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NSF workshop report: discovering general principles of nervous system organization by comparing brain maps across species.

Publication ,  Journal Article
Striedter, GF; Belgard, TG; Chen, C-C; Davis, FP; Finlay, BL; Güntürkün, O; Hale, ME; Harris, JA; Hecht, EE; Hof, PR; Hofmann, HA; Holland, LZ ...
Published in: Brain Behav Evol
2014

Efforts to understand nervous system structure and function have received new impetus from the federal Brain Research through Advancing Innovative Neurotechnologies (BRAIN) Initiative. Comparative analyses can contribute to this effort by leading to the discovery of general principles of neural circuit design, information processing, and gene-structure-function relationships that are not apparent from studies on single species. We here propose to extend the comparative approach to nervous system 'maps' comprising molecular, anatomical, and physiological data. This research will identify which neural features are likely to generalize across species, and which are unlikely to be broadly conserved. It will also suggest causal relationships between genes, development, adult anatomy, physiology, and, ultimately, behavior. These causal hypotheses can then be tested experimentally. Finally, insights from comparative research can inspire and guide technological development. To promote this research agenda, we recommend that teams of investigators coalesce around specific research questions and select a set of 'reference species' to anchor their comparative analyses. These reference species should be chosen not just for practical advantages, but also with regard for their phylogenetic position, behavioral repertoire, well-annotated genome, or other strategic reasons. We envision that the nervous systems of these reference species will be mapped in more detail than those of other species. The collected data may range from the molecular to the behavioral, depending on the research question. To integrate across levels of analysis and across species, standards for data collection, annotation, archiving, and distribution must be developed and respected. To that end, it will help to form networks or consortia of researchers and centers for science, technology, and education that focus on organized data collection, distribution, and training. These activities could be supported, at least in part, through existing mechanisms at NSF, NIH, and other agencies. It will also be important to develop new integrated software and database systems for cross-species data analyses. Multidisciplinary efforts to develop such analytical tools should be supported financially. Finally, training opportunities should be created to stimulate multidisciplinary, integrative research into brain structure, function, and evolution.

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Published In

Brain Behav Evol

DOI

EISSN

1421-9743

Publication Date

2014

Volume

83

Issue

1

Start / End Page

1 / 8

Location

Switzerland

Related Subject Headings

  • Species Specificity
  • Neurology & Neurosurgery
  • Humans
  • Brain Mapping
  • Brain
  • Biological Evolution
  • Animals
  • Anatomy, Comparative
  • 52 Psychology
  • 32 Biomedical and clinical sciences
 

Citation

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ICMJE
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Striedter, G. F., Belgard, T. G., Chen, C.-C., Davis, F. P., Finlay, B. L., Güntürkün, O., … Wilczynski, W. (2014). NSF workshop report: discovering general principles of nervous system organization by comparing brain maps across species. Brain Behav Evol, 83(1), 1–8. https://doi.org/10.1159/000360152
Striedter, Georg F., T Grant Belgard, Chun-Chun Chen, Fred P. Davis, Barbara L. Finlay, Onur Güntürkün, Melina E. Hale, et al. “NSF workshop report: discovering general principles of nervous system organization by comparing brain maps across species.Brain Behav Evol 83, no. 1 (2014): 1–8. https://doi.org/10.1159/000360152.
Striedter GF, Belgard TG, Chen C-C, Davis FP, Finlay BL, Güntürkün O, et al. NSF workshop report: discovering general principles of nervous system organization by comparing brain maps across species. Brain Behav Evol. 2014;83(1):1–8.
Striedter, Georg F., et al. “NSF workshop report: discovering general principles of nervous system organization by comparing brain maps across species.Brain Behav Evol, vol. 83, no. 1, 2014, pp. 1–8. Pubmed, doi:10.1159/000360152.
Striedter GF, Belgard TG, Chen C-C, Davis FP, Finlay BL, Güntürkün O, Hale ME, Harris JA, Hecht EE, Hof PR, Hofmann HA, Holland LZ, Iwaniuk AN, Jarvis ED, Karten HJ, Katz PS, Kristan WB, Macagno ER, Mitra PP, Moroz LL, Preuss TM, Ragsdale CW, Sherwood CC, Stevens CF, Stüttgen MC, Tsumoto T, Wilczynski W. NSF workshop report: discovering general principles of nervous system organization by comparing brain maps across species. Brain Behav Evol. 2014;83(1):1–8.
Journal cover image

Published In

Brain Behav Evol

DOI

EISSN

1421-9743

Publication Date

2014

Volume

83

Issue

1

Start / End Page

1 / 8

Location

Switzerland

Related Subject Headings

  • Species Specificity
  • Neurology & Neurosurgery
  • Humans
  • Brain Mapping
  • Brain
  • Biological Evolution
  • Animals
  • Anatomy, Comparative
  • 52 Psychology
  • 32 Biomedical and clinical sciences