Biological Basis of Behaviour Flashcards
What are the two communication systems?
The endocrine and nervous system
What does the endocrine system consist of? Give some examples.
Hormones and glands
Ex. Pituitary, thyroid, adrenal, pancreas, gonads
What does the nervous system consist of?
Brain, neurons, and neurotransmitters
What are the three broad sections of the brain?
Hindbrain, midbrain, forebrain
What makes up the reptilian brain? What functions are done here?
Hind brain and midbrain, controls reflexive responses and arousal
What makes up the old mammalian brain? What functions are controlled here?
Hypothalamus and limbic system, emotions and learning
What makes up the new mammalian brain? What functions are controlled here?
Cerebrum, capacity for complex thoufht
What is the central nervous system?
Brain and spinal cord
What does the hypothalamus regulate?
Basic biological drives related to survival
Ex. Hunger, thirst, sex, body temperature
What does the limbic system control? What does it consist of?
Emotion, memory, motivation
Consists of the hippocampus, amygdala, and pleasure centers
What part of the limbic system controls each function?
Hippocampus- memory
Amygdala- emotion
Pleasure centers- motivation
What is the cortex?
Thin outer layer of the cerebrum
What is the cortex responsible for?
Higher processes in the human brain, memory, thinking, learning, reasoning, problem solving, and consciousness
Why does our brain have grooves?
To increase surface area for neural connections
What are the four lobes of the cerebrum and their general location?
Occipital (back of head), parietal (top back of head), temporal (above ears), frontal (front of head)
What is the occipital lobe responsible for?
Visual perception, including colour, form, and motion
What is the parietal lobe responsible for?
Processing somatosensory information from the body including touch, pain, temperature, and limb position
What is the temporal lobe responsible for?
Processing auditory information and the encoding of memory
What is the frontal lobe responsible for?
Consciousness, higher level executive function, also contains prefrontal cortex which is where executive function takes place, also contains primary motor cortex
What is the longitudinal fissure?
The groove which runs down the center of the brain and separates the two hemispheres
Are the right and left brain symmetrical?
No
What does the corpus callosum do?
It bridges the two hemispheres and connects them
What is the left brain responsible for?
Analytic thought, logic, reading, writing, science, math, linear
What is the right brain responsible for?
Holistic thought, intuition, creativity, art, music, spatial, non-rational
What is the Broca’s area responsible for and where is it located?
In talking and speech production and it is in the left hemisphere of the brain
What is Wernicke’s area involved in and where is it?
Listening and language comprehension, located in left hemisphere of brain
Why can someone understand a language but not speak it?
Speech production and listening processing and in two different areas of the brain
What is the peripheral nervous system?
All the nerves extending out of the spinal cord
What is the somatic nervous system? What is it responsible for?
Made up of nerves connecting to voluntary skeletal muscles and sensory receptors
Voluntary movements
What is the autonomic nervous system? What is it responsible for?
Made up of nerves that connect to the heart, blood vessels, smooth muscles, and gland
Involuntary movements
Why is chronic stress a health issue?
Because the autonomic system is being activated chronically or abnormally
What is the sympathetic division focused on?
Mobilizing the body’s resources for emergencies
How does the sympathetic division affect the body?
Dilated pupils, dry mouth, increased breathing and heart rate, decreased digestion, secretion of adrenal hormones, increased sweating, goosebumps, relaxed bladder
What is the parasympathetic division focused on?
Conserving the body’s resources
How does the parasympathetic division affect the body?
Constricted pupils, stimulated salivary glands, decreased breathing and heart rate, increased digestion, contracted bladder
Which neurotransmitter is invoked in the experience of anxiety?
GABA
Which neuronal structure is compared to branches on a tree?
Dendrites
What are the two types of cells in the brain?
Neurons and glial cells
What are neurons?
Cells in the nervous system that receive, integrate, and transmit information
What are glial cells?
Cells found throughout the nervous system that provide different kinds of support for neurons
What kind of support do glial cells provide for neurons?
Nutrition, healing, protection, physical support, and can remove debris and devour dead or damaged cells
What do glial cells form/produce?
Cerebrospinal fluid, blood brain barrier, and brains immune system
What is cerebrospinal fluid?
Colourless fluid that surrounds the brain and spinal cord and provides cushioning
What does the blood brain barrier do?
Prevents foreign materials like viruses and drugs from entering the brain
What may the deterioration of glial cells lead to?
Cognitive impairment seen in schizophrenia and some forms of depressive disorder, and Alzheimer’s
What is a synapse?
Junction between neurons where information is transmitted from one neuron to another
What features do neurons share?
Cell membrane, cell body, dendrites, axon, axon terminal
What is myelin sheath? What is it derived from?
Insulation that wraps around axons that have a high fat concentration
Derived from specialized glial cells
What is the advantages of myelin sheath?
Signals transmit faster, more efficient because they only have to maintain charge on unmyelinated parts
How do neurons primarily communicate with each other?
