biopsych complete Flashcards
Central nervous system
Sub-system of the nervous system that consists of the brain and spinal cord
Peripheral nervous system
All parts of the nervous system that are outside the brain and spinal chord
Autonomic NS
Sub-division of the peripheral nervous system that controls involuntary responses like breathing and heart rate
Somatic NS
The part of the peripheral nervous system responsible for carrying sensory and motor information to and from the CNS
Sympathetic NS
A subdivision of the autonomic nervous system that activates nerves, glands and visceral muscles in times of stress or threat (fight or flight response)
Parasympathetic NS
A subdivision of the autonomic nervous system that calms the body after action and also retains the body functioning at is normal state (homeostasis)
Reflex
Action that is performed without conscious thought as a response to a stimulus (e.g. knee-jerk)
Sensory neuron
Carries nerve impulses from sensory receptors to the spinal-cord and the brain. Long dendrites, short axons
Relay neuron
Neurons that allow sensory and motor neurons to communicate with each other. Short dendrites and short axons. Also known as ‘interneuron’
Motor neuron
Carries impulses from the central nervous system to muscle/gland effectors. Short dendrites, long axons
Axon
A single long slender fibre that carries the nerve impulse away from the cell body
Axon terminal
Part of a neuron which releases the neurotransmitter into the synapse
Dendrite
Part of a neuron which transmits an electrical impulse TOWARDS the cell body
Cell body
Part of a neuron which contains the nucleus
Synapse
The small gap between two neurons across which neurotransmitters diffuse
Neurotransmitter
Chemical substances, e.g. dopamine, that play an important part in the workings of the nervous system by transmitting nerve impulses across a synapse
Excitatory neurotransmitter
Neurotransmitters that increase the likelihood that a nerve cell will produce an action potential, e.g. dopamine
Inhibitory neurotransmitter
Neurotransmitters that decrease the likelihood that a nerve cell will produce an action potential, e.g. serotonin
Summation
Combination of effects from the activity of two or more synapses onto a single neuron - the combination of excitation and inhibition to determine whether there is enough of a positive charge to reach an action potential
Receptor
A cell able to respond to external stimuli and transmit a signal to a sensory nerve. Also refers to the part of a neuron which receives the neurotransmitter
Endocrine system
A collection of organs that secrete hormones into the blood stream
Gland
A group of cells in the body that synthesizes substances (e.g. hormones) for release into the bloodstream
Hormone
The body’s chemical messengers, e.g. melatonin. They travel through the bloodstream, influencing many different processes (e.g. sleep)
Hypothalamus
Part of the brain that has a vital role in controlling many bodily functions including the release of hormones from the pituitary gland.
Fight or flight response
The way an animal (including humans) responds to stress as it becomes physiologically aroused to combat an aggressor or to run away
Adrenaline
Hormone/neurotransmitter that helps the body respond to a stressful situation by increasing heart rate and blood flow
Cortisol
“Stress hormone” - Hormone responsible for blood glucose regulation, immune functions, and anti-stress responses – production is increased by chronic stress
Adrenal Cortex
Part of a specific gland that produces cortisol as a response to stress
Adrenal Medulla
Part of a specific gland that releases adrenaline and noradrenaline in preparation for fight or flight response
Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (fMRI)
A technique for studying the brain. It works by detecting changes in blood oxygenation and flow that indicates increased neural activity
Electroencephalogram (EEG)
A method of studying the brain by recording changes in the electrical activity of the brain using electrodes attached to the scalp
Event-related potential (ERP)
A technique that takes EEG data and uses it to investigate cognitive processing of a specific event. It achieves this by taking multiple readings and averaging them in order to filter out brain activity that is not related to the stimulus appearance
Post-mortem examination
Way of studying the brains of people who have shown particular psychological abnormalities prior to their death in an attempt to establish the possible neurobiological cause for this behaviour
Temporal resolution
The extent to which a way of studying the brain is able to pinpoint the exact timing of the brain activity
Spatial resolution
The extent to which a way of studying the brain can identify the specific location of brain activity
Localisation
Refers to the belief that specific areas of the brain are associated with specific cognitive processes
Broca’s area
An area in the frontal lobe of the brain, usually in the left hemisphere, related to speech production
Wernicke’s area
An area in the temporal lobe of the brain important in the comprehension of language
