The Root of Thought: Unlocking Glia— the Brain Cell That Will Help Us Sharpen Our Wits, Heal Injury, and Treat Brain Disease [Hardcover]

Andrew Koob (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0137151713 | ISBN-13: 978-0137151714 | Publication Date: June 24, 2009 | Edition: 1

Until recently, neuroscientists thought glial cells did little more than hold your brain together. But in the past few years, they've discovered that glial cells are extraordinarily important. In fact, they may hold the key to understanding intelligence, treating psychiatric disorders and brain injuries and perhaps even curing fatal conditions like Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, and Lou Gehrig's Disease. In The Root of Thought, leading neuroscientist Dr. Andrew Koob reveals what we've learned about these remarkable cells, from their unexpected role in information storage to their function as adult stem cells that can keep your brain growing and adapting longer than scientists ever imagined possible. Ranging from fruit flies to Einstein, Koob reveals the surprising correlation between intelligence and the brain's percentage of glia cells - and why these cells' unique wavelike communications may be especially conducive to the fluid information processing human beings depend upon. You'll learn how crucial glia cells grow and develop... why almost all brain tumors are comprised of glia cells' and the potential implications for treatment... even the apparent role of glia cells in your every thought and dream!

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Andrew Koob graduated from Northwestern University in 1998 and from Purdue University with a Ph.D. in neuroscience in 2005.  After graduation, he worked as a postdoctoral research fellow in pediatric neurosurgery at Dartmouth College, followed by positions as a postdoctoral fellow for research in Parkinson’s Disease at the University of California, San Diego, and as a researcher in molecular neurogenetics at the University of Munich, Germany.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 192 pages
• Publisher: FT Press; 1 edition (June 24, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0137151713
• ISBN-13: 978-0137151714
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6.1 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (12 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #626,184 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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67 of 70 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars The science is interesting, the book is not, September 27, 2009

By 

Michael Weiler (Atlanta, GA) - See all my reviews

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This review is from: The Root of Thought: Unlocking Glia— the Brain Cell That Will Help Us Sharpen Our Wits, Heal Injury, and Treat Brain Disease (Hardcover)

The Root of Thought is Andrew Koob's book about the emerging research suggesting that the glial cells in our brain ("the other 90% of our brain") may serve more of a vital role in thought processing and other brain functions than was ever previously understood. Koob is a brain scientist, and it is clear from the very beginning of his work that it was written by a researcher and not someone more classically trained in literature. The book seems to have been written without an intended audience in mind because it is this reviewer's opinion that it is not nearly accessible enough to be enjoyed by the casual reader yet oversimplified for the neuroscience aficionado. As a reader, it was difficult to become engaged with the text because it seemed to assume a fair bit of neuroscience fluency that the average individual does not possess. As a college biomedical engineering major I found myself frustrated by a lack of detail at times and at other times inundated with references to brain physiology that were unfamiliar to me. I did not find the book to be an enjoyable read; however, the science upon which the book is written is fascinating.

The first quarter of the book is devoted to the history of brain research from the beginnings of electrophysiology up until the recent decades when the importance of glia has begun to emerge. It summarizes that glial cells were thought to merely be insulators for neurons without serving any other functional purpose, and that the only important cells in the brain were neurons (Neuron Doctrine). Consequently, the research conducted over the nearly 100 years that followed focused almost exclusively on neurons. These three history chapters could (and probably should) be condensed into one short chapter that gives the reader a basic understanding of the Neuron Doctrine and explains why science is only just beginning to understand the importance of glial cells. The history section as it is currently written is overly drawn out, references entirely too many studies that most readers are surely unfamiliar with, and includes several unnecessary and inappropriate personal references from the author revealing his frustrations with the pioneering brain scientists responsible for the establishment of the Neuron Doctrine.

The subsequent chapters discuss the functional mechanism of glia (more specifically astrocytes), their possible role in intelligence and thought generation, their connection to dreams, and their potential to be used to treat brain diseases. These sections are better than the first, but require too much effort by the reader to identify conclusions and determine what is important.

Astrocytes communicate to themselves as well as neurons using calcium waves, and it is hypothesized that these calcium waves are the roots of our thoughts. The calcium waves may be the mechanism by which we store information in our cortex and how we can think about what we have experienced. Astrocytes help to form neuronal synapses which help to increase intelligence by increasing the speed at which we can process information, but astrocytes are also capable of spontaneous firing without neurons, which may be the source of inspiration and imagination. It has been shown that having a higher glia-to-neuron ratio correlates with higher intelligence, and since humans have the highest ratio of any animal, this may explain our intellectual dominance over the animal kingdom. Koob also mentions that "Einstein had a [significantly] higher astrocyte-to-neuron ratio in the area of the left parietal cortex" as compared to "normal" brains, which may explain his increased ability in mathematics and spatial thinking (104).

