THIS PAGE WILL BE A VEHICLE FOR ME TO MAKE IMPORTANT ANNOUNCEMENTS TO YOU (well, not you personally). THAT WAY, I DON'T HAVE TO WASTE CLASS TIME TO DO IT. IT ALSO ALLOWS ME TO GET IN TOUCH WITH YOU ON DAYS YOU DON'T HAVE CLASS, JUST IN CASE I FORGET TO TELL YOU SOMETHING IMPORTANT (could happen!). THEREFORE, IT WOULD BE A GOOD HABIT TO CHECK THIS PAGE OFTEN. HOWEVER, IF YOU DON'T FEEL LIKE BEING REMINDED OF NEUROSCIENCE EVERY @#$%&* DAY, MAKE SURE YOU AT LEAST CHECK IT ON DAYS WE DO NOT HAVE CLASS, SUCH AS MONDAY, TUESDAY AND THURSDAY.

Hi folks. Welcome to the world of Veterinary Neurobiology!! Please make sure you read the course syllabus that I handed out as soon as possible. It is also available, by topic, at this website. It describes just about everything you need to know about the administration of the course, including exams and quizzes.

As I mentioned in the syllabus, there will be a weekly quiz and the first one will be posted on the course web site by late Friday afternoon (2/20/09). Print out your own copy.  It is open-book, but please take the quiz on your own. Please hand it in next Friday (2/27/09) at the END of class.

Please click here for an additional handout for the first lecture. It is a publication by the Society for Neuroscience that defines the field of neuroscience.

Also, please note on the syllabus that there are recommended readings associated with most topics in the course.

Finally, for a belated valentine, click on my heart:

Friday 2/20/2009

Hi people,

Hope you're having a decent day. I've posted Quiz 1 so see the Weekly Quiz link back on the Home page. Since there's no class next Friday, the quiz will be due the following Wednesday 3/4/09 at the end of lecture. Remember, the quiz is open book but please do it on your own.

For some reason, Scientific American is letting you have that article on maintaining your newly born neurons for free. So click the brain to have a look

Please bring your dissecting kits to class next Wednesday for lab. Have a great weekend!!!!

Friday 2/27/2009

Hey yo,

Nothing much to say this week except to reiterate that Quiz 1 is due Wed. 3/4/09 at the end of lecture. Also, there's no lab on 3/4/09. I will post Quiz 2 on Friday 3/6, and it will cover the 3 lectures (there's 2 on Friday) we're having that week. Have a good weekend and stay cold (rhinovirus, that is) free:

Friday3/6/2009

Hi all,

Quiz 2 is now posted and is due Friday 3/13/09 after class. Don't forget we have lab on Wednesday 3/11 (cool band) so bring your dissection kits. We will be doing the Overview 2 lab.

With regard to strongly suggested readings, the action potential and post-synaptic potential stuff can be found in Ch. 4 (The Neuron) of Textbook of Veterinary Physiology, 4th edition. For even more detail, you can look at the other chapter (Ch. 43) I wrote in Dukes' Physiology of Domestic Animals. Both books are on general reserve in the Vet. Med. library.

Here's an interesting animation that shows the actions of sodium and potassium voltage-gated channels in direct relation to changes in membrane potential during the action potential (click image).
If you're interested in learning more about puffer fish and tetrodotoxin, click on the puffer fish 

Have a good weekend!!!!!!

Friday 3/13/09

Hey there,

Bet you're glad your exam is over!! Relax a bit. Then you can do Quiz 3, which is now posted.

Regarding strongly suggested readings, some of the stuff on synaptic transmission and neurotransmitters can be found in Chapter 5 (The Synapse) of Textbook of Veterinary Physiology. If you want more detail on PSP's, synaptic transmission and neurotransmitters, including receptors, you can take a look at a chapter I wrote in Dukes' Physiology of Domestic Animals, 12th edition, entitled Synaptic Transmission and the Neurotransmitter Life Cycle (Chapter 44). This book is also on general reserve in the Vet. Med. library.

