C1 - Biology and Behavior Flashcards
Franz Gall (1758-1828)
Developed the doctrine of phrenology, which if a particular trait was well-developed, then the part of the brain responsible for the trait would expand
Was proven to be FALSE
Pierre Flourens (1794-1867)
First person to study functions of major sections of brain, done by extirpation I.E ablation where parts of brain are removed and behavior consequences are observed
His work led to the idea that certain parts of the brain had specific functions
William James (1842-1910)
Known as the founder of American psychology
Studied how the mind adapts, leading to functionalism in psychology
John Dewey (1859-1952)
Had an 1896 article thay criticized the concept of the reflex circuit
He believed that psychology should focus on the study of the organism as a whole
Paul Broca (1824-1880)
First person to demonstrate that specific functional impairments could be linked to specific brain lesions
Studied a person who was unable to speak, discovered it was due to a lesion in a specific area on the left side of the brain now called the Broca’s area after Paul Broca
Hermann van Hemholtz (1821-1894)
First person to measure the speed of a nerve impulse
Sir Charles Sherrington (1857-1952)
First person to infer the existence of synapses
Interneurons
Found between other neurons and are the most numerous of the 3 types of neurons
Interneurons are linked to what?
Reflexive behavior by sending autonomic signals to effector in reflex before getting to brain in a reflex arc
What nerves are included in the PNS?
31 pairs of spinal nerves, and 12 pairs of cranial nerves
What cranial nerves are structural outgrowths of the CNS but are still considered components of PNS?
CN1 (olfactory nerve) and CN2 (optic nerve)
Nervous system breaks up into what other systems?
Nervous system branches into CNS and PNS
CNS includes brain and spinal cord
PNS further branches into somatic and autonomic
Autonomic further branches into sympathetic and parasympathetic
Parasympathetic nervous system main role?
To conserve energy
Main neurotransmitter responsible for parasympathetic responses?
Acetylcholine
What cranial nerve constricts the pupils?
CN3 (oculomotor nerve)
What cranial nerves stimulate flow of saliva?
CN7 (facial nerve) and CN9 (glossopharyngeal nerve)
For the parasympathetic nervous system name as much as you can that the Vagus nerve does?
-Constricts bronchi
-Slows HR
-Inhibits release of glucose
-Stimulates bile release
-Inhibits adrenaline production
-Stimulates peristalsis and secretion
Pelvic splanchnic nerves function
-Contracts bladder
-Promotes erection of genitals
Sympathetic nervous system gets activated by what?
Stress
The sympathetic nervous system includes what nerves?
T1-L2 sometimes L3 depending on individual
List as many things you can that the sympathetic nervous system does
-Dilates pupils
-Inhibits saliva
-Relaxes bronchi
-Accelerated HR
-Stimulates glucose production and release
-Inhibits peristalsis and secretion
-inhibits bladder contraction
-secretion of adrenaline and noradrenaline
-stimulates orgasm
-stimulates sweating or piloerection
What are the meninges?
They are 3 layers of sheets that cover the brain, helping to protect it by keeping it anchored to skull
Consist of (dura, arachnoid, and pia Mater)
What do the meninges resorb?
Cerebrospinal fluid produced by specialized cells that line the ventricles
Of the 3 brain parts what developed first?
The hindbrain and midbrain developed first with the brainstem being the most primitive region, forebrain developed last
What is the most recent evolutionary developement of the forebrain?
The cerebral cortex which is the outer covering of the cerebral hemispheres
Name some structures of forebrain?
Cerebral cortex
Basal ganglia
Thalamus
Hypothalamus
Limbic system
Where are the superior and inferior colliculi?
Midbrain
Functions of cerebral cortex
Complex perceptual, cognitive, and behavioral processes
List some hindbrain structures
Cerebellum
Medulla oblongata
Reticular formation
Pons
Medulla oblongata functions
(HR, RR) vital reflexes, (vomiting and coughing)
Reticular formation function
Arousal and alertness
Pons main functions
Communicating with brain, breathing
During brain development the swellings prosencephalon, mesencephalon, and rhombencephalon develop into what other swellings
Prosencephalon - telencephalon, and diencephalon
Mesencephalon - stays as singular vesicle
Rhombencephalon - myelencephalon, and metencephalon
Myelencephalon, and metencephalon makes what specific structures?
Myelencephalon - medulla oblongata
Metencephalon - pons, and cerebellum
What does alcohol impair?
The cerebellum
Cerebellum function?
