Glial Man: A Revolution in Neuroscience

Glial cells play an essential role in initiating and controlling our behaviours, playing a major role in communication between brain cells. They share certain properties with neurons, including the ability to use information from the environment to formulate behaviors. Understanding these cells is key to explaining human movement, emotion, and thoughts. Moreover, glial cells provide a panoply of new therapeutic targets for the treatment of neuropsychiatric disorders.

This book is the 'brain' child of two scientist physicians: Pierre Magistretti, a leading expert in cerebral metabolism and glial cell biology, and Yves Agid, an expert in the treatment of nervous system diseases and a researcher in the field of neurodegenerative diseases. This book provides many examples of the decisive role glial cells play in the functioning of the human brain, as well as in neurological and psychiatric pathologies.

The result is a revolution in our understanding of the brain and a beacon of hope in the treatment of neuropsychiatric disorders.

ISBN-13: 9780198847670

Media Type: Hardcover

Publisher: Oxford University Press

Publication Date: 01-26-2021

Pages: 160

Product Dimensions: 8.60(w) x 5.60(h) x 0.80(d)

Yves Agid, Professor Emeritus of neurology and cellular biology, Hôpital de la Salpêtrière, Paris, France,Pierre Magistretti, Distinguished Professor and Dean, KAUST Emeritus Professor,, Yves Agid is a clinician who is also a scientist, specialized in the study of the brain, with a special reference to neuro psychology and movement disorders, and to the mechanisms of neurodegenerative disorders such as Parkinson and Alzheimer diseases. Pierre Magistretti is Distinguished Professor and Dean of the Division at Biological and Environmental Sciences and Engineering at KAUST, Professor Emeritus at EPFL and at University of Lausanne. He has discovered some of the mechanisms through which neuronal activity and energy consumption are coupled in the brain and the role of glial cells in this physiological process.

Table of Contents

Introduction1. The brain: neurons, glial cells and blood vessels2. Astrocytes: a key player in brain functions3. Astrocytes and behaviour4. Astrocytes and neuropsychiatric disorders5. Towards a revolution in neurobiology and the treatment of neuropsychiatric disordersConclusionAppendixReferences