The septal nuclei [proceedings of the International Symposium on the Septal Nuclei held at the Wayne State University, Detroit, Michigan, October 3-5, 1974

In spite of the problems of terminology, the septal nuclei have been the subject of intense investigation, spurred by their apparent role in emotional, motivational, and memory processes. A major aim of the current symposium is to bring recent research into focus so that a consensus can accrue with regard to the most appropriate terminology, and with that, a better understanding of the role of the septal nuclei in brain. Front Matter....Pages i-xi Front Matter....Pages 1-1 Septum Development in Primates....Pages 3-36 Autoradiographic Studies of the Development and Connections of the Septal Area in the Rat....Pages 37-64 Acetylcholinesterase Histochemistry of the Septal Region in the Rat....Pages 65-78 Organization of the Hippocampal-Septal Axis....Pages 79-113 The Septo-Hippocampal System: Significance of the Subiculum....Pages 115-132 Arterial and Venous Vessel Patterns in Rat Septal Structures....Pages 133-146 Front Matter....Pages 147-147 Septal-Hypothalamic Relationships....Pages 149-184 A Functional Analysis of the Septal Nuclei....Pages 185-227 Unit Activity in the Septal Nuclei During Water Deprivation, Drinking, and Rehydration....Pages 229-239 Functional Aspects of the Hippocampal-Septal Axis....Pages 241-250 Septal Unit Responses to Hippocampal and Hypothalamic Stimulation in the Chloralose-Anaesthetized or Cerveau Isolé Cat....Pages 251-266 Cholinergic Enzyme Activity in the Septum and Related Brain Areas in Deceased Mentally Normal, Chronic Schizophrenic and Organic Brain Syndrome Patients....Pages 267-279 Front Matter....Pages 281-281 A Neuroendocrinological Approach to the Investigation of Septum....Pages 283-334 The Effects of Ablation of the Septal Nuclei in the Rat on Circadian Variation and Stress Response Pattern of Corticosterone, Growth Hormone and Prolactin....Pages 335-344 Plasma Corticosterone Levels during Active Avoidance Learning in Rats with Septal Lesions....Pages 345-357 Front Matter....Pages 359-359 Behavioral Functions of the Septum: A Re-Analysis....Pages 361-422 Behavioral Correlates and Firing Repertoires of Neurons in Septal Nuclei in Unrestrained Rats....Pages 423-462 Topographic Patterns of Hippocampal Theta Rhythm in Freely Moving Rat and Rabbit....Pages 463-480 Immediate and Long-Term Effects of Septal and Frontal Ablations on the Species-Typical Behavior of the Rat....Pages 481-505 Behavioral, Anatomical, and Biochemical Aspects of Septal Hyperreactivity....Pages 507-527 Back Matter....Pages 529-539 The "septum pellucidum" has been described since antiquity. Even though people such as Vicq d' Azyr (12) and Burdach (3) pictured the septal region in their drawings, the nuclei associa ted with the pellucidum--the septal nuclei--were not described until Meynert (10). Since Meynert's description, this portion of the limbic system has been troublesome in terms of nomenclature. Scientists about the turn of the twentieth century proposed quite diverse termin ologies. For example, Elliot Smith first wrote of the precommis sural area (4) and then later of the paraterminal body (5). These terms, however, were meant to extend beyond the septal nuclei of our understanding. Unger (11) and Herrick (8) proposed the familiar terms--nucleus lateralis septi and nucleus medialis septi; but again they were somewhat broader in definition than is accepted for current usage. These terms, however, were rejected by Johnston (9). In Johnston's great paper, he pointed out that the hippo campus seems to evolve out of large portions of the septal nuclei. It was appropriate then to borrow a term previously used by Elliot Smith (6), but in another context--primordium hippocampi. Johnston's primordium hippocampi corresponds to the lateral septal nucleus of current usage. He introduced the terms medial and lateral parolfactory area to refer to the remaining portions of the septal nuclei of Herrick (8). Hence, the lateral parol factory area refers to the nucleus accumbens septi of Ariens Kappers (2)