Visual cortex
The part of the cerebral cortex that receives and processes sensory nerve impulses from the eyes
Auditory cortex
The part of the cerebral cortex (temporal lobe) processes information received through hearing - it receives signals from the ears regarding pitch and volume of sound
Motor cortex
A region of the brain responsible for the generation of voluntary motor movements
Somatosensory cortex
A region of the brain that processes input from sensory receptors in the body that are sensitive to touch
Equipotentiality
The ability for one part of the brain to do a different function, especially if the other area is damaged. Seems to disprove localisation theory
Hemispheric lateralisation
Refers to the belief that some mental processes in the brain are mainly specialised to either the left or the right hemisphere (studied by Sperry)
Corpus callosum
Nerve fibers that divides the cerebral cortex lobes into left and right hemispheres - it is cut in split-brain patients
Hemispherectomy
A procedure to remove one entire half of the brain - patients who receive this often recover all functions, disproving hemispheric lateralisation
Brain plasticity
Refers to the brain’s ability to modify its own structure and function as a result of experience
Functional recovery of the brain
Refers to the recovery of abilities and mental processes that have been compromised as a result of brain injury or disease
Bridging
The naturally-occurring brain process where new connections are formed between neurons as a result of experience or practice
Pruning
The destruction of synapses that are not being used - in order to improve the brain’s efficiency
Neurogenesis
Production of neurons through the division of non-neuronal cells.
Neuronal unmasking
Where ‘dormant’ synapses open connections to compensate for a damaged area of the brain - e.g. Patient JW
Stem cell therapy
The use of unspecialised cells which can become any other type of cell, to treat or prevent a disease or condition (e.g. bone marrow disease)
Circadian rhythms
A pattern of behaviour that occurs or recurs approximately every 24 hours and which is set and reset by environmental light levels (e.g. sleep-wake cycle)
Infradian rhythms
Rhythms that have a duration of over 24 hours and may be weekly, monthly or even annually (e.g. menstrual cycle)
Ultradian rhythms
Cycles that last less than 24 hours, such as the cycle of sleep stages that occur throughout the night
Endogenous pacemakers
Mechanisms within the body that govern the internal, biological bodily rhythms - our main example is the SCN
Exogenous zeitgebers
An environmental cue that helps to regulate the biological clock in an organism (e.g. light)
Suprachiasmatic nucleus
Tiny region of the brain (in the hypothalamus) - it is responsible for controlling circadian rhythms
Melatonin
A hormone secreted by the pineal gland in proportion to the amount of light received by the retina
Social cues
An exogenous zeitgeber that helps to regulate bodily rhythms - the presence and actions of others
Chronotherapeutics
Treating a patient according to time and their body clock - for instance, heart attack medications that activate during ‘dangerous’ periods such as early in the morning
Phototherapy
The use of sunlight, lamps, or lasers to treat Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD)
McClintock Effect
The observation that women who are exposed to the pheromones of other women tend to synchronise menstrual cycles
Temporal isolation study
Studies which remove the participant from any external time cues, for example by spending time in a cave without any clocks
Broca
Discovered the part of the brain responsible for the production of speech
Wernicke
Discovered the part of the brain responsible for the understanding of speech
Sperry
Tested hemispheric lateralisation by presenting stimuli to only one hemisphere of split brain patients
Turk (Patient JW)
Found a split-brain patient who was able to learn to produce speech from his right hemisphere
Maguire
Found that experience as a taxi driver in London was directly correlated with the size of a person’s anterior hippocampus, suggesting that the brain is plastic and can adapt due to training
Kuhn
Participants who were made to play Super Mario for 30 mins per day showed higher density of grey matter in key brain areas involved in spatial navigation, strategic planning, working memory and motor performance
Tajiri
Rats given stem cell therapy showed significantly more functional recovery after a brain lesion, compared to a control group
Siffre
Spent months living in caves and found that his body clock was roughly consistent, usually to approximately 25 hours
Morgan
Implanted the SCN of hamsters with a 20-hour circadian rhythm into newborn hamsters. The newborns had a 20-hour daily cycle
Dement & Kleitman
Found that participants woken during REM sleep had an 89% chance of remembering their dream, compared to only 7% who were woken during Non-REM sleep
McClintock
Women who received the sweat of a donor started to synchronise their menstrual cycle with the donor
