Chapter 40: Nervous System Flashcards
Big structural differences between nervous systems of invertebrates verses vertebrates?
invertebrates contain fewer neurons arranged in less complex networks
What is feedforward excitation?
excitement on a chain of neurons in one direction, transmitting information forward from sense organs through the brain
What is feedback excitation?
excitatory neurons communicate with neurons at earlier steps in neural pathways—-positive feedback
What is feedback inhibition?
Excitatory neurons activate neurons that inhibit the excitatory neurons, preventing neural circuits from becoming too active—negative feedback
How do PET scans work?
tracks brains usage of glucose and uses radioactivity
How do fMRIs work?
shows changes conformational of O2 binding to hemoglobin in the blood, uses large magnets, no radioactivity
What type of neural systems do Cnidarians and echinoderms have?
nerve nets – loose meshes of neurons organized within their radial symmetry, give sense of orientation, easy to replace
Their neurons lack clearly differentiated dendrites and axons
no brain, but nerve cells may be more concentrated in some regions
immobile organisms
What type of neural systems do echinoderms (ex. sea stars) have?
some nerves – bundles of axons enclosed in connective tissue and following the same pathway
nerve ring: center point
If the radial nerve serving an arm is cut, the arm can still move, but not in coordination with the other arms
—allows for fragmentations, mobility
uses chemical synapses—slow responses
What is Cephalization?
the formation of a distinct head region containing a control center (ganglia or brain) and major sensory structures – is a key evolutionary development
speeds up response time
What are nerve cords?
extend from the central ganglia to the rest of the body – connected to smaller nerves
What type of neural systems do flatworms have?
small brain (consisting of a pair of ganglia at the anterior end) is connected by 2 or more longitudinal nerve cords to nerve nets in the rest of the body
has CNS, PNS, eyespots
What type of neural systems do arthropods have?
insects have a head region that contains a brain (consisting of dorsal and ventral pairs of ganglia) and major sensory structures, usually eyes and antennae
In arthropods with fused body segments, as in the thorax of insects, ganglia are fused into larger masses forming secondary control centers
multi-lobed brain, cord runs in duality
ex) grasshopper
What type of neural systems do mollusks have?
(e.g., clams, snails, octopuses) also have neurons clustered into paired ganglia and connected by major nerves
What type of neural systems do octopuses have?
The octopus has a complex, lobed brain with clearly defined sensory and motor regions
nerve ring design similar to star fish which was found to be able to do computations independently of the brain
What does the CNS consist of?
brain and spinal cord
What does the PNS consist of?
consists of all the nerves and ganglia that connect the brain and spinal cord to the rest of the body
What is the structure of nerve cords in vertebrate?
hollow and fluid-filled
Where are ganglia greatly reduced in vertebrates?
gut, contains extensive interneurons networks instead
How does the neural tube develop into the human brain?
the anterior end develops into the brain, and the rest develops into the spinal cord
The cavity of the neural tube becomes the fluid-filled ventricles of the brain and the central canal through the spinal cord
Formation of neural tube?
neural plate in between ectoderm
neural plate expands, curls up, folds in on itself to form tube
How does the anterior neural tube develop?
develops into the hindbrain, midbrain, and forebrain
What is the development of the hindbrain?
gives rise to the cerebellum and medulla oblongata
What does the cerebellum do?
integrates sensory signals from eyes, ears, and muscle with motor signals from the telencephalon and pons
What is the pons?
major traffic center for information passing between the cerebellum and the higher integrating centers of the adult telencephalon
What does the medulla oblongata do?
controls vital involuntary tasks such as respiration and blood circulation
What is the development of the midbrain? role?
adult midbrain = brain stem
role–centers for coordinating reflex responses (involuntary reactions) to visual and auditory input and relays signals to the telencephalon
What is the structure of the brain stem?
pons and medulla and midbrain
What is the development of the forebrain? role?
develops into the cerebrum (telencephalon) = largest part of brain
role—Controls higher functions such as thought, memory, language, and emotions, and voluntary movements
Where are the hypothalamus and thalamus located?
forebrain
Role of thalamus?
receives sensory input and relays it to the regions of the cerebral cortex
Role of hypothalamus?
primary center for homeostatic control over the internal environment
How many spinal nerves are in the human body?
31 pairs
How many cranial nerves are in the human body?
12 pairs
What are the two divisions of the PNS?
autonomic and somatic
What does the somatic nervous system control?
body movements that are primarily conscious and voluntary – it also controls reflexes and shivering, and maintains posture and balance
What are motor neurons?
carry efferent signals from the CNS to the skeletal muscle
Dendrites and cell bodies of motor neurons are located in the spinal cord (CNS)
voluntary
What do the somatic portions of the cranial and spinal nerves consist of?
axons
What does the autonomic nervous system control?
controls involuntary processes of digestion, sweat glands, and circulation, many functions of reproductive and excretory systems, and contraction of smooth muscles in all parts of the body
What does the sympathetic nervous system control?
increases heart rate and blood pressure, and prepares the body for emergency responses
pupils dilate, salivary glands inhibit secretion, increases HR, dilates bronchioles, inhibits stomach activity, increase glucose release, inhibits digestion, inhibits bladder muscles and sexual arousal
What does the parasympathetic nervous system control?
digestion, rests body after stress
What is the goal of meditation?
turn` of sympathetic nervous system
What is the role of the CNA in the negative feedback pathway?
integration
What is the distribution of grey and white matter in the brain?
white matter centrally located with axon tails arriving with information
grey matter on the outer part of the brain which takes in the information
What is the distribution of grey and white matter in the spinal cord?
grey matter centrally located with axon tails arriving with information—can break though white matter
white matter on the outer part which sends out the information
What does the ventricles in the brain contain?
cerebrospinal fluid
What is the structure and function of the meninges?
surround and protect brain and spinal cord
3 layers: inner most —> outmost (PAD)
Pia matter, arachnoid, dura matter