**IMPORTANT** Here's that REQUIRED handout on neurotransmitter reception that I told you I was going to give you to read (just click on the receptor) . Sorry, but it's really diffucult to squeeze absolutely EVERYTHING you have to know into our short class time (well, it seems short to me).  The text in the handout tells you which pages (figures) I'm talking about in your lecture notes.  At the bottom of the handout there's a link for some really cool receptor animations.  Check it out dude/dudette.  My description of what you are seeing in the animations is also on the handout.

**ALSO** Don't forget to read pages 14 and 15 of your Somatosensory System notes, "A 5-minute Primer on the Dorsal Column - Medial Lemniscal System" before lab on Wednesday. It will greatly help you to understand some portions of the Somatosensory System part of the lab (we will be doing the Cranial Nerves Lab and the Somatosensory System lab).

Finally, if you're interested in reading about the effects of chocolate on the brain It's written for kids, but what the hell. Aren't we all still kids at heart (how corny!). Have a great weekend!!!

Tuesday 3/24/09

Hey yo. Hope everyone is having a very fun, relaxing vacation so far . Just wanted to let you know that I've posted Quiz 4. As I said in class, it's not due until the Friday after you get back (4/3/09). OK, go back to your fun in the sun, but I'll probably be posting another message in the not-too-distant future (next couple of days). Bye.

Wednesday 3/25/09

Captains log, supplemental (for all you Star Trek gee.., I mean fans) . I don't mean to be a downer, but here's a few things you should know for when you get back to work.

First, as noted above, Quiz 4 is now posted and is due on 4/3/09. Also, I just sent all of you a copy of the file for my Cranial Nerve Nuclei PowerPoint presentation by e-mail so I hope you received it.

I have some good news and some bad news. First, the bad news: Lab Exam 1 will be on Wednesday 4/8/2009 and will cover all labs up to and including Cranial Nerves and Somatosensory System. It will be almost all straight identification. You need to know the stuctures in the lab protocols that are in bold type-face. The majority of the questions will be from specimens and there will be a few identifications from the brain atlas (cross-section photos).

Some good news: I've scheduled a Lab Review for this coming Wed. 4/1 in MDL 2 from 1:00-2:50 and from 3:00-4:50, to alternate with your Anatomy Lab.  I'll set out all the specimens and will be glad to answer your questions.

Very good news: Here is a computer based learning tool that should come in very handy for studying for Lab Exam 1. It was developed by yours truly (Dr. Klein) with programming and digital photography support from James Dunson. It was done with grant funds from The Center for Innovation in Learning. The program was developed using an instructional multimedia tool called Authorware (Macromedia, Inc.).

The purpose of the program is to allow you to study laboratory material when you are physically outside of the laboratory. The program incorporates digital photographs of specimens you have seen in the lab and provides an accompanying textual narrative. You have the option of using the narrative or just seeing the labeled specimen without the narrative. There are currently three laboratory topics to work with: Gross Anatomy (corresponding to Overview Lab 1), Cranial Nerves and Somatosensory System (both corresponding to Lab 3: Cranial Nerves and Somatosensory System). Each main topic is broken down into sub-topics. There is usually a quiz that you can give yourself after completing each sub-topic and there is a larger quiz that you can give yourself on each main topic that simulates a lab practical.

The program was designed for a Windows environment.  You can find it on all of the 20 or so PC's in the Vet. Med. library. Just double click on the Sheep Brain program icon on the desktop. If you would like a take-home copy, there are three copies of a CD on reserve for this course in the Vet. Med. library.  If you have a laptop with a CD or DVD drive, bring it to the library and you can copy the folder Sheep_Brain_Prog from the CD directly to your computer.  After returning the CD, open the Sheep_Brain_Prog folder on your machine. You should be able to run the program by simply double-clicking on the 013-21.exe file in your Sheep_Brain_Prog  folder.  If  you have trouble running the program, or if the font on the program looks like this(this is Courier font),then exit the program and do the following:  Expand the Start menu in the lower left-hand corner of your screen and click on Control Panel.  When the Control Panel opens it should appear as a list of items.  If it doesn't, then click on Switch To Classic View on the left side of the Control Panel window.  Then open the Fonts folder.  Also open the Sheep_Brain_Prog  folder.  Copy all the files that have the suffix .TTF or .ttf from the Sheep_Brain_Prog  folder to the Fonts folder.  If it says a file is already in there, then you don't have to copy it. Just continue on to the next file.  After you've done that, you should have no further problems.

