Ann B. Butler, Ph.D.

Professor
Department of Molecular Neuroscience
Krasnow Institute for Advanced Study

Krasnow Institute for Advanced Study
George Mason University
4400 University Drive, MS 2A1
Fairfax, VA 22030

Telephone: 703-993-3631
Fax: 703-933-4325
E-mail at ABButler@gmu.edu

B.A., Oberlin College, 1967

Ph.D., Case Western Reserve University, 1971.

Dr. Butler held faculty positions at George Washington University and Georgetown University before coming to George Mason University in 1994, where she is now a Professor in the Department of Molecular Neuroscience. Dr. Butler's research focuses on forebrain evolution in vertebrates. Her career has focused on studies the organization of sensory pathways and forebrain anatomy in reptiles and fish for comparison with mammals, including neuroanatomical tract-tracing studies on visual pathways and pallial circuitry, analyzing dorsal thalamic evolution by comparative analyses, theoretical aspects of homology in comparative biology, and collaborative work on the evolution of pallial areas in amniotes, including mammalian neocortex, involving comparative embryological development. Her current interest is in trying to identify the underlying neuroanatomical bases for the evolution of higher cognition and consciousness in both birds and mammals, using comparative methodology. The author (with Dr. William Hodos) of Comparative Vertebrate Neuroanatomy: Evolution and Adaptation, 2^nd Edition (Hoboken NJ: Wiley-Liss), she has published over 70 articles in books, encyclopedias, and peer-reviewed journals such as Brain, Behavior and Evolution, Brain Research, and the Journal of Comparative Neurology.

External Collaborations

William Hodos, PhD, University of Maryland, MD 
Zoltán Molnár, MD, PhD, Oxford University, Oxford, United Kingdom
William Saidel, PhD, Rutgers University, Camden, NJ
Paul Manger, PhD, University of the Witwatersrand, South Africa
Peter Århem, PhD, Karolinska Institute, Sweden
Ingemar Lindahl, PhD, University of Stockholm, Sweden

Publications

Butler, Ann B. and R. Glenn Northcutt  1971  Retinal projections in Iguana iguana and Anolis carolinensis. Brain Res., 26: 1-13.

Butler, Ann B. and R. Glenn Northcutt  1971  Ascending tectal efferent projections in the lizard Iguana iguana.  Brain Res., 35: 597-601.

Butler, Ann B. and R. Glenn Northcutt  1973  Architectonic studies of the diencephalon of Iguana iguana (Linnaeus).  J. Comp. Neurol., 149: 439-462.

Northcutt, R. Glenn and Ann B. Butler  1974  Retinal projections in the Northern water snake, Natrix sipedon sipedon (Linnaeus).  J. Morph., 142: 117-136.

Northcutt, R. Glenn and Ann B. Butler  1974  Evolution in reptilian visual systems: Retinal projections in a nocturnal lizard, Gekko gecko (Linnaeus).  J. Comp. Neurol., 157: 453-466.

Butler, Ann B.  1974  Retinal projections in the night lizard, Xantusia vigilis Baird.  Brain Res., 80: 116-121.

Butler, Ann B. and Sven O.E. Ebbesson  1975  A Golgi study of the optic tectum of the Tegu lizard, Tupinambis nigropunctatus.  J. Morph., 146: 215-228.

Northcutt, R. Glenn and Ann B. Butler  1976  Retinofugal pathways in the longnose gar, Lepisosteus osseus (Linnaeus).  J. Comp. Neurol., 166: 1-16.

Butler, Ann B.  1976  Telencephalon of the lizard, Gekko gecko (Linnaeus): Some connections of the cortex and dorsal ventricular ridge.  Brain, Behav. Evol., 13: 396-417.

Butler, Ann B.  1978  Forebrain connections in lizards and the evolution of sensory systems.  In: Behavior and Neurology of Lizards (ed. by N.B. Greenberg and P.D. MacLean), DHEW Press, Washington, D.C., pp. 65-77.

Butler, Ann B.  1978  Organization of ascending tectal projections in the lizard Gekko gecko: A new pattern of tecto-rotundal inputs.  Brain Res., 147: 353-361.

Butler, Ann B. and R. Glenn Northcutt  1978  New thalamic visual nuclei in lizards.  Brain Res., 149: 469-476.

Butler, Ann B.  1980  Cytoarchitectonic and connectional organization of the lacertilian telencephalon, with comments on vertebrate forebrain evolution.  In: Comparative Neurology: The Telencephalon (ed. by S.O.E. Ebbesson), Plenum Press, New York, pp. 297-329.

