The Heart of the Brain
eBook - ePub

The Heart of the Brain

The Hypothalamus and Its Hormones

  1. English
  2. ePUB (mobile friendly)
  3. Available on iOS & Android
eBook - ePub

The Heart of the Brain

The Hypothalamus and Its Hormones

About this book

As human beings, we prefer to think of ourselves as reasonable. But how much of what we do is really governed by reason? In this book, Gareth Leng considers the extent to which one small structure of the neuroendocrine brain—the hypothalamus—influences what we do, how we love, and who we are.

The hypothalamus contains a large variety of neurons. These communicate not only through neurotransmitters, but also through peptide signals that act as hormones within the brain. While neurotransmitter signals tend to be ephemeral and confined by anatomical connectivity, the hormone signals that hypothalamic neurons generate are potent, wide-reaching, and long-lasting. Leng explores the evolutionary origins of these remarkable neurons, and where the receptors for their hormone signals are found in the brain. By asking how the hypothalamic neurons and their receptors are regulated, he explores how the hypothalamus links our passions with our reason. The Heart of the Brain shows in an accessible way how this very small structure is very much at the heart of what makes us human.

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Yes, you can access The Heart of the Brain by Gareth Leng in PDF and/or ePUB format, as well as other popular books in Biological Sciences & Endocrinology & Metabolism. We have over one million books available in our catalogue for you to explore.

Table of contents

  1. Cover
  2. Title Page
  3. Copyright Page
  4. Dedication
  5. Table of Contents
  6. Preface
  7. 1. Prelude
  8. 2. The European Brain
  9. 3. The Classical Neuron
  10. 4. Enlightenment
  11. 5. Far from the Madding Crowd
  12. 6. Pulsatile Secretion
  13. 7. Dendritic Secretion and Priming
  14. 8. The GnRH Neuron
  15. 9. Kisspeptin
  16. 10. The Bistable Neuron
  17. 11. Vasopressin
  18. 12. Numbers
  19. 13. Whispered Secrets and Public Announcements
  20. 14. Plasticity
  21. 15. Rhythms
  22. 16. Obesity
  23. 17. The Empty Medicine Cabinet
  24. 18. Appetite
  25. 19. The Sweet Hormone
  26. 20. The Hybrid Neuron
  27. 21. Behavior
  28. 22. The Evolved Brain
  29. 23. Redundancy and Degeneracy
  30. 24. The Tangled Web
  31. Index