If you use a Mac, you will most likely have to use the program on the computers in the Vet. Med. library, unless you can run Windows or Virtual PC on your Mac.  I have not been able to find a Mac with Windows or Virtual PC to try that out.  Again, to use the program on the libarary computers, just click on the icon labeled Sheep Brain on the desktop and the program will run.  If this Mac arrangement is a problem for you, please come see me.

If you have any problems running the program, please feel free to contact me (bklein@vt.edu) and I'll try to help you as best I can. Also, I would really like to hear your opinions about the program. I hope you find it a useful tool. Happy braining!!

Pictures of brain slices similar to those from Overview Lab 2 can be accessed by clicking here.  I don't have pictures of the ones from this year, but a student named Sanjiv Parikh took pictures of sections I made previously and he created a really nice layout.

Enjoy the rest of your break. That's an order!!!!!!

Friday 4/3/2009

Hi folks. Don't forget about Lab Exam 1 on Wed. 4/8. Everything you need to know is in the previous message.

As if you didn't have your hands full studying for the lab exam, I just thought I should mention that Lecture Exam 1 is coming up two days after the lab exam. BUT, the good news is that you don't have to take it right away. Lecture Exam 1 is a closed-book library exam that will be available starting late afternoon Friday 4/10, in the Veterinary Medicine Library, and must be taken by library closing time on Monday 4/20.  It will cover all lecture material presented so far, from General Nervous System Organization & Nomenclature up to and including material that I covered in class today (Friday 4/3), as well as the Neurotransmitter Reception handout from the Neurochemistry lectures (see the 3/13 message above or click here). The exam will be approximately 30 short answer questions (like the quizzes: multiple choice and fill-in). Your class notes contain a set of study questions for each topic, drawn from the lecture material. If you attempt to answer the study questions, you should do well on the exams. In addition, the Strongly Recommended Readings (see Syllabus) that cover the topics I discussed in class should help you as well.

The exam procedure will work as follows: At the front desk of the VMRCVM library, there will be an envelope, labeled Veterinary Neurobiology Exam, containing exams and separate answer sheets. Take one exam and one answer sheet. Please make sure you take only one, since there will only be one available for each member of the class. On both the exam and the answer sheet, print your name and sign it in the designated spaces. Also, fill in the date and time that you removed the exam from the envelope. All answers go on the answer sheet. Complete the exam on your own, without the aid of any books, notes or study materials. (I don't mean to insult anyone, but remember, I am trusting you folks to follow the Honor Code as published in the Student Handbook of the VMRCVM.) You will have one hour, from the time you remove the exam from the envelope, to complete it. When you have completed the exam, write down the time you finished on the exam and on the answer sheet in the appropriate space. I will place a locked, black U.S. mailbox in the library that will be labeled Completed Veterinary Neurobiology Exams. Insert both the exam and the answer sheet in the slot in the box when you are finished. Then, go out and enjoy yourself (recommended, but not required).

Thanks for your patience in following these instructions. If you have any questions about the material while you are studying, stop by my office in Biomedical Sciences and Pathobiology (Rm. 214L). If I am not there, write me an e-mail and we can try to set up an appointment. You can also call my office at 231-7398 to talk or you can leave me a message and I'll get back to you. If you need to, you can ask me your question by e-mail, but I often find it difficult to explain certain concepts in this format. I find that face-to-face is the best way (that almost sounds like a Vetlogue line) since I can use visual aids and other materials.

As I mentioned in class today, there will be no quiz due next Friday 4/10 (well duh, I'm giving you an exam).

Finally, have a homunculus, on me. Check out this really awesome animation that explains why the homunculus looks the way it does (click on the homunculi: "little men" to view)

Friday 4/17/2009

**This is going to be a long message, so please hang in there and read the whole thing**

Hi folks,

We'll do the business stuff first, and then get to some fun stuff.

