Abstract
The Rat Nervous System is the latest edition of the classic rat neuroanatomy text. This volume is intended as a companion for The Rat Brain in Sterotaxic Coordinates; therefore, the book and atlas have been reviewed together. These references are the gold standard for serious scientists in this field.
The text is organized in 36 chapters divided among 7 sections: development; peripheral nervous system and spinal cord; brainstem and cerebellum; midbrain; cortex; systems; and neurotransmitters. Many authors from the 2nd edition were retained, but their materials have been updated to reflect new findings of the last decade.
Chapters are well written (though not for the casual reader!), illustrated, and referenced. Overall coverage is extensive, and chapters are generally arranged so that neuroanatomic features are linked with at least some functional details (e.g., electrophysiological data, neurotransmitter distribution). Several new chapters in this edition represent welcome additions, such as gene maps and histogenesis tables for the forebrain and midbrain as well as descriptions of the organization and induced disease models related to certain brain regions (e.g., cingulate cortex). That said, facts regarding some topics are not well addressed or are entirely lacking. Particular disappointments in this regard are the omission of histogenetic tables for the hindbrain and spinal cord and the absence of discrete chapters for several essential neurotransmitter systems (such as GABA, opioids, amino acids, and peptides). In addition, certain topics addressed as individual chapters in the 2nd edition are not tackled in detail in this update, including many reflex circuits, the reticular formation, and the substantia nigra. In summary, this volume is good but will be of most service to researchers with a special interest in the neurobiology subjects listed in the table of contents rather than to pathologists seeking a greater understanding of rat neuroanatomy in general. I also recommend that laboratories that already possess the 2nd text edition retain it as a reference for the topics not covered in this 3rd edition.
The atlas (both spiral-bound and CD-ROM) is organized in three segments showing step sections in coronal, sagittal, and horizontal planes. The coverage of brain levels is fine, the quality of the sections is excellent, and the histologic detail in the photographs is superb. The line drawings are exquisitely detailed and exhaustively labeled. I preferred the spiral-bound presentation because one sees the corresponding histologic section and line drawing at the same time; in addition, the line drawings in the spiral-bound version have the abbreviations for the various anatomic features printed at the bottom of the figure for ready use. The CD-ROM depiction, however, includes unlabeled line drawings for easier visualization of fine morphologic details. The CD-ROM version runs on standard operating systems (Mac or Windows) and opens as an Acrobat file; scanning was acceptably rapid on my platform (512 MB RAM, maximum CD-RW drive speed of 48 × 24 × 48 ×), as images could be viewed within 5 seconds. In summary, this 4th edition of the rat brain atlas is a fit successor to the prior offerings and will be a valued addition to the reference libraries of neuropathologists.
Bottom line time. If you work full-time as a basic neuroscientist, you will need to acquire both books. However, if your chief interest is anatomic localization of neuropathologic events or budget constraints are severe, the atlas is the more serviceable volume for day-to-day use.