Helps maintain posture, balance, and coordinates body movements
Damage to cerebellum causes
Slurred speech, clumsiness, and loss of balance
Superior and inferior colliculus receive what sensory information?
Superior receives visual while inferior receives auditory sensory information
Inferior colliculus reflexive function?
Reactions to sudden loud noises
Forebrain is associated with what?
Complex perceptual, cognitive, and behavioral processes, also memory and emotion
Telencephalon makes what structures?
Basal ganglia
Cerebral cortex
Limbic system
Diencephalon makes what structures?
Thalamus
Hypothalamus
Posterior pituitary gland
Pineal gland
Neuropsychology
Refers to the study of function and behaviors associated with specific regions of brain
What is an EEG?
Electroencephalogram - involved placing several electrodes on the scalp, broad patterns of electrical activity can this be detected and recorded
What is rCBF?
Regional cerebral blood flow - it detects broad patterns of neural activity based on increased blood flow to different parts of brain
How is blood flow measured in rCBF?
A patient inhales a harmless radioactive gas; special device that can detect radioactivity in the bloodstream can then correlate radioactivity levels with regional cerebral blood flow
What is CT?
Computed tomography also known as (CAT) compute axial tomography scan
Takes multiple X-Rays of different angles and is processed by a computer to produce cross-sectional images of the tissue
What is PET?
Positron emission tomography scan - works with a radioactive sugar getting injected and absorbed in the body, it’s dispersion and uptake throughout target tissue is imaged
What is MRI?
Magnetic resonance imaging - magnetic fields that interact with hydrogen atoms are used to map out hydrogen dense regions of the body
What is fMRI?
Functional magnetic resonance imaging - it uses the same base as MRI, but specifically measures changes associated with blood flow
What is MS?
Multiple sclerosis - it is a demyelinating disease that results in a host of neurological and physiological symptoms
Thalamus function?
Relay station for incoming sensory information, includes all senses except smell
What are the 3 parts of the hypothalamus
Anterior, ventromedial, and lateral hypothalamus
Name as many functions of the hypothalamus
Also what are the 4 F’s
-homeostasis
-emotional experiences during high arousal states, aggressive behavior, and sexual behavior
-endocrine functions
-autonomic functions
4 F’s
-feeding
-fighting
-flighting
-functioning sexually
Lateral hypothalamus function
Triggers eating
Referred to as hunger center
Ventromedial hypothalamus function
Provides signals to stop eating
“Satiety center”
Anterior hypothalamus function
Controls sexual behavior
Posterior pituitary gland is the site of release of what hormones?
Oxytocin and ADH (antidiuretic hormone also know as vasopressin)
What does the pineal gland secrete?
Melatonin which regulates circadian rhythms
Does so by receiving direct signals from the retina for coordination with sunlight
Basal ganglia function
Coordinates muscle movement
What disease is associated with destruction of portions of the basal ganglia?
Parkinson’s disease
What is different about the way basal ganglia sends signals?
It does not function directly through motor neurons
Limbic system is primarily associated with what?
Emotion and memory
Septal nuclei contains what?
One of the primary pleasure centers in the brain
Mild stimulation = pleasure
Associated with addictive behavior
Amygdala functions
Defensive and aggressive behaviors including fear and rage
Hippocampus main function
Having a vital role in learning and memory processes, specifically helps consolidate information to form long term memories
How does hippocampus communicate with other portions of limbic system?
Through the fornix
How did people first discover a link between the connection of the hippocampus and memory?
A patient named Henry Molaison had his hippocampus removed to control epileptic seizures, his intelligence was largely intact but suffered a drastic irreversible loss of memory for any new information
Difference of anterograde amnesia and retrograde amnesia
Anterograde amnesia is not being able to establish new long term memories, but memories for events that occurred before the Brian injury usually remain intact
Retrograde amnesia refers to memory loss of events that transpired before brain injury
Anterior cingulate cortex function
Higher order cognitive processes
What else is the cerebral cortex called? And how is the cortex made up and what is the purpose?
Also called the neocortex, made up of numerous bumps and folds called gyri and sulci, helps to increase surface area
3 important parts of frontal lobe
Prefrontal cortex, motor cortex, Broca’s area
Prefrontal cortex function
Manages executive function by supervising and directing the operations of other brain regions
Prefrontal lesions can cause what?
More impulsive and generally being in less control behavior
Primary motor cortex location
Precentral gyrus, just in front of central sulcus that divides the frontal and parietal lobes
Primary motor cortex function
To initiate voluntary motor movements by sending neural impulses down the spinal cord to muscles
Broca’s area function
Speech production
Somatosensory cortex location
Postcentral gyrus just behind central sulcus
Somatosensory cortex receives what?