1) Don't forget that the deadline to take Lecture Exam 1 is library closing time on Monday 4/20/09.

2) I have posted Quiz 5. It will be due at the end of class on Thursday 4/23 (since we no longer have lecture on Fridays; see #6 below).

3) Last week I told you I was going to give you a handout to read on the Anterolateral System, which is the part of the somatosensory system that processes nociceptor and thermoreceptor information. Well, here it is: There may be a couple of questions on the next lecture exam (Lecture Exam 2) on this material so please ask me questions about it if you don't understand something. Again, I apologize, but I just can't cover everything you need to know in class. I try to keep the required outside-of-class work to a bare minimum, using handouts that I've tried to write as clearly and concisely as possible to save you time.

4) Related to what I just said above, there is a 2 page section in your Visual System lecture notes on the Retino-tectal System that concentrates on the pupillary light reflex. It will give you a better understanding of the anatomical basis for this diagnostic reflex that Dr. Herring talked about on Wed. There may be a question or two on this material on Lecture Exam 2, so I urge you to contact me if you need any of the material clarified.

5) On Wednesday 4/22, we will be doing the Blood Supply, and Meninges and Ventricles labs. As I briefly mentioned in class today, there is a one-page-of-text (plus a few figures) handout in front of the protocols for each of those labs. Please make sure you read those handouts before coming into lab (or at least before doing the lab). As for the handouts noted in #3 and #4 above, there may be a question or two from these Blood Supply and Ventricles handouts (not the lab protocol) on Lecture Exam 2. OK, that's it for short handout material that might appear on Lecture Exam 2.

6) The weirdness in the lecture schedule over the next couple of weeks, which you may have noticed on your master class schedules, is not my doing. I'm just teaching when they tell me to be there. I have made one minor change to the master schedule though: on Wed. 4/22 I have switched with Dr. Bonnie so that my second lecture on that day comes right after the first one. So on Wed. 4/22 I'll be teaching at 9:00 and 10:00 (instead of 9:00 and 11:00 as originally scheduled) and Dr. Bonnie will be teaching at 11:00.

OK, I think that's it for the business stuff. Now for some fun stuff:

A) Here's something that's pretty cool: an animation showing what happens to the rod photopigment rhodopsin when light hits a rod (just click the eyeball) .  The cylinders represent the opsin protein srtung through the disk membrane.  The opsin is the metabotropic receptor.  The light sensitive retinal molecule, which looks like a hexagon  with a tail, is embedded within the opsin protein.  When you click on the light switch, light filters through the opsin and hits the retinal.  This produces a configurational change in the retinal, which leads to a configurational change in the opsin.  This configurational change in the opsin represents activation of the opsin (the metabotropic receptor).  The most significant part of this activation is the extension of the cytoplasmic tail of the opsin protein, which then sets in motion a metabolic change within the rod (not pictured).

B) On a lighter note (there's a pun here), check this out (CLICK HERE).  It's an animation about the retino-hypothalamic pathway and the neural control of circadian rhythms by light.  Click on TOPICS on the left side and then point to BIOLOGICAL CLOCKS and then click on ANIMATION.  Then click on the icon to the right of the words HUMAN SUPRACHIASMATIC NUCLEUS.  The animation will load and then you may have to click on the little "play" triangle to get it to run.  If you're so inclined, after running that animation, close it and click on the MAMMALIAN MOLECULAR CLOCK MODEL  icon to see how the suprachiasmatic nucleus cells produce a "biological clock" on a molecular level.

C) Remember I mentioned something in class briefly about how in higher order sensory processing, sensory regions dealing with different senses come into close proximity and you can get disorders where people can hear colors and taste shapes, etc. It's called synesthesia and here's a Scientific American article about it if you want to read more . It's a few years old, but still cool nonetheless.

D) I mentioned something in class on Wed. about an enzyme responsible for consolidating memory and the potential implications for selectively erasing memories. Here's an article in case you're interested .

