BSCI 1: Brain Regions, Neurotransmitters Flashcards
1
Q
What are meninges?
A
A 3-layered sheath of connective tissue around the brain for protection
2
Q
What are the 3 layers of the meninges?
A
dura mater: directly connected to the skull
arachnoid mater: middle layer
pia mater: directly connected to the brain
3
Q
What are ependymal cells?
A
They line the ventricles of the brain and produce cerebrospinal fluid.
4
Q
The cerebrospinal fluid is produced by what cells?
A
The ependymal cells
5
Q
The brainstem consists of…
A
The midbrain and hindbrain
6
Q
What is the cerebral cortex?
A
The outer covering of the cerebral hemispheres, responsible for complex perceptual, cognitive, behavioral processes
7
Q
The forebrain consists of…
A
The cerebral cortex, posterior pituitary gland, pineal gland, basal ganglia, limbic system, thalamus, and hypothalamus
8
Q
The midbrain consists of…
A
The inferior and superior colliculi
9
Q
Where is the pituitary gland located?
A
Between the forebrain and midbrain, closer to the midbrain, but even more so to the hindbrain
10
Q
Midbrain
A
- receives sensory and motor information from the rest of the body
- associated with reflex responses triggered by visual or auditory stimuli
11
Q
Inferior colliculus
A
- located in the midbrain
- receives sensory information from auditory system
12
Q
Superior colliculus
A
- located in the midbrain
- receives sensory information from the visual system
13
Q
During prenatal development, the prosencephalon develops into… (2)
A
The telencephalon and diencephalon
14
Q
What is the prosencephalon?
A
- develops into the telencephalon and diencephalon
- overall develops into the forebrain
- part of brain that most affects the human behavior
15
Q
What is the telencephalon?
A
Forms the cerebral cortex, the basal ganglia, and the limbic system
16
Q
What is the diencephalon?
A
Forms into the thalamus, hypothalamus, the posterior pituitary gland, and the pineal gland
17
Q
The forebrain develops from what (during prenatal development)?
A
The prosencephalon (which develops into the telencephalon and diencephalon)
18
Q
What does the midbrain develop from (prenatal development)?
A
The mesencephalon
19
Q
What does the hindbrain develop from (prenatal development)?
A
The rhombencephalon
20
Q
What are the main functions of the hindbrain?
A
It controls balance, motor coordination, breathing, digestion, general arousal (sleep-wake) processes
21
Q
The hindbrain consists of…
A
The cerebellum, medula oblongata, reticular formation, pons
22
Q
What is the main function of the cerebellum?
A
Refined motor movements, maintenance of posture, balance, and coordination
23
Q
What is the main function of the medula oblongata?
A
Regulating heart rate, breathing, digestion, vital reflexes
24
Q
What is the main function of the reticular formation?
A
Arousal and alertness
25
What are the main functions of the pons?
Communication within the brain, specifically containing pathways between cortex and medulla
26
During prenatal development, the rhombencephalon develops into... (2)
The myencephalon and metencephalon
27
The myencephalon develops into...
The medula oblongata
28
The metencephalon develops into...
The pons and cerebellum
29
What does the thalamus do?
It functions as a sensory way station for all senses except scent
30
What are the main functions of the hypothalamus?
- homeostatic functions, such as metabolism, temperature regulation, water balance, driving of behavior
- release of tropic hormones into the anterior pituitary gland
- controls the posterior pituitary gland through neural circuits (down the pituitary stalk directly connecting hypothalamus to post. pituitary)
31
What are the sections of the hypothalamus?
Lateral, ventromedial, anterior
32
What is the function of the lateral hypothalamus?
It functions as the hunger center
33
What is the function of the ventromedial hypothalamus?
It functions as the satiety center
34
What are the functions of the anterior hypothalamus?
Sexual behavior, sleep, body temperature
35
What are the hypothalamic hormones released through the posterior pituitary gland?
Oxytocin and vasopressin
36
What is the main function of the pineal gland?
It is a key player in several biological rhythms, such as the circadian (through the secretion of melatonin from the pineal gland)
37
What are the main functions of the basal ganglia?
- to facilitate voluntary movement
| - relays information from cortex to the brain and spinal cord through the extrapyramidal system
38
What is the extrapyramidal system?
It consists of nuclei pairs in the basal ganglia that gathers information about body position and carries this information to the CNS
39
Give 3 examples of diseases linked to dysfunction in the basal ganglia.
- Parkinson's
- Schizophrenia
- Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder
40
What is the limbic system?
Part of the forebrain, consisting of structures (septal nuclei, amygdala, hippocampus) that loop around the central portion of the brain. It is primarily associated with memory and emotion.
41
The limbic system consists of...
The hippocampus, septal nuclei, amygdala, cingulate cortex (cingulate gyrus, corpus callosum), fornix
*some sources include hypothalamus and thalamus
42
Septal nuclei
Contains 1 of the primary pleasure centres of the brain
43
Amygdala
Has important roles in defensive or aggressive behavior, fear, and rage
44
Differentiate between anterograde and retrograde amnesia.
- anterograde amnesia: inability to form new memories
| - retrograde amnesia: loss of (old) memories
45
Anterior cingulate cortex
- involved in impulse-control, decision-making, and emotion
| - maintains connection with other parts of the limbic system
46
Differentiate between gyrus/gyri and sulcus/sulci.
- gyrus: brain bump (plural gyri)
| - sulcus: brain fold (plural sulci)
47
What is the cerebral cortex?
The outer surface of the brain that involves numerous gyri and sulci and the 4 lobes of the brain.
48
What are the 4 lobes of the cerebral cortex?
