Neurons in Action 2: Tutorials and Simulations using NEURON

John W. Moore, Emeritus, Duke University, and Ann E. Stuart, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

2007
CD and Text

About This Title

Neurons in Action 2 is the second version of a unique CD-ROM-based learning tool that combines hyperlinked text with NEURON simulations of laboratory experiments in neurophysiology. Version 2 features nine new tutorials introducing new channel types, single-channel simulations, and a redesigned interface. Neurons in Action’s moving graphs provide insight into nerve function that is simply not possible with conventional, static text and figure presentations. Students discover how changing parameters such a neuronal geometry, ion concentrations, ion channel densities, and degree of myelination affects the generation of action potentials, synaptic potentials, and the spread or propagation of voltages within a neuron. For instructors, minimovies of NEURON simulations are provided for use in lectures.

Watch the Neurons in Action 2 Brief Overview Movie
(2 min.; 12 MB; requires QuickTime)

Watch the Neurons in Action Demo Movie
(4 min.; 6.5 MB; requires QuickTime)

Visit the Neurons in Action Website

Read about various teaching uses of Neurons in Action in the online journal Brains, Minds, and Media.

NEURON was developed at Duke University Medical Center, Yale University and the Marine Biological Laboratory.
© Michael L. Hines, John W. Moore, and Ted Carnevale.
More information is available at:
http://neuron.duke.edu
http://www.neuron.yale.edu

About the Authors

John W. Moore is a Professor Emeritus in the Department of Neurobiology at Duke University Medical Center. He earned a B.S. in Physics at Davidson College, and a Ph.D. in Physics at the University of Virginia. His work, spanning some four decades, has encompassed characterizing the ionic channels in squid axons under a variety of experimental conditions (e.g., treatment with ions, drugs, toxins, etc.), propagation of impulses in normal axons under a variety of experimental conditions, and synaptic transmission at neuromuscular junctions.

Ann E. Stuart is a Professor in the Department of Cell and Molecular Physiology at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. She earned a B.A. in Biology at Swarthmore College and a Ph.D. in Physiology at Yale University with John G. Nicholls, and has done postdoctoral work with Zach Hall and Susumu Hagiwara. The aim of Dr. Stuart’s laboratory has been to understand the first stages of processing in an invertebrate visual system.

The authors wish to acknowledge the participation in this endeavor of their son, Jonathan Stuart-Moore, who contributed his skills in computer graphics and also made it possible for Neurons in Action to run on the Macintosh platform.

Reviews and Commentary

In this carefully designed book, John Moore and Ann Stuart demystify the basics of nerve function through a series of logical and well-written text-based tutorials with accompanying computer simulations… The computer-based format is ideal for professors and teaching assistants to use in the classroom. The inclusion of classic experimental papers on the CD also makes the experience somewhat of a history lesson as well… The entire simulation environment is contained on the CD, can be easily installed locally on a PC or Mac, and runs quickly using Mozilla Firefox… Overall, Moore and Stuart certainly have created a highly recommendable method for learning and teaching neurophysiology. Readers can now, from the comfort of their own homes, finally vanquish those former physiology demons in a fun and interactive manner—and learn a bit of history, too.
—Arjun V. Masurkar, Yale Journal of Biology and Medicine

Read the full review here.

“This program is a wonderful tool to bring to life concepts that are difficult to describe verbally. The tutorials can be used in beginner and advanced classes as the student’s understanding develops.”
—Lora Becker, University of Evansville

“This simulation-based learning tool is extremely well planned and implemented. The guided tutorials are uniformly excellent with a range of questions, progressively more thought provoking, that lead to discovery.”
—John Rinzel, New York University

More reviews and commentary can be found on the Neurons in Action website.

*New to this version

Basic: Patch

Introduction to Neurons in Action*
The Membrane Tutorial
Equilibrium Potentials*
The Na Action Potential
Threshold: To Fire or Not To Fire
Voltage Clamping a Patch
Chattering Ion Channels*
The Ca Action Potential*
The Neuromuscular Junction
Synaptic Inhibition
Interactions of EPSPs and IPSPs

Basic: Axons

The Passive Axon
The Unmyelinated Axon
The Myelinated Axon
Partial Demyelination

Advanced: Patch

A Dynamic View of Threshold*
Na and K Channel Kinetics*
Extracellular Ca Sensitivity of the Na Channel*

Advanced: Axons

Axon Diameter Change
Non-uniform Channel Density

Advanced: Cells

Site of Impulse Initiation
Synaptic Integration
"Voltage Clamping" Cells*
Impulse Invasion of the Presynaptic Terminal
Coincidence Detection*

New to This Version

New and Revised Tutorials

There are nine new tutorials in Neurons in Action 2, bringing the total number to 25. All of the tutorials are now grouped into two levels: Basic and Advanced. Many of the Patch Tutorials of Neurons in Action 1 have been extensively revised as detailed below. Graphics have been added throughout the tutorials to aid in comprehension of the text, and the tutorials have been related to pathology where appropriate.

