Biopsychology & Neuroscience Flashcards
What is biopsychology?
Biopsychology is a branch of psychology that studies the interaction of biology, behaviour and mental processes.
What is neuroscience?
Neuroscience is the branch of studies on the structure and functioning of the brain.
What is the nervous system?
The nervous system is a network of neurons which carries information to and from all parts of the body.
What are neurons?
Neurons are the basic cell that makes up the nervous system.
What is a dendrite and what is its function?
A dendrite is the receiving or input portions of a neuron. They are usually short, narrow and highly branched structures and are attached to the cell body/soma. It receives messages from other cells or neurons.
What is a soma and what is its function?
The soma is the cell body of a neuron and houses the nucleus, it integrates signals received from multiple dendrites and passes it down the axon when it is sufficiently aroused.
What is an axon and what is its function?
A fibre attached to the soma, its function is to carry messages out to other cells or neurons.
What is an axon terminal and what is its function?
Several shorter fibres that have swellings or little knobs on the ends, located at the ends of an axon. It is responsible for communicating with other nerve cells.
What is a myelin sheath and what is its function?
Myelin sheath is an insulating layer that forms around nerves. It protects the neuron and also allows electrical impulses to transmit quickly and efficiently along the nerve cells.
What are a bundle of axons called in the central nervous system and peripheral nervous system?
Tracts in the CNS, nerves in the PNS.
What is an action potential?
Action potentials in neurons are also known as “nerve impulses” or “spikes”. A neuron that emits an action potential, or nerve impulse, is often said to “fire”.
When do neurons fire?
Neurons have a threshold for firing, when a stimulus strong enough gets past the threshold, it makes the neuron fire.
What are synaptic vesicles and what are their functions?
A synaptic vesicle is a sac-like structure which contains neurotransmitters. It releases neurotransmitters through the synaptic cleft/synaptic gap when a neuron is fired.
What is a neurotransmitter and where are they initially stored?
Neurotransmitters are chemicals found in the synaptic vesicles that, when released, have an effect on the next cell.
What is the function of a neurotransmitter?
When released from the presynaptic vesicle, it will have an effect on the next cell (postsynaptic neuron).
What is a synaptic gap?
A fluid-filled small gap between the axon terminal of the presynaptic neuron and the membrane of the postsynaptic neuron.
How does a postsynaptic cell receive the neurotransmitters?
Through receptor sites located on the postsynaptic membrane along the dendrite of the postsynaptic neuron, the sites are shaped to fit only certain neurotransmitters.
What are the 2 types of effects that can occur when a neuron receives a neurotransmitter?
Excitatory (causes neuron to turn on or fire) or inhibitory (causes neuron to turn off or prevent it from firing).
What are some important neurotransmitters? hint: 7
Acetylcholine - Excitatory or inhibitory; involved in arousal, attention, memory and controls muscle contractions
Norepinephrine - Mainly excitatory; involved in arousal and mood
Dopamine - Excitatory or inhibitory; involved in controls of movement and sensations of pleasure, anything pleasurable involves in a release of dopamine
Serotonin - Excitatory or inhibitory; involved in sleep, mood, anxiety & appetite, mood regulation is one of its major function, psychiatrist may recommend medication targeting serotonin for people with depression
Gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) - Major inhibitory neurotransmitter; involved in sleep and inhibits movement, alcohol mimics the activity of GABA
Glutamate - Major excitatory neurotransmitter; involved in learning, memory formation, nervous system development, and synaptic plasticity
Endorphins - Inhibitory neural regulators; involved in pain relief
What is an antagonist?
Chemical substances that block or reduce a cells’ response to the action of other chemicals or neurotransmitters.
What is an agonist?
Agonists are chemical substances that mimic or enhance the effects of a neurotransmitter (can be excitatory or inhibitory) on the receptor sites of the next cell, which can either increase or decrease activity of the cell.
What is the function of an antagonist drug?
An antagonist drug mimics the effect of natural chemicals or neurotransmitters, however it does not enhance cellular activity and instead blocks the receptor site receiving the chemical or neurotransmitter.
What is the function of an agonist drug?
An agonist drug mimics the effects of the natural chemicals or neurotransmitters, and fills up the receptor sites, leading to enhanced cellular activity.
What is reuptake and what occurs during the process?
Reuptake is the removal of neurotransmitter molecules from the synaptic cleft back into the synaptic vesicles of the presynaptic membrane that released them.
Which neurotransmitter is not taken back into the synaptic vesicles through the reuptake process and why?
Acetylcholine as it is responsible for muscle activity and muscle activity occurs rapidly and constantly.
How is the neurotransmitter acetylcholine broken down and cleared from the synaptic gap?
A specific enzyme is designed to break apart Acetylcholine and clear the synaptic gap very quickly through a process called enzymatic degradation.
What is the effect of cocaine in the reuptake process of dopamine? What are the effects of cocaine to the dopamine receptors?
Cocaine inhibits the reuptake of dopamine by the presynaptic’s neuron axon terminals.
This increases the availability of dopamine in the synapse and its effect on other neurons.
The increased availability of dopamine coupled with the recurrent stimulation of the dopamine receptors, results in a downregulation, or pruning of the receptors.
A downregulation is the process of reducing or suppressing a response to a stimulus.
