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Brain Energy and Metabolism

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Neuroscience in the 21st Century

Abstract

All the processes described in this textbook require energy. Ample clinical evidence indicates that the brain is exquisitely sensitive to perturbations of energy metabolism. This chapter, adapted from Magistretti PJ (2008) Brain energy metabolism. In: Squire LR, Berg D, Bloom FE, du Lac S, Ghosh A, Spitzer NC (eds) Fundamental neuroscience. Academic, San Diego, pp 271–293, covers the topics of energy delivery, production, and utilization by the brain. Careful consideration of the basic mechanisms of brain energy metabolism is an essential prerequisite to a full understanding of the physiology and pathophysiology of brain function. Abnormalities in brain energy metabolism are observed in a variety of pathological conditions such as neurodegenerative diseases, stroke, epilepsy, and migraine. The chapter reviews the features of brain energy metabolism at the global, regional, and cellular levels and extensively describes recent advances in the understanding of neuroglial metabolic cooperation. A particular focus is the cellular and molecular mechanisms that tightly couple neuronal activity to energy consumption. This tight coupling is at the basis of functional brain-imaging techniques, such as positron emission tomography (PET) and functional magnetic resonance imaging.

Parts of this chapter were originally published in Magistretti P.J. (2008). Brain Energy Metabolism. In Fundamental Neuroscience, 3rd edition, L.R. Squire, D. Berg, F.E. Bloom, S. du Lac, A. Ghosh, and N.C. Spitzer, eds. (San Diego: Academic Press), pp. 271–293, Copyright Elsevier, used with permission.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Laboratory of Neuroenergetics and Cellular Dynamics, Brain Mind Institute, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), 1015, Lausanne, Switzerland

    Pierre J. Magistretti & Igor Allaman

  2. Department of Psychiatry–CHUV, Center for Psychiatric Neuroscience, 1008, Prilly–Lausanne, Switzerland

    Pierre J. Magistretti

Authors
  1. Pierre J. Magistretti
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  2. Igor Allaman
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Pierre J. Magistretti .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Laboratory of Neurobiology and Behavior, The Rockefeller University, New York, New York, USA

    Donald W. Pfaff

  2. National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), National Institutes of Health (NIH), Rockville, Maryland, USA

    Nora D. Volkow

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J. Magistretti, P., Allaman, I. (2016). Brain Energy and Metabolism. In: Pfaff, D., Volkow, N. (eds) Neuroscience in the 21st Century. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4939-3474-4_56

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