Chemistry and Brain Development : Proceedings of the Advanced Study Institute on “Chemistry of Brain Development,” Held in Milan, Italy, September 9–19, 1970

J. Folch-Pi Director of Scientific Research, McLean Hospital, Belmont, Mass., U.S.A. The development of the central nervous system is possibly the most significant aspect of the growth of a mammal from embryo to adulthood. The central nervous system is obviously the main repository not only of the species' inherited functional characteristics but also of the process of individuation. Whatever "engrams" constitute the basis of individual characteristics are laid down mainly in the central nervous system, and especially the brain, during its growth. The chemical aspect of this process IS clearly of great importance and the significance of its study should be self evident. Nevertheless, it is only one aspect of a parel lei series of morphological, physiological, biochemical and psychological events which take place as an integrated process, the final result of which is the transformation of the post-embryonic nervous system into the functioning adult system. It is imperative, therefore, that any study or description of the chemical events during the development of the CNS should be undertaken in ful I awareness of the concomitant morphological, physiological and psychological events. It is only against this multidiscipl inary informational framework that the chemical events during 2 J. FOLCH-PI development can be correctly interpreted and acquire their ful I significance. With this in mind, the introduction to this volume may best serve its purpose by describing briefly the morphological and physiological events that accompany the chemical aspect of development. Front Matter....Pages i-x Introduction....Pages 1-11 Front Matter....Pages 13-13 Role of Nucleic Acids in Brain Development....Pages 15-29 Cholesterol Biosynthesis in Liver Tissue....Pages 31-39 Biosynthesis of Sterols in Developing Brain....Pages 41-51 Brain and Myelin Sterols Studied Using Specific Inhibitors of Sterol Synthesis....Pages 53-61 Phospholipid Metabolism in the Developing Brain....Pages 63-73 Brain Gangliosides in Development....Pages 75-89 Lipids of the Nervous System: Changes with Age, Species Variations, Lipid Class Relationships, and Comparison of Brain to Other Organs....Pages 91-109 Some Aspects of Carbohydrate Metabolism in the Developing Brain....Pages 111-121 The Response of a Brain Specific Protein at Learning....Pages 123-132 Some Aspects of Enzyme Catalysed Asymmetric Reactions of Symmetrical Molecules....Pages 133-142 Front Matter....Pages 143-143 Biochemistry of the Developing Autonomic Neuron....Pages 145-155 Methods for Measuring Indolealkylamine and Catecholamine Turnover Rate “In Vivo”....Pages 157-174 Development of Monoaminergic Transmissions in the Rat Brain....Pages 175-184 Control Mechanisms in the Sympathetic Nervous System....Pages 185-194 Drugs Interfering with Central Cholinergic Mechanisms....Pages 195-205 The GABA System in Brain Development....Pages 207-214 Hormones and Brain Development....Pages 215-226 The Role of the Endocrine Glands in Mammalian Brain Development....Pages 227-237 General Features of the Synaptic Organization in the Central Nervous System....Pages 239-280 Front Matter....Pages 143-143 Some Biochemical Aspects of the Development of Avian Optic Centres and the Effects of Deafferentation....Pages 281-290 The Nuclear-Ribosomal System during Neuronal Differentiation and Development....Pages 291-308 Front Matter....Pages 309-309 Structure of Cellular Membranes and Regulation of Their Lipid Composition....Pages 311-326 Recent Developments in the Investigation of Purified Myelin....Pages 327-337 On Ca ++ Transport Across the Mitochondrial Membrane: The Role of the Chemical Nature and Pattern of Mitochondrial Phospholipids....Pages 339-353 Brain Nucleotides and Excitatory Processes....Pages 355-373 The Biochemistry of Myelinogenesis in the Central Nervous System....Pages 375-380 The Blood Brain Barrier....Pages 381-396 Front Matter....Pages 397-397 Undernutrition and the Developing Brain: The use of Animal Models to Elucidate the Human Problem....Pages 399-412 Influence of Neonatal Undernutrition on the Development of Rat Cerebral Cortex: A Microchemical Study....Pages 413-424 Essential Fatty Acid Deficiency and Its Effects on the Central Nervous System....Pages 425-435 Clinical Observations on Late Effects of Early Malnutrition....Pages 437-438 Back Matter....Pages 439-457