At the Basic Level, a tutorial on Equilibrium Potentials replaces the Patch Resting Potential Tutorial of Neurons in Action 1. A new tutorial, The Ca Action Potential, allows the student to experiment with how L-type Ca channels affect the plateau of the action potential, and to see how a cardiac action potential can be generated. Synaptic excitation and inhibition are now addressed in their own tutorials, The Neuromuscular Junction and Synaptic Inhibition.

While Neurons in Action 1 dealt exclusively with macroscopic ionic currents, a showpiece of Neurons in Action 2 is a new tutorial on single Na and K channels. Called Chattering Ion Channels, this tutorial allows the student to “patch clamp” a membrane and study single-channel behavior. By systematically increasing the number of channels in the patch, the student can see how macroscopic currents are built up from single-channel currents.

At the Advanced Level, three new patch tutorials have been added. A Dynamic View of Threshold plots the rate of rise of the action potential. Students learn the importance of rate of rise as the ultimate determinant of whether a neuron will or will not fire an impulse. In Na and K Channel Kinetics, the student can manipulate “m, n, and h,” the gating and inactivation variables of the Na and K channels, to understand how channel mutations or different channel subunits might affect ionic currents. Extracellular Ca Sensitivity of the Na Channel shows how the sensitivity of the Na channel to Ca affects Na currents, an underappreciated factor underlying clinical problems due to hyper- and hypocalcemia.

In the Cells section of the Advanced Level, a tutorial on “Voltage Clamping” Cells reveals the problems of interpreting voltage-clamp or patch-clamp currents when an axon, the dendrites, or the series resistance of the electrode complicate the observations. The final tutorial on Coincidence Detection ventures further into synaptic integration than Neurons in Action 1. It allows the student to add new channels, observed in auditory neurons, to a soma; their presence narrows the time window during which two synaptic inputs can summate to generate a spike. The principles illustrated by this tutorial are applicable throughout the CNS.

Improved Navigation Tools

The sidebar has expandable linked sections:

Links to the sections of each tutorial, including each individual experiment within the Experiments section
Links to explanations of basic concepts in a “What is . . . ” section
Links to topics in a “Help with . . . ” section, each individual topic expandable to its own series of topics and questions

The top bar has dropdown menus:

Three menus to access the tutorials by geometry:

patch
axons
cells

Historical material on the experiments and tools of neurophysiology
Equations, in a form that is new to Neurons in Action 2, with graphics to help in understanding how the equation applies to neuronal membranes

Site License Information

Neurons in Action 2 is also available for simultaneous use on multiple machines. For more information, download the site license agreement (pdf) and the site license fee schedule (pdf). Orders for site licenses must include a signed site license agreement, and may be faxed to Marie Scavotto at 413-549-1118. Questions may be directed to scavotto@sinauer.com.

System Requirements

Windows

Windows XP or Vista
500 MB RAM (1 GB or more recommended)
CD-ROM drive
Minimum monitor resolution: 1024 × 768 (XVGA)

Macintosh

PowerPC or Intel Mac
Mac OS X 10.4 or later
500 MB RAM (1 GB or more recommended)
CD-ROM drive
Minimum monitor resolution: 1024 × 768

Pricing and Options

Titles	Product Code	Price (USD)
Neurons in Action 2: Tutorials and Simulations using NEURON	978-0-87893-548-2	$43.95	Purchase	Request Exam Copy
From Neuron to Brain 4/e with Neurons in Action 2 Bundle available in US and Canada only. This bundle includes: From Neuron to Brain, Fourth Edition Neurons in Action 2: Tutorials and Simulations using NEURON	978-0-87893-551-2	$129.50	Purchase	Request Exam Copy
Purves: Neuroscience 4/e bundled with Moore & Stuart: Neurons in Action Bundle available in US and Canada only. This bundle includes: Neurons in Action 2: Tutorials and Simulations using NEURON Neuroscience, Fourth Edition	978-0-87893-554-3	$136.70	Purchase	Request Exam Copy
View Cart
Outside the U.S., Canada, or the Caribbean? Check our ordering page for local distributors.

Home || Contact Us || About Ordering || List by Author
List by Subject Area || List by Title || View Shopping Cart

Title Information

Related subject areas

Catalog