Biopsychology Flashcards
What are the 2 parts of the nervous system?
The CNS (central nervous system) and PNS (peripheral nervous system)
What does the CNS consist of?
Brain and spinal cord
What does the PNS consist of?
The nerves outside the CNS
What is the role of the nervous system?
It relays messages from the brain to the rest of the body to give instructions
What does the PNS branch into?
The somatic nervous system and the autonomic nervous system
What does the autonomic system divide into?
The sympathtic and parasympathetic systems
Function of the brain
Involoved in mental processes and the overall ‘control’ of body functions
Function of the spinal cord
Responsible for passing messages from the brain to the rest of the body and then transmitting the messages back to the brain
Function of the somatic nervous system in the peripheral nervous system?
Passes messages to the brain from sensory organs and from the brain to the muscles. It controls voluntary or conscious actions
Function of the autonomic nervous system in the PNS?
Controls the body’s automatic or involuntary actions such as breathing and heart rate. The autonomous functions of the body need to happen quickly
Role of the sympathetic nervous system
- Acts as the body’s alert system
- Prepares body for fight or flight by:
- Increased heart rate
- Pupil dilation
- Reduced stomach activity
- Glucose released
- Relaxation of bronchi
Role of the parasympathetic nervous system
- ‘Rest and digest’ system because it relaxes the body’s and counteracts the effects of SNS activation
- Dcreases heart rate
- Increases stomach activity
- Pupil contraction
- Constriction of bronchi
- Gluose stored
What are neurons?
Cells in the nervous system that carry nerve impulses around the body.
Structure of sensory neuron
- Long dendrites
- Short axon
Sensory neuron function
Carry messages from sense organs to the brain to be turned into meaningful info
Motor neuron structure
- Short dendrites
- Long axon
Motor neuron function
Carry messages to muscles and glands in order to produce responses
Relay neuron structure
- Short dendrites
- Short axon
Relay neuron function
Allow communication between sensory neurons and motor neurons
Neuron labelled diagram
The process of synaptic transmission
- An electrical impulse reaches the axon terminal
- This stimulates the vesicles containing neurotransmitters to travel down to the terminal button.
- The vesicles then fuse with the outer membrane of terminal button and release neurotransmitters into the synpatic fluid.
- The neurotransmitters diffuse across synapse and reach a receptor on the adjacent neuron
- This stimulates the production of the electrical impulse in the new neuron
Synapse labelled diagram
What are inhibitory neurotransmitters
- Decrease the liklihood of neurotransmitters firing
- Calm down the brain and neurotransmitters
- e.g. body produces GABA after periods of stress to return to the body to a calm state
What are excitatory neurotransmitters?
- Increase the liklihood of a neuron firing
- They stimulate activity in the areas of the brain
- E.g. caffeine encourages dopamine to be released into the synapses which can make a person feel more alert and be able to focus for a short period of time
What is the endocrine system?
- Works alongside nervous system but at a much slower pace
- Involves hormones that are secreted from glands in the body
Function of endocrine system
- Glands produce chemicals (hormones) that are released into the blood. They travel around the body stimulating other organs and tissues into action.
How are the nervous and endocrine system linked?
By the hypothalamus that regulates body drives like sex, hunger and thirst
Function of hypothalamus in the endocrine system?
- Controls the pituatory gland by communicating to it what hormones need to be released from which glands.
Function of pituatory gland in endocrine system
- Referred to as the master gland as it stimulates other glands like the adrenal glands and gonads to produce their own hormones
Function of the fight or flight response
Helps us to react quickly and prepare our body to stand and fight or run away from the threat
- Believed to be a survival instinct as it happens in the unconscious
Fight or flight process
- Amygdala identifies a threat and the hypothalamus communicates the threat to the sympathetic nervous system to trigger a fast response
- Message travels down SNS to adrenal medulla which releases adrenaline into the blood
- Adrenaline in the blood triggers the fight or flight response
What is localisation?
The theory that specific areas the brain are associated with physical and psychological functions
