The parcellation theory and its relation to interspecific variability in brain organization,evolutionary and ontogenetic development,and neuronal plasticity

Summary Recently discovered neocortical equivalents in anamniotes and certain patterns of interspecific variability in brain organization provide new insights into evolutionary and ontogenetic mechanisms of development. The new data suggest that nervous systems become more complex, not by one system invading another, but by a process of parcellation that involves the selective loss of connections of the newly formed daughter aggregates and subsystems. The parcellation process is reflected in the normal ontogenetic development of the CNS in a given species and can be manipulated, to a certain extent, by deprivation or surgically induced sprouting.The parcellation theory allows certain predictions about the range of variation of a given system at all levels of analysis including the cellular and aggregate levels. For example, the interspecific variability in organization of cortical columns, thalamic nuclei, cortical areas and tectal layers can be explained. The findings, summarized here, suggest that diffuse, undifferentiated systems existed in the beginning of vertebrate evolution and that during the evolution of complex behaviors, and analytical capacities related to these behaviors, a range of patterns of neural systems evolved that relate to these functions. One principle underlying the growth, differentiation and multiplication of neural systems appears to be the process of parcellation as defined by the theory.Presented in part at the meeting of the British Society for Experimental Biology, Belfast, Ireland, July 1979     

Upper limit on translational diffusion of visual pigment in intact unfixed barnacle photoreceptors

Translational diffusion of pigment molecules in the disc membranes of amphibian rod outer segments is in the range of 10 /10 s. Recently, Goldsmith and Wehner set an upper limit of 10 /20 min to the diffusion in isolated formaldehyde-fixed rhabdoms of crayfish. We have now used the early receptor potential (ERP) to study the diffusion in intact, unfixed barnacle photoreceptors. The ERP from a cell fully adapted to blue light (most of the pigment in the rhodopsin state) was changed by 8–22% of its maximum change when the pigment in a 30 m spot was (almost) completely shifted to the metarhodopsin state by red laser adaptation. Further red illumination of the same spot 30 min later produced only a limited further change in the ERP (attributable to light scatter), showing that R had not migrated into the spot. It is concluded that the visual pigment diffuses by less than 30 /30 min.Based on material presented at the European Neurosciences Meeting, Florence, September 1978     

Anopheles subpictus Grassi: Observations on survivorship and population size using mark-release-recapture and dissection methods

A mark-release-recapture experiment to estimate population survivorship and absolute size was performed with wild-caught An. subpictus adults at the village of Khano-Harni, Lahore District, Punjab Province, Pakistan during September 1978, the end of the monsoon rainy season, when temporal population abundance was maximized. Daily survival rate estimated from the recapture sequence of marked adults was low, males=0.192 and females=0.343. Survivorship for females estimated by several vertical age-grading procedures ranged from 0.347 to 0.628. Both stage- and age-specific life tables were calculated from vertical age-grading data determined by the dilatation method. Female and male population size was estimated byBailey 's modification of theLincoln Index and was found to average 4478.4 and 6106.8, respectively. The bionomics, survivorship and population size of An. subpictus in the Lahore are indicated that this species was probably not important in the transmission of human malaria.     

城市滨水景观的视觉环境质量评价——以合肥市为例

滨水景观是城市景观的重要组成部分,以合肥市为例评价城市滨水景观的视觉环境质量。综合"基于公众感知"和"基于专家/设计"的评价方法,选取22张滨水景观照片作为研究对象,评价这些滨水景观的视觉环境质量和各物理要素等级,对评价数据进行了相关和回归分析。评价结果表明环境质量得分较高的滨水景观比得分较低的滨水景观拥有更多的自然式驳岸和适当的园林小品。统计分析结果表明"有利的人工景观"、"驳岸类型"和"树群轮廓线"对滨水景观视觉环境质量有着非常显著的积极影响。另外,将研究结果与其他学者研究结论进行了对比分析,并对未来城市滨水景观的规划和管理提出一些建议。     

Diurnal variability in a fish assemblage of a Bahamian coral reef

Synopsis Variation in the diurnal composition of a fish assemblage of a Bahamian coral reef was investigated by comparing visual counts of fishes taken along a 100 × 4 m wide fixed transect at four times: 0900, 1200, 1500 and 1800 hours during the summer of 1979. One sample per day was obtained at each time period over a span of 20 consecutive days. Forty-two species were recorded in these samples, with 25 occurring frequently enough to permit statistical analysis of diurnal variations in abundance. Of the 25 species compared, nearly one fourth (6 species) displayed significant variation in abundance patterns among the four time periods tested. It is suggested, because of the strong possibility of bias which might otherwise be introduced because of these variations, that repetitive quantitative visual censusing of coral reef fishes be undertaken at about the same time each day.     

视觉信号在中枢的整合：同步振荡产生的机理和功能

神经系统内各信息通道的信号间如何整合？一个可能的途径就是通过同步振荡来协调。本文对同怕研究进展作了回顾,侧重介绍了视皮怪内同步振荡的提出、实验依据、产生的机理和功能意义,并对可能的进展作了展望。     

应用基于内源信号的光学成像技术的视觉脑研究现状

基于脑内源信号的光学成像技术是近来国际上出现的一种脑功能成像方法。该技术既无毒,又具有较高的空间分辨率,因而被迅速应用于动物的视觉、听觉、体感皮层功能构筑的研究中。本文综述了这种光学脑功能成像在视觉脑研究方面所取得的重要进展,并分析了该方法与其他脑成像技术、微电极单细胞技术的关系。报道了国内自行研制第、套脑功能光学成像系统的研究工作,该系统已在猫初级视觉皮层不同深度获得了清晰的方位功能图,并已经和     

一类具有非单调增长率和功能反应的捕食者-食饵系统的定性分析

考虑一类食饵密度具有非单调增长率,捕食者具有功能性反应的捕食者一食饵系统。得到系统在第一象限内正平衡点的区域稳定的条件和极限环存在唯一的条件,完整地讨论了系统(1)的拓扑结构。     

果蝇幼虫的视觉系统

视觉对于动物的生存和行为来说是非常重要的。虽然果蝇幼虫的视觉神经系统在组织结构上比成虫简单,但是也具有一定的复杂性和多样性。在最近几年中,随着对果蝇幼虫视觉系统功能的研究取得重要进展,我们对于果蝇幼虫视觉系统的认识更加丰富了。果蝇幼虫视觉系统的结构中,最初级的光感受神经元包括三类,一类是BO/BN(Bolwig's organ/Bolwig's nerve),一类是表达感光分子CRY(cryptochrome)的神经元,另外一类是Ⅳ型DA(classⅣdendriticarborization)神经元;果蝇幼虫视觉系统的次级神经元主要是光节律相关的侧神经元(lateralneurons,LN),它表达Per(period)、Tim(timeless)及Pdf(pigment dispersion factor)等节律相关的蛋白分子;而第三级神经元包括更为下游的、表达果蝇促胸腺激素且直接调控幼虫光偏好的NP394神经元。这三级神经元构成了我们现在所了解的果蝇幼虫视觉神经系统的基本框架。     

利用激光扫描共聚焦显微镜研究视皮层脑片长时程增强过程中核酸的变化

本文使用 1 5— 2 0天龄幼年大鼠视皮层脑片的标本 ,在通氧状态下 ,用荧光探针 AO染色 ,激光扫描共聚焦显微镜对全脑片不同层面进行共聚焦断层扫描 ,沿纵轴每 2 0μm扫一次 ,共扫描 1 6次。再利用总值方式的投影算法对其三维重建 ,分析幼年大鼠视皮层脑片长时程增强过程中核酸的变化。