The entire nervous system is comprised of which 2 main nervous systems?
Central nervous system (CNS) and peripheral nervous system (PNS).
What is the central nervous system made up of?
The brain and the spinal cord.
What are the basic functions of the brain in the central nervous system?
It interprets and stores information, and also makes decisions or sends commands out to the muscle or other parts of the body (organs, glands).
What is the spinal cord and what are its functions in the central nervous system?
The spinal cord is a long bundle of neurons connects the brain and the PNS, carrying messages between the brain and the body.
It is also houses neurons responsible for the spinal cord reflex.
What are the 3 kinds of neurons are located in the spinal cord?
Sensory or afferent neurons (Carry messages from the sense receptors to the CNS)
Motor or efferent neurons (Carry messages from the CNS towards muscles and glands)
Interneurons (Carry messages between sensory and motor neurons)
What is the peripheral nervous system and what is its main function?
The peripheral nervous system is made up of all the nerves and neurons not contained in the brain and spinal cord, it transmits information to and from the CNS.
What is the peripheral nervous system comprised of?
The somatic nervous system & the autonomic nervous system.
What is the somatic nervous system and what is its main function?
The somatic nervous system consists of nerves that control the voluntary muscles of the system.
It is also made up of the sensory pathway and the motor pathway.
What is the autonomic nervous system and what is its main function?
The autonomic nervous system has system functions that are mostly automatic, it consists of nerves that control the involuntary muscles, organs and glands.
What are the 2 divisions which the autonomic nervous systems are divided to?
The sympathetic division and the parasympathetic division.
What is the function of the sympathetic division in the autonomic nervous system?
It is considered the “fight-or-flight” system and prepares body to react to stressful events and bodily arousal, it can perform functions such as: dilate pupils, dilates bronchi, decreases salivation, increases heart rate, decreases digestive functions, inhibits bladder contraction.
What is the function of the parasympathetic division in the autonomic nervous system?
It is usually called the “eat-drink-and-rest” or “rest-and-digest” system.
It maintains body functions under normal conditions (not stressed, resting and relaxing) and saves energy after bodily arousal, or lack thereof.
It can perform functions such as: increases salivation, constricts bronchi, constricts pupils and stimulates tear glands, slows heart rate, allows bladder contraction, increases digestive functions.
What is the endocrine system and what is its function?
The endocrine system is a group of glands that secrete chemicals called hormones directly into the bloodstream, using the circulatory system to travel to the target organs and affecting behaviour and emotions by stimulating muscles, organs or other glands of the body.
Its function is to support and sustain the rest-and-digest & fight-or-flight responses that are initiated by the PNS.
What are the 6 endocrine glands part of the endocrine system?
Pituitary gland
Pineal gland
Thyroid gland
Pancreas
Gonads (sex glands, ovaries and testes)
Adrenal glands
What is the pituitary gland from the endocrine system connected to and what is its function?
It is connected to the hypothalamus. The hypothalamus controls the glandular system by influencing the pituitary gland, it is known as the “master gland” and it controls and influences all of the other endocrine glands.
What is the function of the pineal gland from the endocrine system?
It plays important role in several biological rhythms such as regulating circadian rhythm (sleep-wake cycle).
Secretes the hormone melatonin, which helps to track day length (and seasons).
What is the function of the thyroid gland from the endocrine system?
It secretes hormones such as thyroxin that regulate growth and metabolism.
Where is the pancreas from the endocrine system located and what is its function?
The pancreas is located behind the stomach in the upper left abdomen. It controls level of blood sugar by secreting insulin and glucagon.
Too little insulin results in diabetes (hyperglycaemia), too much insulin results in hypoglycaemia.
What are gonads in the endocrine system and what is its function?
The sex glands, includes the ovaries and testes. It secretes hormones that regulate sexual behaviour and reproduction.
Where are the adrenal glands in the endocrine system located and what are their functions?
Located on top of each kidney, releases epinephrine and norepinephrine, when people are under stress and aids in arousing the sympathetic division of the autonomic nervous system.
It also produces a type of hormones called corticoids (or steroids) that regulate salt intake and help initiate and control stress reactions.
What are the 3 primary divisions of the brain?
Forebrain, the midbrain, and the hindbrain.
What are the 4 parts of the hindbrain?
Medulla
Pons
Reticular formation
Cerebellum
What is a medulla, where is it located in the hindbrain and what is its function?
The medulla is a large swelling located at the top of the spinal cord. It is responsible for life-sustaining functions such as heartbeat, breathing, swallowing.
It also contains sensory nerves where it crosses over from the left and right sides, hence sensory information from the left side of the body goes over to the right side of the brain and vice versa.
What are pons, where are they located in the hindbrain and what are their functions?
Pons are larger swellings above the medulla, it bridges the cerebellum and upper section of the brain.
It consists of crossover motor nerves carrying messages from the brain to the body, coordinating movements of the left and right sides of the body.
It also influences sleep, dreaming and arousal.
What is a reticular formation, where is it located in the hindbrain and what is its function?
A reticular formation is a network of neurons running through the middle of the medulla and pons, the neurons are responsible for people’s general attention, alertness, awareness and arousal.
It also allows people to ignore constant, unchanging information and to be alert to changes in information.
A part called the reticular activating system, stimulates the upper part of the brain, keeping people awake and alert