E) Finally, have a great weekend if possible!!!!!!!!!!!

Friday 4/24/2009

Hi people,

Hope you enjoyed your day off while I'm here slaving away at 9:30 P.M. (cheap attempt at eliciting sympathy). Quiz 6, the final quiz (oh yeah), is now posted. It will be due the last day of class, on 5/6, so you've got plenty of time to do it. We're going to do the Motor System Lab and the Vestibular System Lab this coming Wed. 4/29. We will be dissecting part of a shark head for the vestibular lab, which will be pretty cool. There is a one page (of text) handout in front of each of the labs for 4/29. Please read those before coming into the lab. They will be necessary for you to understand the lab material. Lab the following week, on 5/6, will be a review lab. Well, I'm petty tired, so that's it for now. Try to have a good weekend!!

Monday 5/4/2009

Hi People,

Hope you're not freaking out over the end-of-semester crunch Here's some important information about the rest of the course (remember, stay calm):

Don't forget that Quiz 6 is due this Wednesday 5/6/09 at the end of class. As has been noted on your schedules all along there are two lectures on that day, one at 10:00 A.M. and one at 11:00 A.M. The lab on that day will be a review of the specimens from the second half of the course (Special Senses, Blood Supply, Ventricles, Motor System, Vestibular System). Since we have class until around noon, it is unlikely that I will be able to get everything set up by 1:00. It will most likely not be ready until at least 1:30. Therefore, I will stay after 5:00 if you don't have enough time to view the specimens in the first session. Just come up to me and let me know if you will be coming back after 5:00. **PLEASE DO NOT BE BASHFUL ABOUT THIS**

Lecture Exam 2 and Lab Exam 2 will both be given on Wednesday 5/13/09.  The Lecture Exam will be IN-CLASS and given from 11:00-12:15 in Lecture Hall 125.  It is NOT cumulative and will cover all my lecture material after the "A 5 Minute Primer..."page of the Somatosensory System lecture notes up to and including whatever I cover in class by the end of the last lecture on Wednesday 5/6. **The exam will also include the handout I posted on the Anterolateral System (see 4/17/09 message), the section at the end of your Visual System notes on the Retino-tectal System (also mentioned in the 4/17 message) and the two single pages of text that immediately precede the Blood Supply and Ventricles lab protocols (yet again mentioned in the 4/17 message) **   If you have any questions about any material while you are studying, stop by my office in Biomedical Sciences and Pathobiology (Rm. 214L). If I am not there, write me an e-mail and we can try to set up an appointment. You can also call my office at 231-7398 to talk or you can leave me a message and I'll get back to you. If you need to, you can ask me your question by e-mail, but as I noted before, I often find it difficult to explain certain concepts without the use of diagrams.

The Lab Exam (also on 5/13) is ALSO NON-CUMULATIVE and will cover the following labs: Special Senses, Motor Systems, Vestibular System, Blood Supply and Ventricles.  The format will be the same as last time, including some atlas photos.  The lab exam times are from 2-3:20 and 3:30-4:50, with Group A going first (according to MDL).  Although Lab Exam 2 is not cumulative, there are several structures we look at in the second half of the course that we also looked at for Lab Exam 1, but those structures hopefully have greater relevance now since we discussed them in lecture.  As I also mentioned to some of you, I never had the opportunity to develop a lab learning program for the second half of the course (since it cost several thousands of dollars and took several years).  However, I do have photographs of almost all the specimens.  You can access them from here (click here).  For each lab, you will see a string of numbered photo links, as well as a link for a key to the pin abbreviations for that lab.

I think the Strongly Suggested Readings that I listed in the syllabus I gave you at the beginning of the semester (and that can be found under the Course Organization section of this web site) will be a helpful aid for studying the lecture material. However, those readings are not required. The reading list notes the course topics and the appropriate corresponding chapters from Cunningham and Klein's Textbook of Veterinary Physiology, 4th edition.

Finally, here's a fascinating article (just click the robot) related to the control of robotic movement by motor cortex signals in case you are interested . Whether or not you agree with the science, it's still pretty incredible.