Northcutt, R. Glenn and Ann B. Butler  1980  Projections of the optic tectum in the longnose gar Lepisosteus osseus.  Brain Res., 190: 333-346.

Butler, Ann B. and Laura L. Bruce  1981  Nucleus laminaris of the torus semicircularis: Projections to the spinal cord in reptiles.  Neurosci. Lett., 25: 221-225.

Berk, Mitchell L. and Ann B. Butler  1981  Efferent projections of the medial preoptic nucleus and medial hypothalamus in the pigeon.  J. Comp. Neurol., 203: 379-399.

Butler, Ann B.  1982  A strong backbone for comparison.  Book review of Brain Mechanisms of Behavior in Lower Vertebrates, ed. by P.R. Laming, Cambridge University Press.  Neurosci. Lett., 5: 285-286.

Meredith, Gloria E. and Ann B. Butler  1983  Organization of eighth nerve afferent projections from individual endorgans of the inner ear in the teleost, Astronotus ocellatus.  J. Comp. Neurol., 220: 44-62.

Butler, Ann B., P.P.C. Graziadei, G.A. Monti Graziadei, and Burton M. Slotnick  1984  Neonatally bulbectomized rats with new olfactory-neocortical connections are anosmic.  Neurosci. Lett., 48: 247-254.

Bruce, Laura L. and Ann B. Butler  1984  Telencephalic connections in lizards. I. Projections to cortex. J. Comp. Neurol., 229: 585-601.

Bruce, Laura L. and Ann B. Butler  1984  Telencephalic connections in lizards. II. Projections to anterior dorsal ventricular ridge.  J. Comp. Neurol., 229: 602-615.

Northcutt, R. Glenn and Ann B. Butler  1991  Retinofugal and retinopetal projections in the green sunfish, Lepomis cyanellus.  Brain, Behav. Evol., 37: 333-354.

Butler, Ann B. and William M. Saidel  1991  Retinal projections in the freshwater butterfly fish, Pantodon buchholzi (Osteoglossoidei). I. Cytoarchitectonic analysis and primary visual pathways.  Brain, Behav. Evol., 38: 127-153.

Saidel, William M. and Ann B. Butler  1991  Retinal projections in the freshwater butterfly fish, Pantodon buchholzi (Osteoglossoidei). II. Differential projections of the dorsal and ventral hemiretinas. Brain, Behav. Evol., 38: 154-168.

Butler, Ann B., Mario F. Wullimann and R. Glenn Northcutt  1991  Comparative cytoarchitectonic analysis of some visual pretectal nuclei in teleosts. Brain, Behav. Evol., 38: 92-114.

Butler, Ann B. and R. Glenn Northcutt  1992  Retinal projections in the bowfin, Amia calva: Cytoarchitectonic and experimental analysis.  Brain, Behav. Evol., 39: 169-194.

Butler, Ann B. and William M. Saidel  1992  Tectal projections to an unusual nucleus in the diencephalon of a teleost fish, Pantodon buchholzi.  Neurosci. Lett., 145:193-196.

Butler, Ann B.  1992  Variation of tectal morphology in teleost fishes.  Brain, Behav. Evol., 40: 256-272.

Butler, Ann B. and William M. Saidel  1993  Retinal projections in teleost fishes:  Patterns, variations, and questions.  Comp. Biochem. Physiol., 104A: 431-442.

Northcutt, R. Glenn and Ann B. Butler  1993  Distribution of acetylcholinesterase reactivity in the diencephalon and optic tectum of the longnose gar, Lepisosteus osseus (L.).  Brain, Behav. Evol., 41: 57-81.

Butler, Ann B. and R. Glenn Northcutt  1993  The diencephalon of the Atlantic herring, Clupea harengus. I. Cytoarchitectonic analysis.  J. Comp. Neurol., 328: 527-546.

Northcutt, R. Glenn and Ann B. Butler  1993  The diencephalon of the Atlantic herring, Clupea harengus. II. Retinofugal projections to the diencephalon and optic tectum.  J. Comp. Neurol., 328: 547-561.

Butler, Ann B.  1994  The evolution of the dorsal thalamus of jawed vertebrates, including mammals: cladistic analysis and a new hypothesis.  Brain Res. Rev., 19: 29-65.

Butler, Ann B. 1994 The evolution of the dorsal pallium of amniotes: cladistic analysis and a new hypothesis. Brain Res. Rev., 19: 66-101.

Butler, Ann B. 1995 The dorsal thalamus of jawed vertebrates: a comparative viewpoint. Brain, Behav. Evol., 46: 209-223.