The frontal lobe, parietal lobe, temporal lobe, and occipital lobe
49
Frontal lobe
Responsible for executive functions and speech production
50
What are the components of the frontal lobe (5)?
The prefrontal cortex, the primary motor cortex, precentral gyrus, central sulcus, and Broca's region
51
Prefrontal cortex
An association centre that supervises and directs operations of other brain regions involved in alertness, perception, memory, emotion, impulse control, and planning
52
What is an association area?
It describes an area/structure of the brain whose function is to integrate information from multiple different parts of the brain, such as the prefrontal cortex.
53
Primary motor cortex
A projection area contained in the precentral gyrus that initiates voluntary motor movement
54
What is a projection area?
It describes an area in the cerebral cortex where sensory processing occurs after receiving input from a particular sense organ, e.g. primary motor cortex, somatosensory complex
55
What does the central sulcus do?
It divides the frontal and parietal lobes
56
What is the Broca's region and where is it located?
It is located in the frontal lobe within the dominant hemisphere and is important in speech production.
57
Parietal lobe
Responsible for processing touch, temperature, pain, and pressure
58
What are the components of the parietal lobe (2)?
The somatosensory complex and central region of the parietal
59
Somatosensory complex
It is a projection area located in the postcentral gyrus for all incoming signals for touch, temperature, pressure and pain.
60
What is the sensorimotor complex?
It comprises of the primary motor cortex and somatosensory complex as 1 unit
61
Central region of the parietal
Associated with spatial processing and manipulation
62
Occipital lobe
Responsible for visual processing
63
Visual cortex
The projection area for the occipital lobe; also called "striate cortex"
64
Temporal lobe
Responsible for hearing, memory processing, emotion, and language
65
The temporal lobe contains...
The auditory cortex and the Wernicke's area
66
Auditory cortex
Projection area for temporal lobe involved in processing of sound
67
What is the Wernicke's area and where is it located?
It is located in the dominant hemisphere and is responsible for language perception and comprehension.
68
Differentiate between the Broca's region and Wernicke's area.
Both are involved in language processing and both located in the dominant hemisphere;
- Broca's region: language production
- Wernicke's area: language perception and comprehension
69
The term "contralaterally" pertains to...
Opposite sides
70
The term "ipsilaterally" pertains to...
The same side
71
Differentiate between the dominant and non-dominant hemispheres of the brain.
*The dominant hemisphere is the left hemisphere in 90% of people (even including left-handed individuals). Handedness does not necessarily indicate which side is dominant.
- The dominant hemisphere is primarily responsible for analytical function, language, logic, and math.
- The non-dominant hemisphere is associated with intuition, creativity, music cognition, spatial processing, and simultaneous processing of pieces of information into holistic concepts (such as adding context to communication based on visual and auditory cues).
72
Differentiate between agonist and antagonist neurotransmitters.
- agonist: mimic the neurotransmitter and binds to same receptor as neurotransmitter
- antagonist: block the action of a neurotransmitter
73
What is the hypophyseal portal?
A system of blood vessels directly connecting the hypothalamus and pituitary gland.
74
Differentiate between the connections of the hypothalamus to the anterior and posterior pituitary gland.
The hypothalamus is connected directly to the posterior pituitary gland through the infundibular/pituitary stalk (or infundibulum) whereas is connects to the anterior pituitary through a series of blood vessels called the hypophyseal portal system.
75
What are the neurotransmitters in the human NS (9)?
- acetylcholine (ACh)
- catecholamines (3): epinephrine/adrenaline, norepinephrine/noradrenaline, dopamine
- serotonin
- gamma-butyric acid (GABA)
- glycine
- glutamate
- neuropeptides: endorphins
76
Differentiate between neurotransmitters and hormones.
- neurotransmitters are used by the NS, released into synapse or synaptic space
- hormones are used by the endocrine system, released through blood circulation into target tissues
77
What is the function of the ACh?
Acetylcholine
- CNS: associated with attention and arousal
- PNS: used to transmit nerve impulses to muscles
78
What are the 3 catecholamines?
Epinephrine/adrenaline, norepinephrine/noradrenaline, dopamine
79
Differentiate between epinephrine and norepinephrine.
- epinephrine: effect is systematic; main hormone secreted by adrenal medulla; has greater effect on Beta receptors than norepinephrine
- norepinephrine: effect is local; main neurotransmitter of the sympathetic nerves in cardiovascular system
80
What is the function of dopamine and where and where is there a lot of it found (normally)?
It has roles in movement and posture; much of it is found normally in the basal ganglia for smooth movements and maintenance of posture.
81
What is the function of serotonin?
Regulation of mood, sleeping, eating, dreaming
82
What is the function of GABA?
Acts as inhibitory postsynaptic potentials by hyperpolarizing the postsynaptic membrane to stabilize neural activity
83
What is the function of glycine (as a neurotransmitter)?
It is an inhibitory neurotransmitter in the CNS, acting by increasing the influx of chloride into the neuron to hyperpolarize the postsynaptic membrane
84
What is the function of glutamate (as a neurotransmitter)?
It is an excitatory neurotransmitter in the CNS
85
What are endorphins?
Natural painkillers produced in the brain that act similarly to morphine
86
Innate behavior
Genetically programmed behaviors as a result of evolution; seen in individuals regardless of environment or experience (e.g. eating/drinking for sustenance)
87
Learned behavior
Behaviors not based on heredity, but on environment and experience
88
Adaptive value
The extent to which a trait or behavior positively benefits a species by influencing evolutionary fitness
89
What are some examples of how researchers study the impact of genetics on behavior?
Family studies, twin studies, adoption studies
