Chapter 5: Motor Systems- The Organization of Action

Question 1

motor programs

Answer 1

The plan to produce a particular motor action, such a writing one’s name, that occurs independently of the effectors used to carry out the movement

Question 2

lower motor neurons

Answer 2

Also called primary motor neuron. A motor neuron that directly innervates muscle. Compare upper motor neuron.

Question 3

local circuit nuerons

Answer 3

Also called interneuron. A neuron whose local connections contribute to processing circuitry.

Question 4

upper motor neurons

Answer 4

A neuron that gives rise to a descending projection that controls the activity of lower motor neurons in the brainstem and spinal cord.

Question 5

primary motor cortex

Answer 5

A major source of descending projections to motor neurons in the spinal cord and the cranial nerve nuclei; located in the precentral gyrus (area 4) and essential for the voluntary control of movement.

Question 6

premotor cortical areas

Answer 6

cortical areas, including the premotor cortex, supplementary motor cortex, and parts of the parietal cortex, that provide motor programming signals to the primary motor cortex.

Question 7

premotor cortex

Answer 7

part of the prefrontal cortex lying just anterior to the primary motor cortex; involved in planning movement

Question 8

supplementary motor cortex

Answer 8

Also called supplementary motor area 6. A premotor area, lying anterior to the primary motor cortex on the medial surface of the cerebral hemisphere, hat plays an important role in movement planning.

Question 9

medullary pyramids

Answer 9

Longitudinal bulges on the ventral aspect of the medulla that signify the corticospinal tracts at this level of the nervous system.

Question 10

frontal eye fields

Answer 10

A region of the prefrontal cortex in human and non-human primates, often associated with area 8a, that plays a key role in visual orienting movements.

Question 11

superior calliculus

Answer 11

paired structures that form part of the roof of the midbrain; important in orienting movements of the head and eyes. Compare inferior callilculi.

Question 12

saccades

Answer 12

a ballistic eye movement that changes the point of binocular visual fixation, normally occurs at a rate of three to four per second.

Question 13

readiness potential

Answer 13

An electrical potential, recorded from the motor and premotor cortices with EEG electrodes, that signals the intention to initiate a voluntary movement well in advance of actual production of the movement.

Question 14

anosognosia

Answer 14

lack of awareness of one’s own disability.

Question 15

reward value

Answer 15

the likelihood that a particular movement will yield a reward, multiplied by the amount of reward expected.

Question 16

supplementary motor area (SMA)

Answer 16

a premotor area, lying anterior to the primary motor cortex on the medial surface of the cerebral hemisphere, that plays an important role in movement planning

Question 17

basal ganglia

Answer 17

a group of nuclei lying deep in the subcortical white matter of the frontal lobes that organize motor behavior. The caudate, putamen, and globus pallidus are major components of the basal ganglia; the subthalamic nucleus and subtantia nigra are often included.

Question 18

gating

Answer 18

allowing or permitting. The basal ganglia, for example, gate movement initiation. Channels through the neuronal membrane are often gated, allowing the access of certain ions under certain conditions.

Question 19

caudate nucleus

Answer 19

One of teh

Question 20

putamen

Answer 20

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Question 21

striatum

Answer 21

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Question 22

globus pallidus

Answer 22

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Question 23

substantia nigra pas reticulata (SNr)

Answer 23

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Question 24

Parkinson’s disease

Answer 24

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Question 25

Huntington’s disease

Answer 25

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Question 26

choreiform movements

Answer 26

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Question 27

hemiballismums

Answer 27

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Question 28

cerebellus

Answer 28

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Question 29

intention tremor

Answer 29

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