A study of yam domestication practices among smallholders has provided an insight into how farmers exploit wild plant genetic resources so as to adapt them to agriculture. This book describes the domestication operations leading to Dioscorea rotundata yams in Africa. The biodiversity of these yams and of their wild relatives is investigated, and the authors put forward hypotheses to explain the phenotypic changes resulting from smallholder practices. These hypotheses could be poss...

"Details the function, characterization, and physiology of various dopamine receptor/transporter systems and explores their role in etiology, diagnosis, and disease management."

PSYCHOPHARMACOLOGY FOR MEDICAL STUDENTS is a concise overview of basic pharmacological therapies commonly used in psychiatry.The biological and clinical aspects of the use of antidepressants, anxiolytics, antipsychotics, mood stabilizers, and ADHD and substance abuse medications are briefly discussed.Following each section, a table with the clinical characteristics and indications of individual medications in each group is provided.Although this book was written with 3rd and 4th ye...

This fourth edition of Huntington's Disease presents a comprehensive summary of the current knowledge of this disease, including the major scientific and clinical advances that have occurred since publication of the third edition in 2002. Completely updated and expanded, chapters in this volume are organized in five sections: · Clinical aspects of Huntington's disease, including updated chapters on historical perspectives, neurological, neuropsychiatric, and neuropsychological aspects, and...

Serotonin (5-hydroxytryptamine, often cited as 5-HT) is one of the major excitatory neurotransmitter, and the serotonergic system is one of the best studied and understood transmitter systems. It is crucially involved in the organization of virtually all behaviours and in the regulation of emotion and mood. Alterations in the serotonergic system, induced by e.g. learning or pathological processes, underlie behavioural plasticity and changes in mood, which can finally results in abnormal be...

The second book in the Evidence-Based Guides series, The Evidence-Based Guide to Antidepressant Medications, provides a clear reference to the current knowledge and evidence base for the use of antidepressants among a variety of patients across a wide range of disorders. Chapters within this guide are authored by experts in their respective areas of practice, and synthesize a large amount of medical literature into a comprehensive, yet understandable, concise, reader-friendly guide. Each c...

Fragile X Syndrome: From Genetics to Targeted Treatment provides a structured overview of the molecular and clinical background of the disorder as well as treatment options. The book discusses the detailed molecular information on each of the pathways involved with sufficient details for all whose research touches this pathway. It provides a state-of-the-art update on all clinical aspects associated with this syndrome, including phenotype, diagnostics and epidemiology. It also includes an ...

Neuronal and Synaptic Dysfunction in Autism Spectrum Disorder and Intellectual Disability provides the latest information on Autism spectrum disorders (ASDs), the lifelong neurodevelopmental disorders that present in early childhood and affect how individuals communicate and relate to others and their surroundings. In addition, three quarters of ASD patients also manifest severe intellectual disability. Though certain genes have been implicated, ASDs remain largely a mystery, and research ...

Handbook of Essential Psychopharmacology, Second Edition, provides an indispensable guide to vital information in the rapidly expanding field of psychopharmacology. The updated edition of this popular handbook will continue to be a reference that is simply the essential starting point in psychopharmacology for residents and experienced clinicians alike.Busy residents and clinicians will find a quick, current, and accessible guide to basic facts about psychotropic drugs, including d...

Translational neuroscience is at the heart of clinical advancement in the fields of psychiatry, neurology and neurodevelopmental disorders. Written and edited by leading scientists and clinicians, this is a comprehensive and authoritative analysis of this emerging strategy for developing more effective treatments for brain disorders. Introductory chapters bring together perspectives from both academia and industry, while subsequent sections focus on disease groups, including bipolar disord...

Astrocytes were the original neuroglia that Ramón y Cajal visualized in 1913 using a gold sublimate stain. This stain targeted intermediate filaments that we now know consist mainly of glial fibrillary acidic protein, a protein used today as an astrocytic marker. Cajal described the morphological diversity of these cells with some ast- cytes surrounding neurons, while the others are intimately associated with vasculature. We start the book by discussing the heterogeneity of astrocytes usin...

This contributed volume discusses the multiple roles of astrocytes, which determine the progression and outcome of neuropsychiatric diseases. This emerging area of study examines the ways in which astrocytes are involved in various aspects of disease initiation, progression and resolution. This monograph aims to integrate the body of information that has accumulated in recent years revealing the active role of astrocytes in neuropsychiatric pathology and in psychiatric disorders. Understan...