Microdialysis in the Neurosciences: Techniques in the Behavioral and Neural Sciences

Until very recently most experimental studies on brain chemistry were conducted with postmortem tissue. However, because of shortcomings with postmortem methods and also the desire to directly relate neurochemistry to behavior, there has been a rapid growth of interest towards in vivo neurochemical methods. The recent availability of small diameter hollow dialysis fibres and very sensitive analytical techniques has made microdialysis practical for the routine measurement of many endogenous neurochemicals in vivo. With its adoption in the neurosciences as the preferred technique for in vivo sampling, microdialysis techniques provide the focus for this present volume. This book provides a single reference source for detailed methodological information on the conduct of microdialysis experiments for studying neurotransmitter dynamics in vivo. The emphasis is on practical considerations, and contributors have been encouraged to share their "tricks of the trade" to help other researchers quickly and easily adopt these methodologies in their own laboratories.