Brain Flashcards
Afferent and Efferent
Afferent - carries sensory information to the CNS
Efferent - Carries motor signals from the CNS to muscles and the heart
Central Nervous System
Includes the brain and spinal cord
Peripheral Nervous System
Located outside of the skull and spine
Serves to bring information into the CNS and carry signals out of it.
Parasympathetic and Sympathetic Division
Parasympathetic Division - activities occur when body is at rest
Sympathetic Division - involved in the stress response and prepares the body for action
They work together to maintain homeostasis
Directions in the Vertebrate
Neuraxis is an imagianry line ehich is drawn through the spinal card up to the brain
Ipsilateral - structures on the same side of the body
Contralateral - structures on the opposite side of the body
Movement of one side is controlled by the contralateral hemisphere of the brain
Horizontal - parallel to the ground
frontal (coronal) - front and back separated
Sagittal - separates left and right halves
Hindbrain
Medulla: Controls cardiovascular system, respiration, skeletal muscle tone
Pons: sleeps and arousal
Cerbellum: Co ordination
Midbrain
Tectum - Inferior colliculi forms part of aditory system
- Superior colliculi part of visual system
Tegmentum - Periaqueductual grey is pain
- reticular formation is sleep, arpusal, movement
- substanti nigra and red nucleus is movement
Forebrain
Thalamus - sensory information, visual, tactile information
- it recieves, processes, passes on and relays onto the next region
Hypothalumus - controls Autonomic Nervous System, onvolved i n behavious related to survival, regulates release of hormones from pituitary gland
Motivated behaviours - sleeping, eating and sex
Telencephalon - Longitudinal fissure - seprates right and left hemishpere
- Corpus callosum - largest hemisphere connecting tract
The limbic system
Amygdala Hipppcampus Cingulate cortex Fornix Septum Mammillary body
The Basal Ganglia
Caudate
Putamen
Globus pallidus
Pathology - Parkinsons disease is a progressive degenerative condition which affects movement. Occurs as a result of damage in the substantia nigra
Neurons
Specialised ceels involved in the transmission of electorchemical xsignals
many sizes and shapes
nerves are bundles of many neurons
action potential- - communication within a neuron is electrical
neurotransmitters - communication between neurons is chemical
Glial cells
Act like a glue
support neurones
anatomy of a neurone
Dendrites - never myelinated. Can be branced. Recieves input from other cells
Soma (cell body) - Nucleus, location cell chemical reactions (metabolism, mithochondria and protein sythesis)
Axon - long protection from cell. Carries impulses to Other neurones. May be myelinated, Myelin increases conduction speed
How do electirical impulses travel along neurones?
Neurones send messages electrochemicaly
Chemical in the body are electrically charged
Nerve cells are surrounded by semi permeable membrane which allows some of those chemical to pass through and blocking others
change from negative to positive charge
Synthesis and storage
Neurotransmitters are synthesises in the pre synaptic neuron
Neurotransmitters are then sorted within synaptic vesicles ready for release
