Neuronal cooperativity (Q1189388)

The aim of this report is not to focus exclusively on the newest results but rather to give an overall idea of how the difficult question of cooperativity can be approached experimentally. The main emphasis is on the physiological relevance. Thus the methodological details are for the most part considered briefly, although some of the experimental procedures are unusual and complicated. To my knowledge, there is no comparable collection of reports in the literature. This is in contrast to theoretical activity in the field, on which compact information is already available. I felt that this imbalance should be reduced by inviting contributions from researchers who investigate neuronal cooperatively mainly by experiment. The volume is intended for all brain researchers interested in the levels intermediate between the cellular and the behavioural. Experimentalists not familiar with cooperative phenomena, and also theoreticians, are offered an overview of the still somewhat fragmentary state of the art. I hope that this volume will help to stimulate new research efforts in the fascinating field of neuronal cooperativity.