This unique selection of reviews summarizes current knowledge in all major fields of crustacean neurobiology and all levels of their CNS organization, using lobster and crayfish. It not only imparts theoretical knowledge but also describes all available contemporary and advanced techniques, such as patch clamp recordings, microelectrode techniques, immunocytochemistry, and all methods of molecular genetics to identify cellular pathways of protein synthesis and peptidergic control. In summary, it is a comprehensive account of the research achievements in one of the major nervous systems besides the mammalian CNS.

Crustacean preparations have been successfully used for more than 50 years to investigate the principles which enable nerve cells and neural circuitry to perform in a wide variety of functions. The proud record of information of general significance obtained from crayfish and lobster nervous systems testifies that the use of an experimental system precisely matching theoretical and experimental requirements ofa measurement is an essential part of the success. In some respects, the secondarily diversified vertebrate and mammalian nervous systems pose severe obstacles to experimentation and measurement, whereas the crustacean nervous system recommends itself by being composed of individual neurons of unique morphology and physiology, which can be used repeatedly in several preparations. Moreover, a restricted number of invariantly displayed behaviors enable the experimenter to correlate neuron activity with parts of the behavior easier. Experts use these advantages to focus on a well-defined neuron and mechanism and to take a convincing measurement within a minimum amount oftime. In this book distinguished neurobiologists, the leading experts in the field, have joined efforts to present research using crustacean experimental systems. Thus they have contributed comprehensive information regarding a nervous system other than that ofvertebrates and mammalians, that ofcrustaceans. The accumulated knowledge on the crustacean nervous system shows that it is clearly divergent in evolution but functions in a similar way to neuronal circuitry found in the vertebrate system and can be used to interpret it.

This introduction to the crustacean stomatogastric nervous system (STNS) describes some of the best-understood neural networks in the animal kingdom at cellular, network, behavioural, comparative and evolutionary levels of analysis.

Covers all aspects of crustacean biology, physiology, behavior, and evolution.

The nervous system is particularly fascinating for many biologists because it controls animal characteristics such as movement, behavior, and coordinated thinking. Invertebrate neurobiology has traditionally been studied in specific model organisms, whilst knowledge of the broad diversity of nervous system architecture and its evolution among metazoan animals has received less attention. This is the first major reference work in the field for 50 years, bringing together many leading evolutionary neurobiologists to review the most recent research on the structure of invertebrate nervous systems and provide a comprehensive and authoritative overview for a new generation of researchers. Presented in full colour throughout, Structure and Evolution of Invertebrate Nervous Systems synthesizes and illustrates the numerous new findings that have been made possible with light and electron microscopy. These include the recent introduction of new molecular and optical techniques such as immunohistochemical staining of neuron-specific antigens and fluorescence in-situ-hybridization, combined with visualization by confocal laser scanning microscopy. New approaches to analysing the structure of the nervous system are also included such as micro-computational tomography, cryo-soft X-ray tomography, and various 3-D visualization techniques. The book follows a systematic and phylogenetic structure, covering a broad range of taxa, interspersed with chapters focusing on selected topics in nervous system functioning which are presented as research highlights and perspectives. This comprehensive reference work will be an essential companion for graduate students and researchers alike in the fields of metazoan neurobiology, morphology, zoology, phylogeny and evolution.

This book represents Part 2 of a venture started by distinguished neuroscientists to visualize and advertise the experimentally advantageous preparations of the crustacean nervous system. The advantage is a combination of ease of dissection of key structures and the possibility of repeatedly accessing identified individual cells to measure the detailed response of the system to the experimentally imposed stimulus program. Of course, the neurosciences have to focus their research on the nervous system of mammals and man in order to understand the principles of function and their regulation if malfunctions occur. This is in line with efforts to investigate nervous systems throughout the animal kingdom. The specific potential of the encountered systems for exploratory research into hitherto unexplained functions of the brain may very well be a key to new insights. The simply organized nervous system of crustaceans performs tasks of vital importance imposed on the organism. Hence this system consists of a complete set of neural circuitry open for inspection and measurement by systematic investigation. The first volume, The Crustacean Nervous System, contains exhaustive reports on experimental work from all sectors of neuroscience using crayfish and lobsters. This second volume, Crustacean Experimental Systems in Neurobiology", contains excellent reviews on significant topics in neurobiology. Each section is introduced by short texts written by the section editors of the Crustacean Nervous System. More, prominent authors explain their approach to understanding the brain using a selection of experiments involving visual orientation, neuromuscular systems and identification of principles of neural processing.