AOS 1 - How Does Nervous System Enable Psychological Functioning

Question 1

Central Nervous System

Answer 1

Process information received from our internal and external environments and activate appropriate responses

Question 2

Brain

Answer 2

Processes information received through neural pathways from the body receives and analyses sensory info, controls all bodily functions

Question 3

Spinal Cord

Answer 3

Receives sensory info from the body (via PNS) and sends it to the brain for processing.
Receives motor info from the brain and sens it to the body (via PNS) to control muscles, glands, and organs.

Question 4

Peripheral Nervous System

Answer 4

Carries info to CNS from body’s muscles, organs, glands, and sensory info.
Carries info from the CNS to the body’s muscles, organs, and glands.

Question 5

PNS - Somatic Nervous System

Answer 5

Sensory function - Transmission of info to the brain (CNS) from sensory receptors located throughout the body

Motor function - Voluntary movement of muscles

Question 6

PNS - Autonomic Nervous System

Answer 6

Connects CNS to body’s main internal organs and glands and gives feedback to the brain about their activities

Question 7

ANS - Sympathetic Nervous System

Answer 7

Activates internal muscles, glands, and organs to prepare the body to deal with vigorous activity or a stressful/threatening situation

Question 8

ANS - Parasympathetic Nervous System

Answer 8

In times of minimal stress and absence of threats, maintains the internal body environment in a balanced state of normal functioning (homeostasis)

Question 9

Neurons

Answer 9

Individual nerve cells that are specialized to receive, process, and transmit info

Question 10

Sensory neuron - affarent

Answer 10

Receives and carries sensory info from both the external and internal environments and transmits to the CNS

Question 11

Motor Neuron - efferent

Answer 11

Carries messages from the CNS to cells in skeletal muscles, organs, and glands to stimulate activity.

Question 12

Interneuron

Answer 12

Sends messages between sensory and motor neurons within the CNS, relaying info from one to the other

Question 13

Dendrites

Answer 13

An extension of a neuron that detects and receives info from other neurons

Question 14

Axon

Answer 14

A single, tube-like extension that transmits neural info to other neurons (or cells in muscles and glands)

Question 15

Myelin Sheath

Answer 15

White, fatty substance (made up of certain types of glial cells) that surrounds and insulates the axon

Question 16

Axon terminals/buttons

Answer 16

Terminal buttons store and secrets neurotransmitters to carry the message to the next neuron

Question 17

Communication pathway

Answer 17

1. dendrites
2. soma
3. down the axon
   4, axon terminals then out the terminal buttons

Question 18

Neuron communication

Answer 18

Do so by sending neurotransmitters across the space between the terminal buttons of one neuron and the dendrites of another neuron SYNAPTIC GAP

Question 19

Neurotransmitters

Answer 19

A chemical substance produced by a neuron that carries a message to other neurons or cells in muscles, organs or other tissue

Question 20

Effects of neurotransmitters

Answer 20

Excitatory effect - when a neurotransmitter stimulates or activates a postsynaptic neuron to perform its functions - glutamate

Inhibitory effect - when a neurotransmitter blocks or prevents a postsynaptic neuron from firing - GABA

Question 21

Excitatory effect & Glutamate

Answer 21

The main excitatory neurotransmitter in CNS - accelerates brain activity
Glu enhances info transmission by making postsynaptic neurons more likely to fire

Question 22

Inhibitory effect & GABA

Answer 22

The primary inhibitory neurotransmitter in the CNS - slows down brain activity
Works throughout the brain to make postsynaptic neurons less likely to fire

Question 23

Balance of excitation and inhibition

Answer 23

Creates a critical state
Too much excitation - seizures
Too much inhibition - hampering neural computations that depend on complex signaling

Question 24

Agonists & Antagonists

Answer 24

Agonists almost mimic glutamate by stimulating receptors to fire more quickly

Antagonists almost mimic GABA because they stimulate receptors in neurons to slow/reduce firing

Question 25

Conscious responses

Answer 25

A conscious response to a sensory stimulus is a reaction that involves awareness

Question 26

Unconscious responses

Answer 26

An unconscious response to a sensory stimulus is a reaction that doesn’t involve awareness

Question 27

Spinal reflex

Answer 27

An unconscious, involuntary and automatically occurring response to certain stimuli without any involvement of the brain

Question 28

Spinal reflex - the process

Answer 28

1, sensory receptors respond to stimulation
2. sensory neurons carry the message along a sensory pathway to the spinal cord
3. Interneurons in the spinal cord relay the message to motor neurons
4. Motor neurons carry the message along a motor pathway to hand muscles causing a withdrawal reflex
5. While the spinal reflex occurs, neurons are also carrying the message further up the spinal cord to the brain
6. The message is received in the area of the brain that processes this type of sensory info and interprets pain

Question 29

Parkinson’s disease

Answer 29

Is a CNS progressive neurodegenerative disorder characterised by both motor and nonmotor symptoms

Question 30

Symptoms of Parkinson’s

Answer 30

• Tremors
• Muscles Rigidity
• Slowness of voluntary movements
• Postural instability

Question 31

How is Parkinson’s treated

Answer 31

• Medication that can be converted into dopamine by neurons
• Medication mimics the role of dopamine and stimulates the reception of dopamine by causing neurons to react as they would to dopamine.

Question 32

lock and key process

Answer 32

1. nts released by pre synaptic neuron
2. not searches for correctly shaped receptor site on dendrites of postsynaptic neuron
3. must precisely match in order to bind receptors like 2 keys in 2 locks
4. binding ‘unlocks’ postsynaptic neuron response so that nt can cause change to neuron resulting in an excitatory or inhibitory effect

Question 33

parkinson’s cause

Answer 33

Neurons in Substantia nigra produce dopamine
- if damaged dopamine levels for motor activity - gradually reduce as neurons die
- dopamine from the substantial nigra carries messages on how to control body movements to basal ganglia than to motor cortex in frontal loves
- primary motor cortex receives inadequate info due to impaired activation by dopamine - disrupted motor commands