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Adult Hippocampal Neurogenesis in Mammals (and Humans): The Death of a Central Dogma in Neuroscience and its Replacement by a New Dogma
Author(s) -
Oppenheim Ronald W.
Publication year - 2019
Publication title -
developmental neurobiology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.716
H-Index - 129
eISSN - 1932-846X
pISSN - 1932-8451
DOI - 10.1002/dneu.22674
Subject(s) - neurogenesis , neuroscience , biology , context (archaeology) , hippocampal formation , wilderness , cognitive science , diversity (politics) , psychology , ecology , sociology , paleontology , anthropology
The review is a critical appraisal of the history and present status of the phenomenon of adult hippocampal neurogenesis (AHN) in the mammalian and human brain. Previous as well as most current studies of AHN have focused on highly inbred domestic mice and rats that are examined in rigorously controlled laboratory environments using psychology‐based behavioral tests. However, this approach cannot reveal the adaptive significance of AHN, a key unresolved question in the field. After the publication of several thousand articles in the field over the last 20 years, little progress has been made in our understanding of the biological utility of AHN in the real world. To accomplish this will require comparative studies employing a greater diversity of species and species‐specific behaviors that are investigated in a more naturalistic, evolutionary context. Although efforts along these lines are on the rise, they remain “voices in the wilderness.” This review is an attempt to hasten and increase those efforts.