Brainstem Functions

Question 1

Why is the brainstem important?

Answer 1

• Major ascending and descending pathways project there

- Nuclei of cranial nerves II-X and XII are there

Question 2

Reticular formation

Answer 2

a group of nuclei scattered throughout the brainstem involved in regulating motor functions

Question 3

RAS - reticular activating system

Answer 3

regulates the sleep-wake cycle; can be stimulated by visual and acoustics stimuli and mental activities

damage results in coma

Question 4

Two categories of motor output from the brainstem

Answer 4

somatic motor

parasympathetic

Question 5

Somatic motor output and reflexes

Answer 5

involved in voluntary and reflex eye movements
muscle control of chewing; keep tongue out of the way
controls cranial nerve VII (facial)
controls cranial nerve iX and X (swallowing and speech)

Question 6

Parasympathetic output and reflexes

Answer 6

Contriction of puil
Sneeze
Salivation
Gag reflex, cough reflex

Question 7

2 major areas of brain for speech

Answer 7

Wernicke’s Area > understand and formulate
coherent speech
Broca’s Area > initiates movements necessary for speech

Question 8

What structure connects the Wernicke and Broca area?

Answer 8

Arcuate (a bundle of neurons)

Question 9

What structures share sensory information between teh right and left hemispheres of the brain?

Answer 9

Commissures

Question 10

Which the largest comissure?

Answer 10

Corpus callosum

Question 11

Electroencephalogram (EEG)

Answer 11

a device that reocrds the brain’s electrical activity.

can’t detect individual action potential, but can detect simultaneous action potentials in large number neurons

Question 12

Different levels of consciousness

Answer 12

Alpha waves > awake, but in a quiet, restful state
Beta waves > occur during intense mental activity
Theta waves > usually occur in children
Delta waves > infants, sever brain disorders, or deep sleep

Question 13

Aphasia

Answer 13

Damage to language areas of cerebral cortex. Most common cause is a stroke

Question 14

Types of aphasia

Answer 14

Receptive aphasia > lesion to wernicek area, defective auditory & visual comprehsnio of language
Jargon aphasia > a person speak fluently but intelligibly lesion in tracts between wrnicke and broca
Conduction aphasia > poor repetition but good comprehension, lesion in tracts between wernicke and broca
Anomic aphasia > isolation of wernicke area from parietal or temporal areas (fluent but circular speech resulting in poor word finding ability
Expression aphasia > hesitant and distorted speech

Question 15

Amorphosythesis

Answer 15

inability to recogonize the right side of body, or even to identify simple objects

Question 16

Multiple sclerosis

Answer 16

Autoimmune disease that results in demyelination of neuron, making them “hard

Question 17

3 types of memory

Answer 17

Working memory > stored informatino required for the immediate performance of a task. Occurs in frontal cortext
Short term memory
Long term memory

Question 18

Short term memory

Answer 18

1) Stored from minutes to days
2) Susceptible to brain trauma
3) Requires long-term potentiation to enhance synaptic activity

Question 19

Long-term potentiation

Answer 19

facilitates transmission of action potentials

1) increase in number of glutamate receptors
2) requires calcium, which bones to glutamate receptors to the protein calmodulin

Question 20

Calmodulin dependent proten kinase II

Answer 20

Has to do with short-term memory formation somehow.

Question 21

Long term memory

Answer 21

Requires the prior formation of short-term memory.
Can last years to a lifetime.
More resistant to brain trauma

Question 22

Consolidation

Answer 22

The process of transferring short term memory to long term memory

A gradual process where new and strong synaptic connection occur

Repeating information and associating it with existing memories or emotion increase consolidation

Question 23

Strengthened synapses help long term memory form.

Answer 23

cAMP=responsive transcription factor. Important substance for initiate transcription.

Dendritic spines - increase the strength of the synapse

Question 24

Declarative memory

Answer 24

Explicit memory; retention of facts

Question 25

What parts of the brain are responsible for declarative memory?

Answer 25

Hippocampus and amygdala

Question 26

Procedural memory

Answer 26

implicit; reflexive memory. developmenet of skills or procedures

conditioned reflexes, too

Question 27

Where is procedural memory stored?

Answer 27

cerebellum and premotor area

Question 28

How are memories stored in the brain?

Answer 28

Memory engram > a network of neurons and their pattern of activity

Connected memories may be stored in different “pigeon holes”

Question 29

Limbic system - what does it include, and what does it influence?

Answer 29

includes > olfactory cortex, deep cortical regions, various nuclei
influences > emotions, visceral responses to emotions, motivation, mood, long term memory, and pain nd pleasure

Associated with reproduction and getting food and water

Question 30

Which sense is most associated with the limbic system? Why?

Answer 30

Olfactory

1) reminds us to get food
2) smell detects pheremones, attracting two animals together

Question 31

Cingulate gyrus

Answer 31

the satisfaction center of the brain; assocated with satisfaction after a meal or sex.

can be impacted by drugs that cause dependence

Gambling, kelptomania an overeating cause neural patterns in the cingulate gyrus that are similar to addiction

Question 32

Alzheimer disease

Answer 32

decrease in brain size from loss of neurons in cerebral cortex

include memory loss, intellectual deficiency, , short attentions span, moodiness

characterized by amyloid plages and nerofibillary tangles

Question 33

Cerebrovascual accident

Answer 33

Stroke > death of brain tissue due to disruption of vascular supply

Question 34

2 types of stroke

Answer 34

Hemorrhagic stroke > bleeding of arteries supplying brain tissue
Ischemic stroke > arties supplying brain tissue are blocked