Butler, Ann B.  1996  Levels of organization and the evolution of neocortex.  Letter to the Editor, Trends Neurosci., 19: 89.

Butler, Ann B. and William Hodos 1996 Comparative Vertebrate Neuroanatomy: Evolution and Adaptation. New York: Wiley-Liss, 514 pp.

Butler, Ann B. and James Trefil  1996  Evolution, neurobiology, and behavior.  Report on Krasnow Institute Workshop May 31 -  June 4, 1995.  Complexity, pp. 3-4.

Saidel, William M. and Ann B. Butler  1997  Visual connections of the atypical diencephalic nucleus rostrolateralis in Pantodon buchholzi (Teleostei, Osteoglossomorpha). Cell Tiss. Res., 287: 91-99.

Saidel, William M. and Ann B. Butler  1997  An atypical diencephalic nucleus in actinopterygian fishes: visual connections and sporadic phylogenetic distribution.  Neurosci. Lett., 229: 13-16.

Hodos, William and Ann B. Butler  1997  Evolution of sensory pathways in vertebrates. Brain, Behav. Evol., 50: 189-197.

Butler, Ann B. and Zoltán Molnár  1998  Development and evolution in nervous systems: development and evolution of ideas.  Meeting Report. Trends in Neurosci., 21: 177-178.

Butler, Ann B.  1999a  Whence and whither cortex?  Meeting Report. Trends in Neurosci., 22: 332-334.

Butler, Ann B.  1999b  The Complexity of Sameness [Book review]: Homology (Novartis Foundation) [Symposium 222, Wiley Liss, New York].  Trends Evol. Ecol., 15: 39-40.

Butler, Ann B. 2000a  Chordate evolution and the origin of vertebrates: A new brain and a new head. Anatomical Record: New Anatomist, 261: 111-125.

Butler, Ann B.  2000b  Nervous system: Gross functional anatomy.  In: Handbook Of Laboratory Animals: Fish, ed. by G.K. Ostrander, Academic Press, San Diego, pp. 129-149.

Butler, Ann B.  2000c  Nervous system: Microscopic functional anatomy.  In: Handbook Of Laboratory Animals: Fish, ed. by G.K. Ostrander, Academic Press, San Diego, pp. 331-355.

Butler, Ann B.  2000d  Sensory system evolution at the origin of craniates.  Phil. Trans. Roy. Soc. Lond., 355: 1309-1313.

Butler, Ann B.  2000e  Topography and topology of the teleost telencephalon: a paradox resolved. Neurosci. Lett., 293: 95-98.

Butler, Ann B. and William M. Saidel  2000  Defining sameness: historical, biological, and generative homology.  BioEssays, 22: 846-853.

Butler, Ann B.  2001a  Brain evolution.  In: The Corsini Encyclopedia Of Psychology and Behavioral Science, Third Edition, Vol. 1 (ed. by W.E. Craighead and C. Nemeroff), John Wiley & Sons, Inc., New York, pp. 233-234.

Butler, Ann B.  2001b  Brain evolution and comparative neuroanatomy.  In: Encyclopedia Of Life Sciences, ed. by M. Ridley and P. Willmer, Macmillan Reference Ltd., Nature Publishing Group, London, 8 pp., www.els.net.

Hodos, William and Ann B. Butler  2001  Sensory system evolution in vertebrates.  In: Brain Evolution and Cognition (ed. by G. Roth and M.F. Wullimann), John Wiley & Sons, Inc. and Spektrum Akademischer Verlag, New York and Heidelberg, pp. 113-133.

Saidel, William M., Kathleen Marquez-Houston, and Ann B. Butler  2001  Identification of visual pallial telencephalon in the goldfish, Carassius auratus: a combined cytochrome oxidase and electrophysiological study. Brain Res, 919: 82-93.

Butler, Ann B.  2002a  Cranial nerves.  In: Encyclopedia Of the Human Brain, ed. by V.S. Ramachandran, Academic Press, San Diego, in press.

Butler, Ann B.  2002b   Homology.  In: Encyclopedia of Neuroscience (ed. by G. Adelman and B. Smith), Elsevier, New York, in press.

Butler, Ann B.  2002c  Homoplasy.  In: Encyclopedia of Neuroscience (ed. by G. Adelman and B. Smith), Elsevier, New York, in press.

Butler, A.B. and Zoltán Molnár  2002  Development and evolution of the collopallium in amniotes: a new hypothesis of field homology. Brain Res Bull, 57: 475-479.

