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Principles of Neural Science cover

Psychology

Psychology

Principles of Neural Science

Eric R. Kandel; John D. Koester; Sarah H. Mack; Steven A. Siegelbaum

A large reference textbook of neuroscience in 64 chapters and nine parts. It covers the field from the cell and molecular biology of neurons and synapses through perception, movement, emotion, development, learning, memory, language and cognition to diseases of the nervous system.

Prerequisites: University-level biology including cell biology, and ideally a prior course in neuroscience or physiology.

Difficulty Level
Advanced
Academic Level
Graduate
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01 / Reading Guide

Reading Guide

Citation

Kandel, E. R., Koester, J. D., Mack, S. H., & Siegelbaum, S. A. (2021). Principles of Neural Science (6th ed.). McGraw Hill.

Chapter Summary

The sixth edition has 64 chapters in nine parts. The publisher's framing is that all behaviour is an expression of neural activity, so the book builds from genes and single cells up to circuits, systems, cognition and disease. Because of its size, the summary below groups chapters, keeping the exact titles.

Part I: Overall Perspective (Chapters 1–6)

The opening part covers the brain and behavior (Ch. 1), genes and behavior (Ch. 2), nerve cells, neural circuitry and behavior (Ch. 3), the neuroanatomical bases by which neural circuits mediate behavior (Ch. 4), the computational bases of neural circuits that mediate behavior (Ch. 5, new in this edition) and imaging and behavior (Ch. 6). It sets out the broad themes, the anatomical organization of the nervous system and the genetic bases of function and behaviour.

Part II: Cell and Molecular Biology of Cells of the Nervous System (Chapters 7–10)

Four chapters on the cells of the nervous system (Ch. 7), ion channels (Ch. 8), membrane potential and the passive electrical properties of the neuron (Ch. 9) and propagated signaling: the action potential (Ch. 10). The publisher describes this part as the basic properties of nerve cells, including how signals are generated and conducted.

Part III: Synaptic Transmission (Chapters 11–16)

An overview of synaptic transmission (Ch. 11), directly gated transmission at the nerve-muscle synapse (Ch. 12), synaptic integration in the central nervous system (Ch. 13), modulation of transmission and neuronal excitability by second messengers (Ch. 14), transmitter release (Ch. 15) and neurotransmitters (Ch. 16). The part concentrates on the electrophysiological and molecular mechanisms of synaptic transmission.

Part IV: Perception (Chapters 17–29)

The longest part starts with sensory coding (Ch. 17), then somatosensation: receptors (Ch. 18), touch (Ch. 19) and pain (Ch. 20). Vision occupies five chapters (Chs. 21–25), from the constructive nature of visual processing through the retina, intermediate-level processing and visual primitives, and high-level processing "from vision to cognition," to visual processing for attention and action. Hearing and balance follow: auditory processing by the cochlea (Ch. 26), the vestibular system (Ch. 27) and auditory processing by the central nervous system (Ch. 28). Smell and taste close the part (Ch. 29).

Part V: Movement (Chapters 30–39)

Principles of sensorimotor control (Ch. 30), the motor unit and muscle action (Ch. 31), sensory-motor integration in the spinal cord (Ch. 32), locomotion (Ch. 33), voluntary movement and the motor cortices (Ch. 34), the control of gaze (Ch. 35), posture (Ch. 36), the cerebellum (Ch. 37), the basal ganglia (Ch. 38) and brain-machine interfaces (Ch. 39, new). The publisher notes a new treatment of how the basal ganglia select motor actions and implement reinforcement learning.

Part VI: The Biology of Emotion, Motivation, and Homeostasis (Chapters 40–44)

The brain stem (Ch. 40), the hypothalamus and the autonomic, hormonal and behavioral control of survival (Ch. 41), emotion (Ch. 42), motivation, reward and addictive states (Ch. 43) and sleep and wakefulness (Ch. 44).

Part VII: Development and the Emergence of Behavior (Chapters 45–51)

From patterning the nervous system (Ch. 45) and the differentiation and survival of nerve cells (Ch. 46) to the growth and guidance of axons (Ch. 47), formation and elimination of synapses (Ch. 48) and experience and refinement of synaptic connections (Ch. 49), followed by repairing the damaged brain (Ch. 50) and sexual differentiation of the nervous system (Ch. 51).

