New aspects are reported of the development, structure and function of the forebrain in several species of nonmammalian vertebrates.

New aspects are reported of the development, structure and function of the forebrain in several species of nonmammalian vertebrates.

Secondary Olfactory Projections in Gnathonemus petersii (Mormyridae): A Comparative Perspective.- Glycoproteins of the Extracellular Matrix Mediate Plasticity in the CNS.- Developmental Organization of the Amphibian Pallium.- Brain Stem Projections to the Telencephalon in Two Species of Amphibians, Triturus alpestris (Urodela) and Ichthyophis kohtaoensis (Gymnophiona).- Organization of the Basal Telencephalon in Urodela.- Pallial Organization in Xenopus laevis: A Hodological and Immunohistochemical Study. The Development of a Structural Concept on Telencephalic Funktion.- Organization of the Dorsomedial Cortex in the Lizard Podarcis hispanica.- Thalamo-Cortical Projections in the Lizard Podarcis hispanica.- Postnatal Neurogenesis in the Brain of the Lizard Podarcis hispanica.- Neuronal Organization of the Striatum in the Alligator, Alligator mississippiensis.- Cortical Architectonic Development. A Comparative Study in Reptiles.- Comparative Study on the Golgi Architecture of Avian Telencephalic Visual Areas.- Differentiation and Selective Stabilization of Developing Brain Structures in Ducks. A Contribution to Ontogenetic Plasticity in the Avian Forebrain.- Basic Mechanisms of GABAergic and Cholinergic Influences on Sensory Telencephalic Processing in Chicken and Cat.- Regional Distribution of Neurotransmitter-Related Markers: A Quantitative Microchemical Approach to the Study of Telencephalic Evolution.- Archicortical and Periarchicortical Areas in the Vertebrate Forebrain.- Prefrontal Cortex: The Name and the Thing.

This volume is based on the contributions presented at the symposium "Comparative Aspects of the Structure and Develop ment of the Forebrain in Lower Vertebrates", held on September 2-3, 1988, as a Satellite to the Annual Meeting of the European Neuroscience Association at the University of Zurich-Irchel. Within the two days the symposium lasted, the main topic, of course, had to be covered in an exemplary rather than a comprehensive way. However, the comparative interpretation of results revealed many similarities of forebrain organization in the wide spectrum of species considered. Besides a great deal of new data on forebrain structure and development, this book contains attempts based on various new methodological approaches to find homologies between brain structures of non mammalian vertebrates and mammals. Although we are still far from having unequivocal solutions for the latter problem, the contributions to this volume illustrate impres sively that comparative neuroscientists have better chances than ever of gaining new insights since they now have at their disposal a still increasing number of refined anatomical and physiological techniques such as immunocytochemistry, tract tracing of inject ed markers, and intracellular stimulation and recording. A promi nent contribution from the rapidly evolving field of molecular biology can be anticipated. A lot of stock taking will have to be done; yet, the bulk of studies using modern methods have been dealing with the mammalian brain.