Neurobiologica

Neurobiologica is a term that appears in some scholarly writings to describe the study of the neural bases of biological processes and behavior. It overlaps with neurobiology and behavioral neuroscience but is not widely used as a formal field with a distinct curriculum. In discussions, neurobiologica is typically employed to emphasize the mechanisms by which neural systems influence perception, cognition, emotion, and action.

The word combines the root neuro-, from the Greek neuron or nerve, with a form related to biology, and has greater presence in Romance-language literature where the corresponding adjective neurobiológica indicates “neurobiological.” In English, the standard adjective is neurobiological, while neurobiology refers to the science itself.

Scope and methods: Neurobiological inquiry covers neural development, synaptic function, neural circuits, neurochemistry, and brain connectivity. Researchers use imaging (MRI, fMRI, PET), electrophysiology, molecular and genetic tools, optogenetics, and computational modeling to study how brain processes generate behavior and disease states.

Applications and relevance: Insights from neurobiological studies inform understanding of neurological and psychiatric disorders, learning and memory, decision making, and sensory integration. They also contribute to translational medicine, drug development, and the design of biologically inspired computational systems.

See also: Neurobiology, Cognitive neuroscience, Neurophysiology, Connectomics, Neurogenetics, Neuroimaging.