The Other Brain: From Dementia to Schizophrenia

Despite everything that has been written about the brain, a very  important part of this vital organ has been overlooked in most books -  until now. The Other Brain is the story of glia, which make up  approximately 85 percent of the cells in the brain. Long neglected as  little more than cerebral packing material ("glia" means glue), glia are  sparking a revolution in brain science.

Glia are completely  different from neurons, the brain cells that we are familiar with.  Scientists are discovering that glia have their own communication  network, which operates in parallel to the more familiar communication  among neurons. Glia provide the insulation for the neurons, and glia  even regulate the flow of information between neurons.

But it is  the potential breakthroughs for medical science that are the most  exciting frontier in glia research today. Diseases such as brain cancer  and multiple sclerosis are caused by diseased glia. Glia are now  believed to play an important role in such psychiatric illnesses as  schizophrenia and depression, and in neurodegenerative diseases such as  Parkinson's and Alzheimer's. They are linked to infectious diseases such  as HIV and prion disease (mad cow disease, for example) and to chronic  pain. Scientists have discovered that glia repair the brain and spinal  cord after injury and stroke. The more we learn about these cells that  make up the "other" brain, the more important they seem to be.

Written by a neuroscientist who is a leader in the research to reveal the secrets of these brain cells, The Other Brain offers a firsthand account of science in action. It takes us into the  laboratories where important discoveries are being made, and it explains  how scientists are learning that glial cells come in different types,  with different capabilities. It tells the story of glia research from  its origins to the most recent discoveries and gives readers a much more  complete understanding of how the brain works.