Biopsychology - 3) Neurons and Synaptic Transmission

Question 1

What do dendrites do?

Answer 1

Receive messages from other cells

Question 2

What is the cell body?

Answer 2

The cells life-support centre

Question 3

What does the axon do?

Answer 3

Passes messages away from the cell body to other neurons, muscles or glands

Question 4

What is the neural impulse?

Answer 4

The electrical signal travelling down the axon

Question 5

What does the myelin sheath do?

Answer 5

Covers the axon of some neurons and helps speed neural impulses

Question 6

What do the terminal branches of axon form?

Answer 6

Junctions with other cells

Question 7

What do sensory neurons do?

Answer 7

Carry nerve impulses from sensory receptors to the CNS

Question 8

Structure of sensory neurons

Answer 8

Long dendrites and short axons

Question 9

What do relay neurons do?

Answer 9

Carry information across spinal chord or the brain from sensory neurons to motor neurons

Question 10

Structure of relay neurons

Answer 10

Short dendrites and short axons

Question 11

What are motor neurons responsible for?

Answer 11

Directly or indirectly controlling muscles

Question 12

What do the motor neurons do?

Answer 12

Carry impulses from CNS to effector

Question 13

Structure of motor neurons

Answer 13

Short dendrites and long axons

Question 14

What do neurotransmitters allow?

Answer 14

The transfer of signalling messages between brain cells

Question 15

Where are neurotransmitters located?

Answer 15

In a part of the neuron called the axon terminal

Question 16

Where are neurotransmitters stored?

Answer 16

Within thin-walled sacs called synaptic vesicles

Question 17

What are neurotransmitters?

Answer 17

Molecules used by the nervous system to transmit messages between neurons or from neurons to muscles

Question 18

What happens in the synaptic cleft?

Answer 18

Communication between two neurons

Question 19

What are the two main neurotransmitters?

Answer 19

Serotonin and dopamine

Question 20

What are low levels of serotonin associated with?

Answer 20

Depression

Question 21

What can high levels of dopamine be found within people with?

Answer 21

Schizophrenia

Question 22

What is synaptic transmission?

Answer 22

The process by which one neuron communicates with another

Question 23

What results in not enough binding of neurotransmitters?

Answer 23

Too few or too many receptors

Question 24

What results in the brain being flooded with that neurotransmitter?

Answer 24

Enzymes being transported away either too much or too little

Question 25

What is excitation?

Answer 25

A neuron which increase likelihood that an excitatory signal is sent to the post-synaptic cell, making it more likely that the signal will ‘fire’

Question 26

What is inhibition?

Answer 26

A neuron which decreases likelihood of a neuron ‘firing’

Question 27

What is summation?

Answer 27

The sum total of excitatory and inhibitory neurotransmitters that bind to the receptor