Astrocytes are thought to be more active at night, doing most of their regeneration during this time. Koob suggests "the rapid eye movements seen in REM sleep could be glia experimenting with the neuronal firing to make sure their connections are solid" (112). The astrocytes respond to a day's worth of sensory input by growing new astrocytes in the regions that were most commonly used. It is thought that this glial activation during the night may be the source of dreaming, and since it is easier to instigate calcium waves in cells that have been previously activated, it seems that our dreams are the direct result of our recent experiences.

Another key function of astrocytes is the maintenance of neurons, mainly in the form of removing cellular waste such as glutamate. There is evidence to suggest that several of the common brain degenerative diseases may be the indirect result of gliadegeneration. It is hypothesized that with fewer astrocytes available to remove the cellular waste, the neurons themselves begin to degenerate. Additionally, it is thought that astrocytes serve to prevent secondary neurodegeneration following a head injury. Much of the research regarding brain injury focusses on the possibility of injecting astrocytes into the damaged brain area to see it will help to maintain the health of the neurons. Koob states, "In the event of a gunshot wound to the head, astrocyte therapy may be the only avenue to regrow areas of the brain" (137).

As was mentioned in a previous review, most of what Koob discusses in this book is purely speculation at this point as the research in this field is only in its infancy. I question whether Koob is justified in making several of the claims that he does regarding the importance of glia without more concrete studies to support such statements. It appears he may be falling into a similar trap as the Neuron Doctrine by focusing so exclusively on glia. The reader is cautioned not to take Koob's writing as fact, but merely as speculation as to the potential functions of glia. Overall, the science that Koob discusses in his book is really quite fascinating, which makes it a shame that it is written so poorly. The average reader with an interest in the subject should pursue an abbreviated outline of the text that summarizes the interesting points rather than the text itself as it is not accessible to those without at least a minor familiarity with the subject matter.

31 of 33 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars You can't tell a book by it's cover, December 4, 2009

By 

Dr. Jan B. Newman (Clinton, Mt. United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Root of Thought: Unlocking Glia— the Brain Cell That Will Help Us Sharpen Our Wits, Heal Injury, and Treat Brain Disease (Hardcover)

The cover of this book says "The Root of Thought", "Unlocking glia The brain cell that will help us sharpen Our Wits, Heal Injury and Treat Brain Disease" unfortunately there is nothing in this book that validates any of those claims.
It is unclear what audience the author had in mind. It is too complex for a layman and over simplified for anyone with any knowledge of neuroscience. It comes down to glia has calcium currents and we don't know what role it plays as it hasn't been studied.I was disappointed by this book and forced myself to finish it in case it got better. It didn't.
I found this book almost painful to read with its mixed metaphors and bad humor " It is wise to listen to a guy who'll go as far as to cover his own eyes with tin foil." Regarding Volta. Or "Shocking the hell out of you will surely get you out of a funk." Regarding shock treatments for depression,. Or regarding statistical significance "a scientific term to mean that it was "pretty different enough to say that it means something" or talking about the front cortex.... Ouch
Some of the history is interesting, however, I have to wonder how accurate it is.
If you are hoping to have the claims on the cover fulfilled, don't hold your breath.
This book does give inspiration to aspiring authors. If this book got published, anyone can.

16 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Not the best, September 15, 2009

By 

Geezer - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Root of Thought: Unlocking Glia— the Brain Cell That Will Help Us Sharpen Our Wits, Heal Injury, and Treat Brain Disease (Hardcover)

This is a rather speculative work. There are a good many "maybe"s, "might"s, and "perhaps"es. Perhaps not enough. (But see below.) There is also the occasional rhetorical excess: "we are our astrocytes." Some stylistic infelicities, the author's self-characterization as a brave and lonely voice and a vendetta against Ramon y Cajal detract only slightly from the overall interest. Attempts at the common touch through pop culture references and a fondness for similes don't always serve the writer well.
BUT data supporting Koob's main point on the significance of neuroglia, specifically astrocytes, for mental functioning is coming in. For example, work cited by [...] in two recent articles:
1."Astrocytes help separate man from mouse"
Researchers at the University of Rochester Medical Center: "Our
study suggests that astrocytes are part of the higher cognitive functioning that defines who we are as humans." (3/23/09)
2."Star-shaped cells in the brain aid with learning" (9/07/09)

Future books on the brain which ignore this data may risk rapid obsolesce. But I would dearly love to read a review by someone with serious neuroscience cred. 4 1/2 stars
10/03/09 This just in: the oft cited figure of 10 times as many glia as neurons, repeated by Koob, may be wildly off. Some recent
data suggest 1:1--Neurocritic blog 9/27/09.

Update 12/22/10: I would now give Koob 2 or 3 stars for the reason noted above. R Douglas Fields' The Other Brain is more comprehensive, authoritative and accessible. Fields give the ratio of glia to neurons as 6:1. (When I first tried to research the literature on glia 40 years ago, the pickin's were slim. I got overexcited.)