Pain is a significant medical problem, as it is a factor in many diseases and debilitating conditions. The processing of pain in the body is a complex process which involves nerve signaling in the milieu of biochemical, molecular and genetic interactions occurring in the brain and other parts of the body. Pain, as a spokesperson of real and impending injury, outlives its usefulness as a warning signal and instead becomes chronic and excruciating. The transition of the realization of pain up to the cortical processing as a persistent condition represents an intricate process governed by the interaction of various factors. Research on humans and animals has led to the advent of personalized medicine where every patient can be treated according to the set of genes they possess. However, the genetic basis for pain has largely been undefined so far. Research on epigenetic alterations and micro-RNA (miRNA) in relation to the assessment and prevention of pain is still in infancy. Pain: Causes, Concerns and Consequences focuses on pain in human diseases such as cardiac and non-cardiac disorders. This compendium on pain research offers basic information and useful updates on the pathology, genetics, and biomolecular pathways that cause pain. Additionally, readers will also learn about non-pharmacological therapies for pain. The monograph is a handy guide for medical students and doctors in different divisions such as oncology, surgery, neurology, psychiatry, psychology, physiotherapy and chiropractic care. The book also serves as a guide for life science researchers who are planning to develop methods to study pain in either a clinical or laboratory setting.

Frontiers in Clinical Drug Research – Central Nervous System presents the latest researches and clinical studies on the central nervous system (CNS). It covers a range of topics such as the development and pathophysiology of the brain and spinal cord, physiological sites of drug action in the CNS and clinical findings on drugs used to treat CNS defects due to injury or impaired development. In addition to clinical research on humans, the book also highlights other avenues of CNS medicine and research such as pain medicine, stem cell research, pharmacology, toxicology and translational models in animals. The second volume of the series features chapters on the following topics: - Nucleic acids as drugs for neurodegenerative diseases - Cellular Cysteine Network (CYSTEINET): - Non-motor Symptoms in Parkinson’s Disease and drug therapies - Multi-modal pharmacological treatments for major depressive disorder

This volume presents a summary of recent research and debates on old and new aspects in stroke medicine. The volume covers topics such as causative factors of stroke such as hypertension, the immune system, genetic factors and the neurovegetative system, to the role of new imaging techniques in improving diagnosis and treatment, from preventive therapy and recanalization to the important and intriguing effects of neuroprotection, neuroregeneration and post stroke rehabilitation. Readers will be able to understand perspectives from stroke medicine researchers about the relationship between the nervous system and other physiological systems in the body and their role in the onset and treatment of stroke. The volume is intended as a resource for neurologists and medical professionals involved in other specialties such as cardiology, internal medicine, rehabilitation and physiology.

The monograph is a summary of methods used to study pain receptors and the results obtained in some experiments designed to study the effect of non-opioid analgesics. The molecular mechanisms of nociceptive information control in primary sensory nociceptive neurons are described based on investigations of the membrane signaling cascade (opioid-like receptor → Na+,K+-ATPase → NaV1.8 channel) observed by the authors. Based on this data, the authors conclude that the modulation of NaV1.8 channels responsible for the coding of noxious signals can be carried out due to two novel targeting mechanisms. The first of these is the activation of opioid-like receptors; the second is the activation of Na+/K+-ATPase as a signal transducer. The development of a novel class of analgesics that trigger these mechanisms should lead to a successful solution to the problem of chronic pain relief. Chapters of the monograph cover the general methods used in studying nociceptive pain (including the patch-clamp method), and the mechanism behind the binding of different ligands to these receptors such gamma-pyrones, gamma-pyridines and cardiotonic steroids. This monograph is a valuable reference for neuroscientists, pharmacologists and allied researchers studying pain receptors for the development of safe and effective analgesics.

Frontiers in Clinical Drug Research - Alzheimer Disorders is a book series concerned with Alzheimer's disease (AD) that causes dementia, or loss of brain function. The disease affects the parts of the brain that deal with memory, thought, and language. Chapters in each volume focus on (Alzheimer Disorders) drug research with special emphasis on clinical trials, research on drugs in advanced stages of development and cure for Alzheimer’s disease and related disorders. Frontiers in Clinical Drug Research - Alzheimer Disorders will be of particular interest to readers interested in drug therapy of this specific neurodegenerative condition and related brain disorders as the series provides relevant reviews written by experts in field of Alzheimer’s disease research.

