Xref: utzoo sci.med:4118 sci.bio:909 sci.misc:819
Path: utzoo!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!utcsri!me!radio!brian
From: brian@radio.toronto.edu (Brian Glendenning)
Newsgroups: sci.med,sci.bio,sci.misc
Subject: Brain unnecessary?
Message-ID: <955@radio.toronto.edu>
Date: 13 Feb 88 20:04:24 GMT
Article-I.D.: radio.955
Posted: Sat Feb 13 15:04:24 1988
Reply-To: brian@radio.toronto.edu (Brian Glendenning)
Organization: Radio Astronomy, Dept. of Astronomy, U. of Toronto, Canada.
Lines: 48



An intersting discussion has come up on a local BBS. Some people there claim
that, contrary to what I have always believed, one is able to function
normally without any brain cells, or at least with very few.

When I expressed my disbelief I got the following in reply:

Peter Bennett (Asterisk BBS, Toronto, 416-826-3274) writes:
<[These articles centred around the work of] Dr. Lobner, an MD in Britain who
<specializes in hydrocephalic patients.  These are people whose ventricles who
<have expanded enormously, and whose cranium is filled with spinal fluid.  In
<most cases of hydrocephaly, pressure on the brain incapacitates the victim and
<in many cases, eventually causes death.  With the advent of CAT scanning,
<Lobner examined some patients he thought showed signs of minor hydrocephaly
<but who functioned normally (one having an IQ of 136 and who was an honours
<math student).  He found several cases, over 100 eventually, in which the
<subject had, instead of the normal 4.5 cm of brain tissue, less than a
<millimetre of tissue coating the inside of the skull.  The cranium is filled
<with spinal fluid.
<
<The Psychology Today article, title forgotten, is by Lobner himself and he
<states it a little more dramatically, implying that these people do not need a
<brain at all.  The article I read stated clearly that some of these people had
<*no* brain cells.  I do not know whether this was an exaggeration or not, but
<it was unequivocal.
<
<I realize that there is a large difference between *no* brain cells and a
<layer of cells less than 1 mm thick.  The article I read was much more recent
<than the articles I found yesterday, and definitely contended that people can
<function with no brain cells at all.  It is difficult to say whether this is
<the result of uncovering subjects without brain tissue, or perhaps might be
<the result of some journalist getting carried away.  I do know that the source
<I first saw was one that I trusted, and the article was convincing.  [...]

Is this right? Does anyone have any information? A bibliography or good recent
reference would be great, but any information would be appreciated. I am
skeptical of this "no brain" idea, but could believe the position of another
respondent who said the research showed that people could live normally with
something like 10% of normal brain cells. On the other hand, since I'm an
astronomer with virtually no knowledge of this subject, I may be totally out
to lunch. What's the scoop?


-- 
Brian Glendenning                INTERNET - brian@radio.toronto.edu
Radio Astronomy, U. Toronto          UUCP - {uunet,pyramid}!utai!radio!brian
+1 (416) 978-5558                  BITNET - glendenn@utorphys.bitnet