http://www.nobel.se/medicine/laureates/1936/loewi-bio.html
The Nobel e-Museum's biography of Otto Loewi (Nobel Prize winner 1936).

http://faculty.washington.edu/chudler/chnt1.html
Great summary of neurotransmitters with a diagram of Loewi's experimental setup.

http://server.bmod.athabascau.ca/html/Psych289/Biotutorials/3/part1.html
This informative tutorial from an Athabasca University psychology course offers several diagrams, terms, references, quizzes, and links related to the synapse.

General Components of the Neuron

http://www.rnceus.com/meth/Introneurotrans.html
A diagram of neuron structures and a description of the neuronal transmission process.

Glia

http://faculty.washington.edu/chudler/glia.html
A basic and informative web page about glia and its functions.

http://biology.about.com/library/weekly/aa020801a.htm Definitions of the different types of glia.

http://members.tripod.com/blustein/index.htm
Definitions of microglia, astrocytes, oligodendrocytes, and Schwann cells.

Molecular and Cellular Level

http://www.tulane.edu/~biochem/faculty/facfigs/bilayer.htm
Detailed images and representations of the lipid bilayer from Tulane University.

http://gwis2.circ.gwu.edu/~atkins/Neuroweb/plasmalemma.html
A tutorial in neuron cell biology from George Washington University.

http://www.mni.mcgill.ca/nm/1999f/en/channels.html
An essay on ion channels.

http://www.fortunecity.com/greenfield/buzzard/387/neuronsascircuit.htm
A description of the neuron as a electrical circuit to explain the flow of ions.

http://biosci211.bsd.uchicago.edu/ligand.pdf
Detailed explanation of the ligand-gated channels from the University of Chicago course, Cellular Neurobiology. Includes diagrams (in an Adobe .pdf file format).

http://jimswan.com/anatomy/neurophysiology_notes.htm
Neurophysiology notes with good diagram links explaining different channels and neurotransmitters.

http://ifcsun1.ifisiol.unam.mx/Brain/action.htm
The cellular mechanisms of the action potential.

http://lshome.utsa.edu/TSI/1999tsi/participants1999/betsy%20landry/beginning.htm
A basic description of the forces acting on the ions within and without the neuron.

http://www.sciam.com/news/012901/1.html
A brief article from Scientific American on glia and their part in building synapses.

Membrane Resting Potential

http://neuro.psyc.memphis.edu/ugp/css006.html
Nice description of all that is necessary to maintain the resting potential of a neuron.

http://www.miracosta.cc.ca.us/home/sfoster/neurons/rest.htm
Text and animated display of the forces involved in the resting potential (including the Na-K pump).

Neuron Activity

http://www.ultranet.com/~jkimball/BiologyPages/E/ExcitableCells.html#threshold
Good synopsis of the neuron's resting and active states.

http://www.science.mcmaster.ca/psychology/psych1a6/1a3/brain/lec2-2.htm
A diagram and brief description of EPSP and IPSP.

http://biosci.usc.edu/documents/bisc307-herrera_011901L.pdf
Neuron activity due to the diversity of synapses. (Adobe .pdf page)

http://soma.npa.uiuc.edu/courses/bio303/Ch8.html
Synaptic integration.

http://www.williams.edu/Neuroscience/courses/Biol304/LEC5.html
Definitive look at length and time constants.

http://www.bbb.caltech.edu/GENESIS/cnsweb/cns2a.html
Spatial and temporal summation with excellent diagrams.

http://web.mit.edu/7.06/www/2001-Lectures/Lecture5-1/sld025.htm
Simple explanation of the generation of an action potential from threshold potentials.

http://gwis2.circ.gwu.edu/~atkins/Neuroweb/Action.html#action
Detailed and pictorial description of the action potential.

http://www.biology.eku.edu/RITCHISO/301notes2.htm
Detailed explanation of the action potential.

http://www.brainviews.com/abFiles/AniSalt.htm
Shockwave animation of saltatory conduction.

http://ist-socrates.berkeley.edu/~jmp/Jo_Calcium_LO.html
Important functions of calcium in the neuron.

Neurotransmitters

http://faculty.washington.edu/chudler/chnt1.html
A very basic, but informative look at neurotransmitters with good, simple diagrams.

http://dog.net.uk/neurotransmitters.html
An excellent list of neurotransmitters (small molecule and neuropeptides).

http://www.wellesley.edu/Chemistry/Chem101/brain/films/films2.html
Quicktime versions of neurotransmitter release.

http://www.shef.ac.uk/~bmsmod/russ.html
Very nice neurotransmitter release descriptions and diagrams.

http://www.utexas.edu/research/asrec/dopamine.html
Description of dopamine as an example of a small molecule neurotransmitter.

http://www.emory.edu/CHEMISTRY/justice/chem190j/feb15.htm
Descriptive site on acetylcholine (another small molecule neurotransmitter).

http://www.hhmi.org/news/brunger.html
Web article on the imaging of neurotransmitter release mechanisms.

http://faculty.washington.edu/chudler/introb.html#drug
Descriptions of legal and illegal drug effects on the brain and neural behavior.

http://microvet.arizona.edu/Courses/MIC420/lecture_notes/clostridia/clostridia_neurotox/movie/botulinum_movie.html
Shockwave animated example of botulin inhibiting acetylcholine release.

http://www.psychiatrist.com/pcc/brainstorm/br6001.htm
Neuropeptide production compared to small molecule neurotransmitters.

http://www.csusm.edu/DandB/AD.html
Antidepressants and their effects.

http://www.sfn.org/briefings/nmda.html
NMDA receptor blockers and their importance in helping with brain disorders.

http://salmon.psy.plym.ac.uk/year1/schizophrenia.htm
An in-depth site on schizophrenia and all its aspects.

http://gwis2.circ.gwu.edu/~atkins/Neuroweb/synapse.html#second
Second messengers.

Learning at the Neural Level

http://www.williams.edu/Neuroscience/course/Biol304/LEC5.html
A detailed site on cellular learning in the sea slug (Aplysia).

http://www.nobel.se/medicine/laureates/2000/
Information on Erik Kandel, who received the 2000 Nobel prize in physiology or medicine for his groundbreaking work on learning at the cellular level using the nervous system of a sea slug (Aplysia) as an experimental model.

Electrical Synapses (Gap Junctions)

http://desmid.biol.mun.ca/brian/BIOL2060/CellBiol9b/CB9_20.html
Definition and diagram of an electrical synapse.

http://www.science.wayne.edu/~bio340/Synapses/img005.htm
A good diagram of a gap junction.