Ch 12 - Central Nervous System

Question 1

Regions of the brain

Answer 1

1) Cerebral hemispheres
2) Diencephalon
3) Brain Stem
4) Cerebellum

Question 2

Anatomy/Physiology of Gray matter

Answer 2

Contains dendrites, cell bodies, & axon terminals
function: all synapses found in gray matter

Question 3

Anatomy/Physiology of White matter

Answer 3

Contains myelinated axons, mostly in fiber tracts
function: passes “messages” between different areas of gray matter

Question 4

Distribution of Gray Matter and White Matter in the Brain

Answer 4

Gray matter is peripheral, white matter is central

Outer layer of gray matter is called the cerebral cortex

Question 5

Distribution of Gray Matter and White Matter in the Brain Stem

Answer 5

Scattered gray matter found within white matter

Question 6

Distribution of Gray Matter and White Matter in the Spinal Cord

Answer 6

Gray matter in butterfly pattern surrounded by white matter

Central canal found at the center of gray matter

Question 7

Hollow chambers found in the brain that are filled with CSF and lined with ependymal cells

Answer 7

Ventricles of the brain (4) - all continuous

Question 8

4 Ventricles of the Brain

Answer 8

• Two Lateral Ventricles - look like rams horns in cerebral hemispheres
• Third Ventricle - found in diencephalon (center of brain, thin, looks like skull laterally
• Fourth Ventricle - found in hindbrain, connected to third ventricle via cerebral aqueduct, continuous with central canal of spinal cord

Question 9

Ridges and valleys of Cerebral hemispheres

Answer 9

• Gyri - ridges of cerebral hemispheres
• Sulci - shallow grooves

Question 10

What brain fissure separates the left and right hemispheres

Answer 10

Longitudinal fissure

Question 11

What brain fissure separates the cerebral hemispheres from the cerebellum

Answer 11

Transverse cerebral fissure

Question 12

Sulci that separate brain lobes

Answer 12

• Central Sulcus - separates frontal lobe and parietal lobe
• Parieto-occipital sulcus - separates the occipital lobe from the parietal lobe
• Lateral Sulcus - separates the temporal lobe from the fronal & parietal lobes (the insula is deep to the lateral sulcus)

Question 13

Part of the brain that provides self-awareness, sensation, communication, memory, understanding/learning, and initiation of voluntary movement

Answer 13

Cerebral cortex

The hemispheres of the cerebral cortex are contralateral!!

Question 14

Functional Areas of the Cerebral Cortex

Answer 14

1) Motor Areas: control voluntary movement
2) Sensory areas: conscious awareness of sensations
3) Association areas: integrate diverse information

Question 16

Do each hemispheres do the same thing on each side, but for opposite sides of the body?

Answer 16

No!
Ex. Broca’s area - controls speech, usually found in only left hemispheres

Question 17

Motor Areas of the Cerebral Cortex

Answer 17

1) Primary motor cortex - Allows for conscious control of skilled/precise voluntary movements
2) Premotor cortex
3) Broca’s area
4) Frontal eye field

Ordered from parieto-occipital sulcus anteriorly:
1) Primary motor cortex
2) Premotor cortex
3) Broca’s area & Frontal eye field
(broca’s area is inferior, extends further anteriorly)

Question 18

Large neurons found in primary motor cortex

Answer 18

Pyramidal Cells - axons of these neurons travel to spinal cord in corticospinal tracts, synapsing with motor neurons

Question 19

Remember the Motor Homunculus!!!