Butler, Ann B., Zoltán Molnár, and Paul R. Manger 2002 Apparent absence of claustrum in monotremes: implications for forebrain evolution in amniotes. Brain Behav. Evol., 60: 230-240.

Molnár, Zoltán and Ann B. Butler  2002a  The corticostriatal junction: A crucial region for forebrain development and evolution. BioEssays, 24: 530-541.

Molnár, Zoltán and Ann B. Butler  2002b  Neuronal changes during forebrain evolution in amniotes: an evolutionary developmental perspective. In E.C. Azmitia, J. Defelipe, E.G. Jones, P. Rakic, and C.E. Ribak (eds.), Changing Views of Cajal’s Neuron, Progress in Brain Research, 136, pp. 21-38.

Butler, Ann B.  2003b  Sensory systems and brain evolution across the Bilateria: commonalities and constraints. In: Sensory Processing of the Aquatic Environment, Collin S, Marshall J, eds). Berlin: Springer-Verlag, pp. 375-388. 

The Avian Brain Nomenclature Forum [ Jarvis, E. D., Güntürkün, O., Bruce, L., Csillag, A., Karten, H., Kuenzel, W., Medina, L., Paxinos, G., Perkel, D. J., Shimizu, T., Striedter, G., Wild, J. M., Ball, G. F., Dugas-Ford, J., Durand, S. E., Hough, G. E., Husband, S., Kubikova, L., Lee, D. W., Mello, C. V., Powers, A., Siang, C., Smulders, T. V., Wada, K., White, S. A., Yamamoto, K., Yu, J., Reiner, A., and Butler, A. B.] 2005 Avian brains and a new understanding of vertebrate brain evolution. Nature Rev. Neurosci., 6: 151-159. 

Butler , Ann B., Paul R. Manger, Ingemar B. Lindahl, and Peter Århem 2005 Evolution of the neural basis of consciousness: a bird-mammal comparison. BioEssays, 27: 923-936.

Dunnett, S. B. (Editor-in-Chief) and Molnár, Z., Butler, A. B., ten Donkelaar, H. J., Medina, L., and Puelles, L. (Guest Editors) 2005 Evolution and Development of Nervous Systems, Proceedings of the 4 th European Conference on Comparative Neurobiology, April 15 – 17, 2004, St. John’s College, Oxford. Brain Research Bulletin, 66 (4-6), 579 pp.

Butler, Ann B. and Hodos, William 2005 Comparative Vertebrate Neuroanatomy: Evolution and Adaptation, 2nd Edition. John Wiley & Sons, Hoboken, NJ, 715 pp.  [This text is a comprehensive, comparative survey of neuroanatomy in all of the major radiations of vertebrates, in the context of a modern evolutionary perspective. The second edition has been extensively revised and updated.]

Butler, Ann B. 2006 The serial transformation hypothesis of vertebrate origins: comment on “The new head hypothesis revisited.” J. Exp. Zool. (Mol. Dev. Evol.), 306B 419-424..

Butler, Ann. B. and Rodney M. J. Cotterill 2006 Mammalian and avian neuroanatomy and the question of consciousness in birds. Biol. Bull., 211: 106-127.

Butler, Ann B. 2006 The Dual Elaboration Hypothesis of the Evolution of the Dorsal Thalamus. In L. A. Krubitzer and J. H. Kaas (eds.), Evolution of Nervous System in Mammals. Amsterdam: Elsevier, pp. 517-523.

Butler, A. B. 2007 The Triune Brain Concept of Paul MacLean: A Comparative, Evolutionary Perspective. In: New Encyclopedia of Neuroscience, L. R. Squire (ed.), Amsterdam: Elsevier, by invitation: in press.

Butler, A. B. 2007 Thalamus: Evolution in Vertebrates. In: New Encyclopedia of Neuroscience, L. R. Squire (ed.), Amsterdam: Elsevier, by invitation: in press.

Butler, A. B. 2007 Homology and Homoplasy. In: New Encyclopedia of Neuroscience, L. R. Squire (ed.), Amsterdam: Elsevier, by invitation: in press.

Butler, A. B. 2007 Evolution of Vertebrate Brains. In: New Encyclopedia of Neuroscience, L. R. Squire (ed.), Amsterdam: Elsevier, by invitation: in press.

Butler, Ann B., Field Editor for Brain Evolution section, in Binder, Marc D., Hirokawa, Nobutaka, and Windhorst, U. (Editors-in-Chief), Encyclopedic Reference of Neuroscience. Heidelberg: Springer-Verlag. In preparation. Publication planned for fall, 2007.

Last Update: 7/2007