Challenges in Neuroscience Research Flashcards
What two factors make neuroscience research challenging?
The brain’s complexity and inaccessibility.
What are two goals of neuroscience research?
Mapping molecular components of brain cells and tracking neural activity in large networks during behaviors.
How do research techniques vary in invasiveness?
Cellular-level studies often require postmortem tissue or biopsies.
Larger-scale activity can be studied with less-invasive imaging technologies.
What is histology?
The study of body tissue composition, enabling detailed visualization of neurons and glia.
What has histological research advanced in the last 150 years?
Selective staining of specific neuron parts for detailed analysis.
What do Nissl stains highlight?
All cell bodies in a tissue section.
What are Nissl stains used for?
Measuring the size and number of cell bodies in specific brain regions.
What do Golgi stains reveal?
Detailed structures of neurons, such as dendritic branches and axons.
Why are Golgi stains unique?
They stain only a small minority of neurons in a sample but do so completely.
What complementary method is used to study neuron shapes and types?
Fluorescent dye filling.
What does autoradiography involve?
Administering radioactive drugs and using photographic film to reveal where the drugs accumulate in the brain.
How does immunohistochemistry (IHC) work?
It uses antibodies to target specific proteins, labeling neurons producing those proteins.
What is the purpose of in situ hybridization?
To use radioactive nucleic acids (RNA/DNA) to label neurons where specific genes are active.
What is the significance of Nissl stains?
Quantifying neuron density and distribution in specific regions.
What do Golgi stains contribute?
Highlighting fine structural details of neurons.
