Readings in the table below are from the following course textbooks:
[Squire] = Squire, L. R., D. Berg, et al. Fundamental Neuroscience. 3rd ed. Academic Press, 2008. ISBN: 9780123740199.
[Kandel] = Kandel, Eric R., James H. Schwartz, and Thomas M. Jessell, eds. Principles of Neural Science. 4th ed. McGraw-Hill, Health Professions Division, 2000. ISBN: 9780838577011.
[Nicholls] = Nicholls, John G. From Neuron to Brain. Sinauer Associates, 2011. ISBN: 9780878936090.
| SES # | TOPICS | READINGS |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Introduction to the Nervous System (Quinn) | [Squire] Chapters 1 and 2, Chapter 3 up to p. 47. |
| 2 | Membrane Channels and Signaling (Quinn) | [Kandel] Chapter 6. |
| 3 | Ionic Basis of the Resting Potential (Quinn) | [Kandel] Chapter 7. |
| 4 | Action Potential I (Quinn) | [Nicholls] Chapter 4. |
| 5 | Action Potential II (Quinn) | [Kandel] Chapter 9. |
| 6 | Neurons as Conductors: Propagation of the Action Potential (Quinn) | [Squire] Chapter 5. |
| 7 | Intro to Synaptic Transmission (Quinn) | [Nicholls] Chapter 7. |
| 8 | Mechanisms of Transmitter Release at Synapses (Quinn) | [Squire] Chapter 8. |
| 9 | Indirect Mechanisms of Synaptic Transmission (Quinn) | [Kandel] Chapter 13. |
| 10 | Biochemistry of Neurotransmitters, Receptors, and Second-messenger Systems (Quinn) | [Squire] Chapters 9 and 10. |
| 11 | Learning and Memory I (Quinn) | [Kandel] Chapter 62. |
| 12 | Learning and Memory II (Quinn) | [Kandel] Chapter 63. |
| 13 | Midterm Exam | [No Readings] |
| 14 | Brain Structure and Genomics (Littleton) | [Squire] Chapters 2 and 28. |
| 15 | Nervous System Development I (Littleton) | [Squire] Chapters 2 and 14. |
| 16 | Nervous System Development II (Littleton) | [Squire] Chapters 15 and 16. |
| 17 | Axon Guidance (Littleton) | [Squire] Chapter 17. |
| 18 | Synapse Formation (Littleton) | [Squire] Chapter 18. |
| 19 | Fine-Tuning Synaptic Connections (Littleton) | [Squire] Chapters 19 and 20. |
| 20 | Vision I (Littleton) | [Squire] Chapters 23 and 27. |
| 21 | Vision II (Littleton) | [Squire] Chapter 27. |
| 22 | Hearing (Littleton) | [Squire] Chapter 26. |
| 23 | Olfaction and Other Sensory Systems (Littleton) | [Squire] Chapter 24. |
| 24 | Touch, Pain and Thermoreception (Littleton) | [Squire] Chapter 25. |
| 25 | Higher Order Cognitive Function and Disease (Littleton) | [Squire] Chapters 51 and 52. |
| 26 | Final Review (Littleton) | [No Readings] |
| 27 | Final Exam | [No Readings] |