Biopsych Flashcards
Frontal Lobe (Cerebral Cortex)
Higher cognitive functioning, problem solving
Temporal Lobe (Cerebral Cortex)
Auditory info, memory
Occipital Lobe (Cerebral Cortex)
Visual info
Parietal Lobe (Cerebral Cortex)
Somatosensory cortex
Longitudinal Fissure
Cuts down the middle
Lateral Fissure
Cuts between temporal and frontal/parietal
Central Fissure
Cuts between frontal and parietal lobes
Basal Ganglia
Made up of the caudate and putamen
Thalamus
Receives sensory info from brain areas, projects info to cortex
Pons (Brain Stem)
Creates bulge on ventral surface
Medulla (Brain Stem)
Carries signals between brain and body
Reticular Formation (Brain Stem)
Occupies central core of brain stem
Cerebellum (Brain Stem)
Sensorimotor structure
Central Nervous System
Brain and spinal cord
Peripheral Nervous System
Somatic Nervous System: Voluntary control of body movements, afferent and efferent nerves
Autonomic Nervous System: Involuntary, internal organs (heart, stomach, lungs)
Endocrine Glands
Ductless glands that release hormones directly into the circulatory system
Gonads
Male testes, female ovaries
Androgens (Sex Steroids; Gonadal Hormones)
Testosterone
Estrogens
Estradiol
Pituitary Gland
Mastery gland, controlled by hypothalamus
Epinephrine
Adrenaline, found primarily through the entire body
Norepinephrine
Noradrenaline, primarily in the brain
Cortisol
Collective term for glucocorticoid hormones, prepares body for action, regulates blood pressure, muscle strength, etc
Oxytocin
“Love hormone,” plays a role in relationships, bonding, released via hypothalamus
Neural Plate
Forms 3 weeks after conception
Stem Cells
Make up neural plate, have unlimited capacity for self-renewal and are pluripotent (can develop into many classes of body cells)
Prenatal Development
Neural plate -> Neural groove -> Neural tube
Neural Tube
Forebrain, Midbrain, Hindbrain
Postnatal Development
Development dependent on myelination, dendritic branching, and synaptogenesis
Prefrontal cortex is the last to develop
Broca’s Aphasia
Normal comprehension of language but poorly articulated speech
Wernicke’s Aphasia
Speech is normal, but can’t comprehend language
6 Primary Facial Expressions
Anger, disgust, happiness, fear, sadness, surprise
Limbic System
Amygdala, mammillary body, hippocampus, fornix, cingulate gyrus, septum, olfactory bulb, hypothalamus
Facial Feedback Hypothesis
The idea that our facial expressions influence our emotional experience
Acute Stressors
Brief duration, improves immune function
Chronic Stressors
Long lasting, negatively affects immune system
Dopamine
Turns motivation into action, plays a big role in the control of body movements
Seratonin
Helps inhibit actions
Glutamate
Most prevalent excitatory neurotransmitter
GABA
Most prevalent inhibitory neurotransmitter
Small Molecule Neurotransmitters
Amino acids, monoamines, acetylcholine
Large Molecule Neurotransmitters
Neuropeptides
Parkinsons
Dopamine deficiency in basal ganglia, tremors in one side of the body, poor posture
Huntingtons
Mutation in the Huntington gene, slow loss of muscle control and presentation of psychiatric symptoms
Multiple Sclerosis
Attacks the myelin of axons in the CNS
Alzheimers
Neurofibrillary tangles, amyloid plaques, and neuron loss
Inferotemporal Cortex
Visual input
Amygdala
Emotion
Prefrontal Cortex
Working memory
Cerebellum
Learned sensorimotor skills
Striatum
Habit formation
fMRI
Functional magnetic resonance imaging, monitors magnetic pulses generated by oxygen in the blood to create a map. Measures BOLD (blood oxygen level dependent) signal
EEG
Electroencephalography, electrodes placed on the scalp that picks up electric currents generated by brain activity
TMS
Transcranial magnetic stimulation, uses magnetic fields to temporarily “knock out” parts of the brain
PET
Positron emission tomography, harmless radioactive tracers injected into the bloodstream to create a map of brain activity , monitors blood flow and is able to tell which areas are most active based on amount of blood needed
MEG
Magnetoencephalography, similar to EEG, but with magnetic currents as opposed to electric. Both are good at determining when the brain is active, but not specifically where
