Open AccessJaime Alvarez and the case against slow axoplasmic transport: some epistemological reflections
Author(s) -
Alejandro Serani-Merlo
Publication year - 2001
Publication title -
biological research
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.127
H-Index - 55
eISSN - 0717-6287
pISSN - 0716-9760
DOI - 10.4067/s0716-97602001000200015
Subject(s) - axoplasmic transport , interpretation (philosophy) , axon , regeneration (biology) , epistemology , neuroscience , order (exchange) , philosophy , sociology , cognitive science , biology , psychology , economics , microbiology and biotechnology , linguistics , finance
The 'slow axoplasmic transport theory' has been the prevailing view over the last forty years in order to explain the metabolic maintenance of neuronal axons and nerve endings. A significant amount of evidence against this theoretic interpretation of the existing experimental data has been presented by J. Alvarez, A. Giuditta and E. Koenig in an exhaustive review. They propose an alternative theoretical interpretation called the 'local synthesis model', integrating recent evidence for axon biology and regeneration. We present some epistemological considerations that reinforce the above criticisms and propositions.