All incoming sensory signals for touch, pressure, temperature, and pain
The Occipital lobe is sometimes called what? And what is it’s function
Sometimes called striate nucleus, contains visual cortex for sight
2 main things temporal lobe contains
Auditory cortex, and wernickes area
Wernickes area function
Language reception, and comprehension
Temporal lobe functions
Memory, emotion, language, auditory
Opposite of body, same side of body is called what?
Opposite = contralaterally
Same side = ipsilaterally
What are neurotransmitters
Chemicals used by neurons to send signals to other neurons
A drug that mimics the action of neurotransmitters is called?
Agonist
A drug that blocks the action of neurotransmitters
Antagonist
Acetylcholine is linked to what in PNS and CNS?
In PNS it transmits nerve impulses to the muscles in CNS it is linked to attention and arousal
Loss of cholinergic neurons connecting with hippocampus is associated with what disease?
Alzheimer’s disease
Acetylcholine has what effects in muscles?
Both excitatory and inhibitory depending on type of receptor found in the cell
Acetylcholine within CNS has what types of effects usually?
Excitatory
The main 3 types of catecholamines are what?
Epinephrine, norepinephrine, and dopamine
What are monoamines? And list them
Neurotransmitters or hormones that have a single amino group
Epinephrine, norepinephrine, serotonin, dopamine, histamine
Catecholamines play important roles in what?
Experience of emotions
Epinephrine and norepinephrine involved in what?
Controlling alertness and wakefulness, also fight or flight response
Main difference between norepinephrine and epinephrine?
Epinephrine acts more systemically while norepinephrine is more locally
Low levels of norepinephrine and high levels are linked to what?
High = mania and anxiety
Low= depression
Dopamine plays an important role in what?
Movement and posture
The basal ganglia has high concentrations of what?
Dopamine
What does the dopamine hypothesis of schizophrenia say?
That delusions, hallucinations, and agitation associated with schizophrenia arise from either too much dopamine or over sensitivity to dopamine in brain
Parkinson’s is associated with loss of what?
dopaminergic neurons in the basal ganglia
Antipsychotic medications used for schizophrenia do what? And what are the main side effects
They block dopamine, Main side effects are motor disturbances “extrapyramidal symptoms”
What is the main drug to treat Parkinson’s and what does it do?
What could an overdose of the drug cause?
L-DOPA, it is used to increase dopamine in the brain
An overdose of L-DOPA can lead to psychotic symptoms similar to schizophrenia
Serotonin behavioral functions
Regulate mood, sleep, eating, dreaming
Oversupply and undersuply of serotonin cause what?
Oversupply = mania
Undersupply = depression
What is GABA? What does it do?
Gamma-aminobutyric acid produces inhibitory postsynaptic potentials, exerts its effects by hyperpolarizing the postsynaptic membrane
What is Glycine and what does it do in CNS?
Is one of the amino acids, served as an inhibitory neurotransmitter in CNS by increasing chloride influx into neuron
How is GABA and Glycine similar?
They both hyperpolarize postsynaptic membranes
Known as brain “stabilizers”
What is glutamate and it’s function?
One of the amino acids that has excitatory effects
How are neuropeptides/neuromodulators different than neurotransmitters
They have relatively slow and longer effects on the postsynaptic cell than neurotransmitters
What are endorphins? And what is another neurotransmitter very similar to it?
Endorphins are natural pain killers produced by the brain, similar to enkephalins
They both have similar actions to morphine or other opioids in the body
What does the endocrine system use?
Chemical messengers called hormones that travel to their target destinations through the bloodstream
What does the hypothalamus link?
The endocrine and nervous system
How does the hypothalamus control the pituitary gland?
Through endocrine release of hormones into the hypophyseal portal system that directly connects the hypothalamus and the pituitary gland
Pituitary gland and adrenal glands locations?
Pituitary gland is at the base of the brain while the adrenal glands are on top of the kidneys
Parts of the adrenal glands and what they make?
2 main parts, the adrenal cortex which produces many hormones called corticosteroids, including the stress hormone cortisol, also contributes to sexual functioning by producing sex hormones such as estrogen and testosterone
and the adrenal medulla which releases epinephrine and norepinephrine
What are the gonads?
Sex glands of the body- ovaries in females, testes in males
What does sex hormones cause?