Synaptic transmission
What is the neuron before and after a synapse called?
Presynaptic neuron and postsynaptic neuron
What’s a synapse?
Site of transmission between two neurons or a neuron and gland/muscle
What is the first step of synaptic transmission? What happens during that step?
Synthesis
Chemicals called neurotransmitters are made
What is the second step of synaptic transmission? What happens during that step?
Transportation and storage
Neurotransmitters are sent from cell body to axon terminal where they are stored in synaptic vesicles
What is the third step of synaptic transmission? What happens during that step?
Release
When action potential reaches axon terminal the synaptic vesicles fuses with membrane and releases neurotransmitter into synapse
What is the fourth step of synaptic transmission? What happens during that step?
Binding
Neurotransmitters cross the synapse and bind to receptors in the membrane after synapse
What is the fifth step of synaptic transmission? What happens during that step?
Deactivation
Only one kind of neurotransmitter can’t be restored by enzyme in synapse which prevents the neurotransmitter from continuously affecting the postsynaptic cell
What is the sixth step of synaptic transmission? What happens during that step?
Autoreceptor activation
Some neurotransmitters bind to receptors of neurons that release them called autoreceptors, this regulates synthesis and release
What is the seventh step of synaptic transmission? What happens during that step?
Reuptake
Excess neurotransmitters are brought back to presynaptic region of cell
What is the eighth step of synaptic transmission? What happens during that step?
Degradation
Enzymes in presynaptic region break down excess neurotransmitters
What common properties do neurotransmitters share?
Synthesized in neuron
Stored in synaptic terminals
Released when neuron has action potential
Deactivated or removed they complete their task
Neurotransmitters are either?
Inhibitory or excitatory
Acetylcholine is the only transmitter between?
Motor neurons and voluntary muscles
What are some characteristics and relations to behaviour of acetylcholine?
Released by motor neurons controlling skeletal muscles
Contributes to regulation of attention, arousal, and memory
Some ACh receptors can be stimulated by nicotine
What disorder is associated with the dysregulation of ACh?
Alzheimer’s
What are the characteristics and relations to behaviour of dopamine?
Contributes to control of voluntary movement
Cocaine and amphetamines elevate activity at DA synapses
Dopamine circuits are characterised as reward pathways
What disorders are associated with dopamine?
Parkinson’s, schizophrenic disorders, addictive disorders
What are the characteristics and relations to behaviour of norepinephrine?
Contributes to regulation of mood and arousal
Cocaine and amphetamines elevate activity at NE synapses
What disorders are associated with norepinephrine?
Depressive disorders
What are the characteristics and relations to behaviour of serotonin?
Involved in regulation of sleep and wakefulness, eating, aggression
Prozac and similar antidepressant drugs affect serotonin circuut
What disorders are associated with serotonin?
Depressive disorders, obsessive compulsive disorders, eating disorders
What are the characteristics and relations to behaviour of GABA?
Serve as widely distributed inhibitory transmitter
Contributes to regulation of anxiety, sleep, arousal
Valium and similar antianxiety drugs work at GABA synapses
What disorders are associated with GABA?
Anxiety disorders
What are the characteristics and relations to behaviour of endorphins?
Resemble opiates in structure and effects
Play role in pain relief and stress response
Contribute to regulation of eating behaviour
What are afferent nerves?
Cary information toward the CNS from PNS
What are efferent nerves?
Carry information outward from CNS to PNS
What is the central nervous system protected by?
Meninges, layers of membranes that protect brain and spinal cord
What are the hollow cavities in the brain that are filled with cerebrospinal fluid called?
Ventricles
What does the hindbrain include?
Cerebellum, medulla, and pons
What is the medulla responsible for?
Unconscious but vital functions
What is pons responsible for?
Connecting brainstem to cerebellum, sleep and arousal
What is the cerebellum?
Large folded structure next to brainstem
Coordinating movement and balance
What is the midbrain?
Segment of brainstem located between hindbrain and forebrain
What is the forebrain?
Largest and most complex region of brain, made up of thalamus, hypothalamus, limbic system, and cerebrum
What is the thalamus?
Structure that all sensory information except smell must pass through to get to cerebral cortex
What is the limbic system? What does it include?
Loosely connected network located roughly along the border between cerebral cortex and depose subcortical areas
Parts of thalamus and hypothalamus, hippocampus, and amygdala
What are mirror neurons?
Neurons that are activated by performing an action or by seeing another animal perform the same action
Where do humans have mirror neurons?
Frontal and parietal lobes
What is brain plasticity?
The brains ability to change structure and function
What stimulates brain plasticity? What does this plasticity include?
Experience
Changes in dendrite length, synapse formation, altered metabolic
What is neurogenesis?
The formation of new neurons
What does the pituitary gland do?
Releases a variety of hormones that are distributed throughout body, stimulating other endocrine glands