Answer 19

https://brightspace.binghamton.edu/d2l/le/content/348464/viewContent/1249091/View

Question 20

Function of Premotor Cortex

Answer 20

1) Helps plan movements by selecting and sequencing basic motor movements into complex tasks - communicating with primary motor cortex
2) Controls voluntary actions that depend on sensory feedback

Question 21

Part of the body that controls the motor movements involved in speech

Answer 21

Broca’s Area

Question 22

Part of the body that controls voluntary movement of the eyes

Answer 22

Frontal Eye Field

Question 23

Sensory Areas of the Cerebral Cortex

Answer 23

1) Primary somatosensory cortex
2) Somatosensory association cortex
3) Visual areas (sight)
4) Auditory areas (hearing)
5) Vestibular cortex (balance/orientation)
6) Olfactory cortex (smell)
7) Gustatory cortex (taste)
8) Visceral sensory area (sensations of internal organs)

Question 24

Function of the Primary Somatosensory Cortex

Answer 24

recieve information from the general sensory receptors in the skin

Question 25

Function of the Somatosensory Association Cortex

Answer 25

Integrates sensory input relayed to it via primary somatosensory cortex (produces understanding of what is being felt; size, texture, relationship of its parts)

Ex. reaching into a bag and being able to identify phone vs keys

Question 26

Visual areas

Answer 26

1) Primary visual cortex - receives visual information that originates on the retina of the eye
2) Visual association area - uses past visual experiences to interpret visual stimuli - allows us to recognize things

The primary visual cortex is the largest corital sensory area

Question 27

Auditory Areas

Answer 27

1) Primary auditory cortex - interpretation of sound from inner ear as pitch, loudness, and location
2) Auditory association area - permits perception of sound stimulus & stores memories of sounds for referecce

Question 28

Area that allows for conscious awareness of balance/orientation

Answer 28

Vestibular Cortex

Question 29

Area that allows conscious awareness of different odors

Answer 29

Primary olfactory cortex

Question 30

Area that allows conscious awareness of different odors

Answer 30

Primary olfactory cortex

Question 31

Area that allows conscious awareness of taste stimuli

Answer 31

Gustatory Cortex

Question 32

Area that allows conscious perception of visceral sensations
(i.e. full stomach or bladder)

Answer 32

Visceral Sensory Area

Question 33

Definition

Division of Labor of Cortical Functioning

Answer 33

Cerebral Lateralization
* Can cause Cerebral Dominance

Question 34

Cerebral Dominance of Left side of Brain

Answer 34

Language abilities, math, logic

Ex. left side of the brain is dominant while speaking publicly, memorizing infiormation

Fiber tracts connect the left/right side of the brain - share information almost instantly, allowing complete functional integration

Question 35

Cerebral Dominance of Right side of Brain

Answer 35

Visual-spatial skills, insight, creativity

Fiber tracts connect the left/right side of the brain - share information almost instantly, allowing complete functional integration

Question 36

Function and Location of Cerebral White Matter

Answer 36

Deep to cortical gray matter, manages communication in the CNS

Question 37

Classification of Cerebral White Matter

Answer 37

1) Association fibers - connect different areas of the same hemisphere
2) Commisural fibers - connect corresponding areas of different hemispheres (allow hemispheres to function as a coordinated “team”)
3) Projection fibers - allows sensory information to reach cortex motor output to leave cortex

Question 38

Part of the Brain that filters out incorrect/inappropriate motor/emotional/cognitive responses

Answer 38

Basal Nuclei (Basal Ganglia)

Question 39

Structures that make up the Diencephalon

Answer 39

1) Thalamus
2) Hypothalamus
3) Epithalamus

Question 40

Functions of the Thalamus

Answer 40

Relay sensory information coming to the cerebral cortex - information is “edited” here, impulses with similar functions are grouped together and relayed to appropriate part of the cortex

1) Motor activities
2) Cortical arousal (sleep/wake cycles)
3) Learning
4) Memory

Question 41

Functions of the Hypothalamus

Answer 41

visceral control center
1) Controls autonomic nervous system - blood pressure, rate/force of heartbeat, digestive tract mobility, pupul size of eye, etc. etc. etc.
2) Initiates physical response to emotion - limbic system involvement (involved in perception of pleasure, fear, rage, sex drive, sleep, etc)
3) Regulates body temperature - “thermostat” - blood pressure changes heat output
4) Regulates food intake - monitors blood nutrient levels
5) Regulates water balance and thirst - conc. of body fluids
6) Regulates sleep-wake cycles - uses daylight-darkness cues from visual pathways
7) Controls endocrine system function - controls secretion of hormones by other glands