Insectivora

Stephan, Heinz; Baron, Georg; Frahm, Heiko D.

doi:10.1007/978-1-4613-9124-1

Cited by 49 publications

(30 citation statements)

References 224 publications

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“…A large number of studies show that higher cognitive abilities correlate with larger relative brain size in both mammals [2,16,51] and birds [24,32,34,37,38,41]. To see if this was the case with NC crows, we first compared the relative brain weight of the NC crow with that of four other Passeriformes (European carrion crow Corvus c. corone, European magpie Pica pica, European jay Garrulus glandarius and domestic sparrow Passer domesticus) using the same histological procedure (individual body weight and brain weight of perfused birds).…”

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confidence: 99%

Extraordinary large brains in tool-using New Caledonian crows (Corvus moneduloides)

Cnotka

Güntürkün

Rehkämper

et al. 2008

Neuroscience Letters

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A general correlation exists between brain weight and higher cognitive ability in birds and mammals. In birds this relationship is especially evident in corvids. These animals are well-known for their flexible behavior and problem-solving abilities, and have relatively large brains associated with a pallial enlargement. At the behavioral level, New Caledonian crows stand out amongst corvids because of their impressive object manipulation skills both in the wild and in the laboratory. However, nothing is known about the relative size of their brains. Here we show that NC crows have highly encephalised brains relative to most other birds that have been studied. We compared the relative brain size of five NC crows with combined data for four passerine species (7 European carrion crows, 2 European magpies, 3 European jays and 4 domestic sparrows) and found that NC crows had significantly larger brains. A comparison only with the seven carrion crows also revealed significantly larger brains for NC crows. When compared with brain data for 140 avian species from the literature, the NC crow had one of the highest degrees of encephalisation, exceeding that of the 7 other Corvidae in the data set.

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confidence: 99%

Extraordinary large brains in tool-using New Caledonian crows (Corvus moneduloides)

Cnotka

Güntürkün

Rehkämper

et al. 2008

Neuroscience Letters

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“…Approximately 40% of the neurons in the rodent amygdala respond to olfactory stimulation (17). Despite the amygdala's diminishing role in olfaction during evolution (18)(19)(20), primates retain direct projections from the lateral olfactory tract to the anterior cortical nucleus of the amygdala, and the medial nucleus of the amygdala remains intimately connected with the POC (15). As such, olfaction is the only exteroceptive sensory modality possessing direct bidirectional projections between the amygdala and primary sensory cortex.…”

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confidence: 99%

Emotion, olfaction, and the human amygdala: Amygdala activation during aversive olfactory stimulation

Zald

Pardo

1997

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

708

358

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Electrophysiologic and lesion studies of animals increasingly implicate the amygdala in aspects of emotional processing. Yet, the functions of the human amygdala remain poorly understood. To examine the contributions of the amygdala and other limbic and paralimbic regions to emotional processing, we exposed healthy subjects to aversive olfactory stimuli while measuring regional cerebral blood f low (rCBF) with positron emission tomography. Exposure to a highly aversive odorant produced strong rCBF increases in both amygdalae and in the left orbitofrontal cortex. Exposure to less aversive odorants produced rCBF increases in the orbitofrontal cortex but not in the amygdala. Change of rCBF within the left amygdala and the left OFC was highly intercorrelated, indicating a strong functional interaction between these brain regions. Furthermore, the activity within the left amygdala was associated significantly with subjective ratings of perceived aversiveness. These findings provide evidence that the human amygdala participates in the hedonic or emotional processing of olfactory stimuli.

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“…Volumes of brain structures were obtained from the quantitative studies of Stephan and his coworkers (3)(4)(5)(6)(7)(8)(9)(10)(11)(12)(13). We used data on female average age at first reproduction from a published list compiled by Ross (14).…”

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Brain structures and life-span in primate species.

Allman

McLaughlin

Hakeem

1993

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

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In haplorhine primates, when the effect of body weight is removed, brain weight is correlated with maximum recorded life-span. In this paper we have analyzed the relationships between volumes of specific brain structures and life-span. When the effect of body weight is removed, the volumes of many brain structures are significantly, positively correlated with maximum recorded life-span. However, the volumes of the medulla and most frwst-order sensory structures do not correlate with life-span. The cerebellum is the brain structure that best correlates with life-span. Parts of the cerebellum are particularly vulnerable to age-related loss of mass in humans. For another measure of the life cycle, female reproductive age, a similar set of brain structures is significantly, positively correlated (again with the exceptions of the medulla and most first-order sensory structures). There are some differences between the structures correlated for life-span and female reproductive age. For example, the hippocampus and lateral geniculate nucleus correlate with female reproductive age but do not correlate with life-span. In strepsirhine primates, when the effect of body weight is removed, total brain weight does not significantly correlate with either life-span or female reproductive age. However, the volumes of some brain structures in strepsirhines do correlate with these life-cycle parameters. The centromedial complex of the amygdala is the only structure to correlate with life-span in both strepsirhine and haplorhine primates. This structure participates in the regulation of blood pressure and in the stress response, which may be key factors governing life-span.In a previous study (1), we found in haplorhine primate species (tarsiers, monkeys, apes, and humans) that brain weight is correlated with maximum recorded life-span and female average age of first reproduction when the effect of body size is removed. In strepsirhine primates (lorises and lemurs) there is no statistically significant correlation between brain weight and either life-span or female reproductive age. The purpose of this paper is to examine the relationships between the volumes of specific brain structures and both life-span and female reproductive age.MATERIALS AND METHODS We used maximum recorded life-span because it should measure under ideal circumstances the genetic potential for longevity for each species. To find the maximum recorded life-spans, we obtained data from 138 zoos and research institutions throughout the world. We used the same life-span data as in our previous paper (1); due to space limitations, we shall publish the life-span records separately. The maximum recorded human life-span was obtained from MacFarlan (2).Volumes of brain structures were obtained from the quantitative studies of Stephan and his coworkers (3-13). We used data on female average age at first reproduction from a published list compiled by Ross (14). Data on diet were obtained from the book Primate Societies (15). We used SYSTAT 5.2 to assist us in the...

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Insectivora

Cited by 49 publications

References 224 publications

Extraordinary large brains in tool-using New Caledonian crows (Corvus moneduloides)

Extraordinary large brains in tool-using New Caledonian crows (Corvus moneduloides)

Emotion, olfaction, and the human amygdala: Amygdala activation during aversive olfactory stimulation

Brain structures and life-span in primate species.

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