Pathologies of Cooperative Neuronal Processing

Abstract

Abstract Being crucial to mental life, cellular mechanisms for context-sensitive cooperation are implicated in many of its pathologies. They can be dysfunctional in many ways—from genetic causes, from prenatal or post-natal exposure to pathogens, by harmful experiences, or by various forms of brain damage. A new perspective on neurodevelopmental and other psychopathologies is exemplified by in-depth discussions of absence epilepsy, schizophrenia spectrum disorders, anti-NMDA encephalitis, autism spectrum disorders (ASD) including fragile X, and foetal alcohol spectrum disorders (FASD). Anti-NMDA encephalitis shines a well-focused light on the role of apical ion channels in mental life because its cause and its consequences for ion-channel function are known. As the monogenetic aetiology of fragile X and the consequences of that mutation for ion channel function are also known, that disorder now offers the opportunity to map a complete unbroken path from mutation to cognitive consequences.