Craniopharyngiomas are a type of brain tumour in the suprasellar region with benign histological and cellular features. Clinical manifestations of craniopharyngiomas include decreased vision, hypopituitarism, hypothalamus dysfunction, fluid and electrolyte imbalance, glycometabolism, lipid metabolism and obesity. Craniopharyngiomas can show some characteristics of malignant tumours, such as invasion to the surrounding tissues, repetitious recurrence, and rapid growth. These characteristics cause considerable difficulty in patient treatment for neurosurgeons all over the world. This volume presents detailed information about craniopharyngioma anatomy, classification and treatment.

Frontiers in Clinical Drug Research - CNS and Neurological Disorders is a book series that brings updated reviews to readers interested in advances in the development of pharmaceutical agents for the treatment of central nervous system (CNS) and other nerve disorders. The scope of the eBook series covers a range of topics including the medicinal chemistry, pharmacology, molecular biology and biochemistry of contemporary molecular targets involved in neurological and CNS disorders. Reviews presented in the series are mainly focused on clinical and therapeutic aspects of novel drugs intended for these targets. Frontiers in Clinical Drug Research - CNS and Neurological Disorders is a valuable resource for pharmaceutical scientists and postgraduate students seeking updated and critical information for developing clinical trials and devising research plans in the field of neurology. The fifth volume of this series features reviews that cover the following topics: -drug treatment for spinal cord injury -action tremors -natural products for Alzheimer’s disease treatment -non pharmacological approaches towards pain management -biosensors for detecting neurodegenerative diseases -NMDA receptor targeting -alkaloid antidepressants

Frontiers in Clinical Drug Research - CNS and Neurological Disorders is a book series that brings updated reviews to readers interested in advances in the development of pharmaceutical agents for the treatment of central nervous system (CNS) and other nerve disorders. The scope of the book series covers a range of topics including the medicinal chemistry, pharmacology, molecular biology and biochemistry of contemporary molecular targets involved in neurological and CNS disorders. Reviews presented in the series are mainly focused on clinical and therapeutic aspects of novel drugs intended for these targets. Frontiers in Clinical Drug Research - CNS and Neurological Disorders is a valuable resource for pharmaceutical scientists and postgraduate students seeking updated and critical information for developing clinical trials and devising research plans in the field of neurology. The sixth volume of this series features reviews that cover the following topics: -Depression, Insomnia and Atypical Antidepressants -Combination Therapy of Hypothermia for Hypoxic Encephalopathy in Neonates -Development of A “Theranostic Nano-Bullet” for Tinnitus -Dexmedetomidine: From Basic Science to Clinical Application of Brain Protection -Protein Misfolding, Aggregation, Amyloid Formation in Neurodegenerative Diseases

Frontiers in Clinical Drug Research - Alzheimer Disorders is a book series concerned with Alzheimer's disease (AD), a disease that causes dementia, or loss of brain function. This disease affects parts of the brain that affect memory, thought, and language. Chapters in each volume focus on drug research with special emphasis on clinical trials, research on drugs in advanced stages of development and cure for Alzheimer’s disease and related disorders.

A Blueprint for the Hard Problem of Consciousness addresses the fundamental mechanism that allows physical events to transcend into subjective experiences, termed the Hard Problem of Consciousness. Consciousness is made available as the abstract product of self-referent realization of information by strange loops through the levels of processing of the brain. Readers are introduced to the concept of the Hard Problem of Consciousness and related concepts followed by a critical discourse of different theories of consciousness. Next, the author identifies the fundamental flaw of the Integrated Information Theory (IIT) and proposes an alternative that avoids the cryptic intelligent design and panpsychism of the IIT. This author also demonstrates how something can be created out of nothing without resorting to quantum theory, while pointing out neurobiological alternatives to the bottom-up approach of quantum theories of consciousness. The book then delves into the philosophy of qualia in different physiological knowledge networks (spatial, temporal and olfactory, cortical signals, for example) to explain an action-based model consistent with the generational principles of Predictive Coding, which maps prediction and predictive-error signals for perceptual representations supporting integrated goal-directed behaviors. Conscious experiences are considered the outcome of abstractions realized out of map overlays and provided by sustained oscillatory activity. The key feature of this blueprint is that it offers a perspective of the Hard Problem of Consciousness from the point of view of the subject; the experience of ‘being the subject’ is predicted to be the realization of inference inversely mapped out of hidden causes of global integrated actions. The author explains the consistencies of his blueprint with ideas of the Global Neuronal Workspace and the Adaptive Resonance Theory of consciousness as well as with the empirical evidence supporting the Integrated Information Theory. A Blueprint for the Hard Problem of Consciousness offers a unique perspective to readers interested in the scientific philosophy and cognitive neuroscience theory in relation to models of the theory of consciousness.