Biopsychology: Plasticity And Functional Recovery After Trauma Flashcards
1
Q
What Is Plasticity?
A
- Describes the brain tendency to change and adapt as a result of experience and new learning.
- Infants have a high number of synaptic connections at 15,000 at age of 2-3 years which is twice as many as there are in adult brain.
- As we age, the connections rarely used are deleted and frequently used connections are strengthened (synaptic pruning).
0 At ant time we can have plasticity as a result if new learning and experience.
2
Q
Maguire Et Al Research On London Taxi Drivers.
A
- Maguire studied the brains of London taxi drivers and found that they had significantly more volume of grey matter in the posterior hippocampus than a matched control group.
- The posterior hippocampus is part of the brain associated with the development of spatial and navigational skills.
- As part of their training London taxi drivers take a test called ‘The Knowledge’ to asses their recall of the city streets and possible routes.
- This learning experience appears to alter the taxi drivers brain.
- The longer they had the job the more pronounced was the structural difference.
3
Q
Kuhn Et Al Research On Video Gamers.
A
- A control group was compared to a video game group who played Super Mario for at least 30 minutes a day for 2 months.
- Significant increase in the grey matter in numerous brains areas associated with spatial navigation, strategic planning, working model and motor performance (all involved in playing video games).
- Increase was not found in control group who did not play any video games.
4
Q
Meditation Research Into Monks.
A
- Meditation has shown to produce changes in the brain structure.
- Monks who meditated were compared to student volunteers who never mediated.
- Monks were found to have greater wave activation than the control while meditating.
- Gamma waves coordinate neuron activity within the brain.
- Demonstrates short term changes in the functions of the brain.
- However it was also found the monks had greater gamma waves activity before mediation therefore suggesting a more permanent change.
5
Q
Tang Et Al Research Into Meditation.
A
- Found that 4 weeks of mediation resulted in an increase in white matter (functions in affecting learning and brain function) in the anterior cingulate cortex which is a part of the brain which contributes to self-regulation and control.
6
Q
What Is Functional Recovery?
A
- Functional recovery is a form of plasticity that only occurs once there has been damage to the brain.
- The brain has the ability to redistribute/ transfer functions usually performed by damaged areas to undamaged areas.
- The brain learns to compensate for the lost function.
- Can occur quickly (spontaneous recovery) and then slow after several weeks or months which the individual may require rehabilitation therapy to further their recovery.
- The brain rewires and reorganises it self by forming new synaptic connections close to the area of the damage.
- Secondary neural pathways that aren’t normally able to carry out certain functions are activated to enable functioning to continue.
7
Q
Secondary Neural Pathways Process - Structural Changes In The Brain.
A
1) Axonal spouting: the growth of new nerve ending which connect with other undamaged nerve cells to form new neuronal pathways.
2) Reformation of blood vessels.
3) Recruitment of homologous (similar) areas on the opposite side of the brain to perform specific tasks.
8
Q
Factors Affecting Functional Recovery.
A
- How much they want to recover.
- How tired people are.
- How stressed people are.
- How much alcohol. drugs people are having.
- Age.
- Gender (women recover more quickly).
9
Q
Plasticity And Functional Recovery Evaluation: Strength - Practical Application.
A
- Following illness or injury, spontaneous recovery slows down, so forms of physical therapy may be required to maintain improvements in functioning.
- Techniques include movement therapy and electrical stimulation of the brain to counter deficits in motor or cognitive functioning.
- Understanding the processes involved in plasticity has contributed to the field of neurorehabilitation.
10
Q
Plasticity And Functional Recovery Evaluation: Animal Studies (CW).
A
- There is supporting research from animal studies.
- Hubel and Wiesel sewed the eye of a kitten shut and analysed brains cortical responses.
- It was found that the area of the visual cortex associated with the shut eye was not idle but processed information from the open eye.
- This shows that cortical remapping of this area of the brain has taken place.
- Although, some argue research like this may be unethical and question the ability to generalise the findings from cats to humans due to the complexity of human brains in comparison to felines.
11
Q
Plasticity And Functional Recovery Evaluation: Weakness - Phantom Limb Syndrome.
A
- Plasticity can have a maladaptive consequences.
- 60-80% of amputees develop phantom limb syndrome which is the continued experience of sensations in the missing limb as if it were still there.
- These sensations are unpleasant and painful due to cortical reorganisation in the somatosensory cortex that occurs as a result of limb loss.
12
Q
Plasticity And Functional Recovery Evaluation: Weakness - Age And Plasticity.
A
- Plasticity tends to reduce with age.
- The brain has greater propensity for reorganisation in childhood as it is constantly adapting to new experiences and learning.
- This suggests that those who are older and suffer brain trauma may need more additional support for functional recovery to take place.
13
Q
Plasticity And Functional Recovery Evaluation: Weakness - Individual Differences.
A
- There are individual differences in functional recovery.
- Schneider et al discovered that the more time brain injury patients had spent in education, which was taken as an indication of their ‘cognitive reserve,’ the greater their chances of a disability free recovery.
- This shows that educational attainment may influence how well the brain functionally adapts after injury.