Part VIII: Learning, Memory, Language and Cognition (Chapters 52–56)

Learning and memory (Ch. 52), cellular mechanisms of implicit memory storage and the biological basis of individuality (Ch. 53), the hippocampus and explicit memory storage (Ch. 54), language (Ch. 55) and decision-making and consciousness (Ch. 56, new).

Part IX: Diseases of the Nervous System (Chapters 57–64)

Peripheral nerve and motor unit diseases (Ch. 57), seizures and epilepsy (Ch. 58), disorders of conscious and unconscious mental processes (Ch. 59), disorders of thought and volition in schizophrenia (Ch. 60), disorders of mood and anxiety (Ch. 61), autism spectrum disorder (Ch. 62), genetic mechanisms in neurodegenerative diseases (Ch. 63) and the aging brain (Ch. 64). The publisher describes this part as a new section on the neuroscientific principles underlying disorders.

Key Concepts

  • Brain and behavior: the premise of Part I that behaviour is an expression of neural activity, studied through genes, circuits, computation and imaging.
  • Membrane potential and the action potential: the electrical properties of neurons covered in Part II.
  • Synaptic transmission: direct gating, integration, second-messenger modulation and transmitter release (Part III).
  • Sensory coding: the general principle introduced in Chapter 17 before the individual senses.
  • Sensorimotor control: the organizing idea of Part V, from spinal cord to cerebellum and basal ganglia.
  • Homeostasis, emotion and motivation: the subcortical systems of Part VI.
  • Development and synaptic refinement: Part VII's account of how circuits form and are shaped by experience.
  • Implicit and explicit memory: the two forms of memory storage in Chapters 53 and 54.

Critical Analysis

Strengths

  • Full range in one reference. The nine parts cover molecules and cells, sensation, movement, emotion, development, higher function and disease, so a reader can follow one topic from mechanism to clinical consequence within the same book.
  • Updated for this edition. The publisher lists new chapters on the computational bases of neural circuits, brain-machine interfaces and decision-making and consciousness, a new section on disorders, expanded coverage of the forms of human memory, and detailed chapters on stroke, Parkinson's disease and multiple sclerosis.
  • Illustration. McGraw Hill reports 2,200 images, including 300 new illustrations, diagrams, radiology studies and PET scans, which suits a subject that depends on anatomy and imaging.
  • Established standing. The publisher describes the title as a long-running reference (more than 40 years) and notes recognition as a Doody's Core Title.

Limitations

  • Size and depth. With 64 chapters and nine parts, this is a reference work rather than a single-semester text. Most courses will use selected parts only.
  • Biology prerequisite. The book starts from cells, ion channels and membrane potentials, so readers need solid biology and ideally prior neuroscience or physiology. Students who come from a psychology-only background may find Parts II and III demanding.
  • Psychology topics come late. Emotion, memory, language and mental disorders sit in Parts VI, VIII and IX, after a long run of cellular, sensory and motor material.

Where It Fits in the Course

Among the biological psychology books, this is the comprehensive, graduate-level reference. James Kalat's Biological Psychology and Pinel and Barnes's Biopsychology are undergraduate textbooks, and Winn and Grealy's Biopsychology: The Basics and Richard Passingham's Cognitive Neuroscience: A Very Short Introduction are short introductions. Read one of these first if the nervous system is new to you; return to Kandel for depth on a given topic.

Nelson and Kriegsfeld's An Introduction to Behavioral Endocrinology covers the hormonal side of brain and behaviour and complements Part VI (hypothalamus, motivation, sleep) and Chapter 51 on sexual differentiation of the nervous system.

How to Use This Book

This book is for graduate students, advanced undergraduates in neuroscience or psychology, and clinicians who want a thorough reference. A university-level biology course including cell biology is assumed.

A practical route:

  • Core for a psychology reader: Chapters 1–4 for the overview, Chapters 7–10 and 11–16 as the necessary cellular grounding (skim if you already know it), then Chapter 17 for sensory coding.
  • Choose by theme: pick the vision chapters (21–25), movement (30–39), emotion and motivation (42–44), memory (52–54), language and consciousness (55–56) or the disease chapters (57–64) as your course requires.
  • Use it as a reference: consult a single chapter to settle a question from a shorter text rather than reading Parts in order.
  • Pair with something lighter such as Kalat or Pinel and Barnes when a chapter is too dense, then return to the relevant Kandel chapter for detail.