Chapter 5 - methods & strategies of research Flashcards
Destroying a part of the brain and evaluating an animal’s subsequent behavior. Does not involve the removal of brain tissue. The oldest method of neuroscience
Experimental ablation
experiments in which a part of the brain is damaged and the individual’s behavior is subsequently observed.
Lesion studies
What can we learn from lesion studies?
discover what functions are performed by different regions of the brain and then to understand how these functions are combined to accomplish particular behaviors
a wound or injury, and a researcher who destroys part of the brain usually refers to the damage as a brain lesion
Lesion
an excitatory amino acid that is used as more selective method of producing brain lesions, which kills neurons by stimulating them to death. This is refered to as excitotoxic lesions.
Kainic acid
inject a local anesthetic or drug called muscimol into the appropriate part of the brain. This blocks action potentials in axons entering or leaving that region, thus effectively producing a temporary lesion.
Reversible brain lesion
serves as a control group; the researchers do everything they would do to produce the lesion except turn on the lesion maker or start the infusion.
Sham lesions
inject a local anesthetic or drug called muscimol into the appropriate part of the brain. This blocks action potentials in axons entering or leaving that region, thus effectively producing a temporary lesion.
Stereotaxis
inject a local anesthetic or drug called muscimol into the appropriate part of the brain. This blocks action potentials in axons entering or leaving that region, thus effectively producing a temporary lesion.
Stereotaxic atlas
a device that includes a head holder, which maintains the animal’s skull in the proper orientation, a holder for an electrode or cannula, a calibrated mechanism that moves the electrode holder in measured distances along three axis: anterior-posterior, dorsal-ventral, lateral-medial
Stereotaxic apparatus
removal of the blood and its replacement with another fluid
Perfusion
- to preserve the tissue from autolytic enzymes and prevent its decomposition
Fixation
For verifying the location of a brain lesion, many researchers use one of the simplest stains:
Cell body stain
To see very small anatomical structures as synaptic vesicles and details of cell organelles
Transmission electron microscope
less magnification than a standard transmission electron microscope. However, it shows objects in three dimensions
Scanning electron microscope
less magnification than a standard transmission electron microscope. However, it shows objects in three dimensions
CONFOCAL LASER SCANNING MICROSCOPY
A method for identifying and following the pathways of neurons to understand how different regions of the brain communicate
Neural tracing
involved in regulating essential processes like hunger, stress response, reproductive behavior, and energy balance.
Ventromedial Hypothalamus (VMH)
nerve fibers that carry signals away from the brain or spinal cord to muscles or organs. They control actions like moving muscles or regulating body functions.
Efferent axons (output)
nerve fibers that carry signals towards the brain or spinal cord from sensory organs. They send information about what’s happening in the environment to your brain
Afferent axons (input)
employ chemicals that are taken up by dendrites or cell bodies and are then transported through the axons toward the terminal buttons
Anterograde labelling methods
is a laboratory technique that uses antibodies to detect and visualize proteins in cells.
Immunocytochemistry
