Neurobiology of Monotremes - 9780643103115

Monotremes are mammals--but they are only distantly related to us. In this collection of papers, several researchers outline our current state of knowledge of the evolution and functioning of their nervous systems and brains. The editor--Ken Ashwell, a practicing researcher--is also the author of many of the papers herein. Introductory chapters by invited authors detail the evolutionary history and classification of monotremes and their ecology and ethology. Then, in a tour-de-force performance, the main author gives us a series of detailed chapters on all aspects of monotreme neurobiology, some in collaboration with others. From embryology and evolutionary development, through peripheral nervous system and spinal cord to cerebral cortex and auditory and vestibular systems, sensory systems and autonomic regulation, with a strong emphasis on evolutionary pathways and parallels with more familiar mammals, this collection is not only a useful atlas encapsulating our current knowledge of the subject, but also a provocative and fascinating demonstration of evolutionary principles and of how they contribute to and reinforce more general fields of ecology and functional biology. Distributed in the US by Stylus Publishing. Annotation ©2014 Ringgold, Inc., Portland, OR (protoview.com)