Increased libido, also higher levels of testosterone increases aggressive behavior
Innate behaviors vs learned behaviors
Innate behavior - genetically programmed as a result of evolution and is seen in all individuals regardless of environment or experiences
Learned behaviors - not based on heredity but on experiences and environment
What is Adaptive value
The extent to which a trait or behavior positively benefits a species leading to adaption through natural selection
Nature vs nurture
Nature - is the influence of inheritable characteristics on behavior
Nurture - refers to the influence of environment and physical surroundings on behavior
List the 3 research methods used to determine the degree of genetic influence on behavior
Family studies
Twin studies
Adoption studies
What does family studies rely on?
The fact that genetically related individuals are more similar genotypically than unrelated individuals
How does family studies compare rates of a given trait? Also how are they limited?
They compare rates of a given trait among family members to rates of that trait among unrelated individuals
Family studies are limited due to families sharing both genetics and environment
What are DZ and MZ twins?
DZ twins = dizygotic twins; fraternal twins sharing approximately 50% of their genes
MZ twins = monozygotic twins; identical twins sharing 100% of their genes
How do twin studies work?
Comparing concordance rates for a trait between MZ and DZ twins
The assumption is that MZ and DZ twins share the same environment, thus the difference between the two would be hereditary factors
What is concordance rates?
The likelihood that both twins exhibit the same trait
How can twin studies also measure environmental effects?
By comparing traits in twins raised together be twins raises apart
How do adoption studies work?
Comparing the similarities between biological relatives and the child who was adopted to similarities between adoptive relatives and the child
Specific periods in development where children are particularly susceptible to environmental factors is called…
Critical periods
Development of nervous system starts with what?
Neuralation (3-4weeks)
When does neuralation occur?
When the ectoderm overlying the notochord begins to furrow, forming a neural groove surrounded by 2 neural folds
Cells at the leading edge of the neural fold are called what? And what does it end up forming?
The neural crest, it ends up forming dorsal root ganglia, melanocytes, calcitonin producing cells of thyroid
The remaining furrow closes to form what? And what does it end up forming?
The neural tube, ends up forming the CNS
The neural tube has what 2 plates and what do they differentiate into?
The alar plate which differentiates into sensory neurons and the basal plate which differentiates into motor neurons
Fetus is attached to the uterine wall and placenta by what?
The umbilical cord
What does the placenta do?
Transmits food, water, and oxygen to fetus while returning water, waste to mother
What is known as the most infamous drug given to pregnant mothers that caused problems to babies? Describe as much as you can about it
Thalidomide, it was prescribed in late 50s to early 60s to reduce morning sickness. Tragically, it was later discovered that thalidomide had severe teratogenic effects often leading to mothers giving birth to babies with missing and malformed limbs and defects of the heart, eyes, ears, digestive tract, and kidneys
Pregnant mothers taking antiepileptic medications are associated with what?
Neural tube defects, in which the neural tube fails to close completely, leads to malformations like spina bifida or anencephaly
List the main environmental factors or exposures that may affect maturation?
Maternal malnutrition specifically protein deficiency, maternal narcotic addiction, cigarettes smoking, daily use of alcohol, exposure to X-Rays
What is a reflex
A behavior that occurs in response to a given stimulus without higher cognitive input (brain)
What are primitive reflexes
Reflexes that infants have but disappear with age in a healthy individual
Explain the primitive reflex for breast feeding
When an object is placed in front of the mouth of an infant it will begin sucking and swallowing
Why do physicians compare the point in time at which each of an infants primitive reflexes disappear relative to the established norms?
It is a good way of seeing whether neurological development is taking place in a normal fashion
What is the Moro reflex? How can it be looked at for neurological development?
It is an infants reaction to an abrupt sound or movement by throwing back his or her head, extending arms and legs out and crying, then slowly pulls the arms and legs back in
This reflex usually disappears after 4 months, continuation at one year is a strong indicator of developmental difficulties
What is the basinski reflex?
When the infants toes are spread apart automatically when the sole of the foot is stimulated
What is the grasping reflex?
When the infant closes their fingers around an object when played in hand
What are the two categories of motor skills? Describe them
Gross motor skills - incorporate movement from large muscle groups and the whole body motion
Fine motor skills - involve the smaller muscles of fingers, toes? And eyes providing more specific and delicate movements
What are the trends for motor skill development in infants?
Gross motor skills progress in head to toe
Children first develop the ability to lift head, then stabilize the trunk, then walk
Motor skills are developed at the core prior to extremities
