Chapter 5 - Research Flashcards
Contrast X-ray techniques
use to visualize the brain -How is done? by injecting into one compartment of the body a substance that absorbs X-rays either less than or more than the surrounding tissues
Cerebral angiography
uses the infusion of a radio-opaque dye into a cerebral artery to visualize the cerebral circulatory system during X-ray photography
Computed tomography
is a computer- assisted X-ray procedure that can be used to visualize the brain and other internal structures of the living body
magnetic resonance imaging (MRI)
procedure in which high-resolution images are constructed from the measurement of waves that hydrogen atoms emit when activated by a radio-frequency waves in a magnetic field
Spatial resolution
ability to detect and represent differences in spatial location
positron emission tomography (PET)
first brain-imaging technique to provide images of brain activity rather than images of brain structure
2-deoxyglucose
provides color coding for PET - acts similar to glucose since is rapidly taken up by active cells- but instead of being consume its broken down
carotid artery
an artery of the neck that feeds the ipsilateral cerebral hemisphere
ligands
ions or molecules that bind to other molecules during investigation
Functional MRI
produces images representing the increase in oxygen flow in the blood to actives areas of the brain
BOLD signal
signal recorded by fMRI - blood-oxygen-level-dependent signal
temporal resolution
ability of a recording technique to detect differences in time (i.e. pinpoint when an event occurred)
Diffusion tensor imaging
a method of identifying those pathways along which water molecules rapidly diffuse … provides image of major tracts
Transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS)
technique that can turn off an area of the cortex by creating a magnetic field under a coil positioned next to the skull
psychological recording methods
methods of recording physiological activity from the surface of the human body
Electroencephalogram (EEG)
is a measure of the gross electrical activity of the brain and is recorded through a large electrode by a device called an electroencephalograph (EEG machine)
electroencephalography
technique use to measure the gross electrical activity of the brain
alpha waves
are regular, 8-12-per second, high amplitude waves that are associated with relaxed wakefulness
event-related potentials
EEG waves that accompany certain psychological events
Sensory evoked potential
change in the cortical EEG signal elicited by the momentary presentation of a sensory stimulus
Component of a sensory stimulus
response to the stimulus & ongoing background EEG activity (noise)
Signal averaging
method used to reduce the noise of the background EEG
Average evoked potentials (AEPs)
analysis that focuses on the various waves in the averaged signal
P wave
positive waves that are measure in milliseconds and are recorded after a momentary stimulus that have meaning for the subject
far-field potentials
EEG signals recorded in attenuated form at the scalp b/c they originate far away- for example in the brain stem
magnetoencephalography (MEG)
measures changes in magnetic fields on the surface of the scalp that are produced by changes in underlying patterns of neural activity
Electromyography
usual procedure for measuring muscle tension
electromyogram (EMG)
record from electromyography measurement …. usually recorded between two electrodes taped to the surface of the skin over the muscle of interest
electrooculography
electrophysiological technique for recording eye movements …. based on the fact that a steady potential difference exits between the front (positive) and back (negative)
electrooculogram (EOG)
resulting record of electrooculography
electrodermal activity
conduction of electricity in the skin
Skin conductance level (SCL)
steady level of skin conductance associated with a particular situation
Skin conductance response (SCR)
the transient change in skin conductance associated with a brief experience
cardiovascular system
two parts: the blood vessels and the heart… is responsible for distributing oxygen and nutrients to tissues of the body…. removing metabolic wastes and transmitting chemical messages
electrocardiogram (ECG or EKG)
records the electrical signal associated with each heartbeat through electrodes place on chest
Systole
measurement of the peak pressure during the periods of heart contraction
Diastoles
measurement of the minimum pressure during the periods of relaxation
Hypertension
A chronic blood pressure as a serious health hazard
sphygmomanometer
device compose of hollow cuff, and rubber bulb to inflate and a pressure gauge for measuring the pressure in the cuff – used to measure blood pressure
Plethysmography
refers to various technique for measuring changes in the volume of blood in a particular part of the body
stereotaxic surgery
means by which experimental devices are precisely positioned in the depths of the brain
Stereotaxic atlas
used to locate brain structures in much the same way that a geographic atlas is used to locate geographic
bregma
point on the top of the skull where two of the major sutures intersect
stereotaxic instrument
has two parts: head holder- firmly holds the subject’s brain in the prescribed position and orientation
electrode holder: holds the device to be inserted
Aspiration Lesions
lesion made to an area of cortical tissue that is accessible to the eyes and instruments of the surgeon
Radio-Frequency Lesions
small subcortical lesions are commonly made passing radio-frequency current through the target tissue from the tip of a stereotaxically positioned electrode
Knife cuts
sectioning (cutting) is used to eliminate conduction in a nerve or tract
Reversible Lesions
useful alternatives to destructive lesions… method for temporarily eliminating the activity in a particular area of the brain while test are being conducted
Bilateral lesion
lesions involving both sides of the brain
unilateral lesions
lesions restricted to one half of the brain
Intracellular unit recording
provides moment-by-moment record of the graded fluctuations in one neuron’s membrane potential
Extracellular unit recording
provides a record of the firing of a neuron but no information about the neuron’s membrane potential
Multiple-unit Recording
electrode tip is much larger than that of a microelectrode; thus it picks up signals from many neurons
Invasive EEG Recording
labaratory animals, EEG signals are recorded through large implanted electrodes rather than through scalp electrodes
Cannula
fine hollow tube that is stereotaxically implanted in the brain which is use to admintered drug in the brain
Intragastrically
Drugs are injected to the stomach thru a tube
intraperitoneally
drugs are injected hypodermically into the peritoneal cavity of the abdomen
intramuscularly
drugs are injected into a large muscle
subcutaneously
drugs are injected into fatty tissues beneath the skin
intravenously
drugs are injected into large surface vein
neurotoxins
neural poison that have certain affinity for certain components of the nervous system …sometime is a method used for lesions— Kainic acid & ibotenic acid are types of neurotoxins
2-Deoxyglucose Technique
test situation in which engages the activity of interest….the subject metabolizes the energy then is killed and the brain is removed and sliced
autoradiography
done after 2-Deoxyglucose technique, slices are coated with a photographic emulsion, stored in the dark for a few days and then develop into “films”
cerebral dialysis
method for measuring the extracellular concentration of a specific neurochemicals in behaving animals – most other techniques for measuring neurochemicals require that the subjects be killed so that the tissue can be extracted
chromatograph
device for measuring the chemical constituents of liquid gases
Immune reaction
foreign protein (antigen) is injected into an animals body , the animal creates antibodies that bind to it and help the body remove or destroy it
Immunocytochemistry
procedure for locating particular neuroproteins in the brain by labeling their antibodies with dye or radioactive element and then exposing slices of brain tissues to the labeled antibodies
in situ Hybridization
tecnique for locating peptides and other proteins in the brain
Gene Knockout Gene
procedures for creating organism that lack a particular gene under investigation
Gene replacement technique
replacing one gene with another
Transgenic mice
mice containing the genetic material of another species
Green fluorescent protein (GFP)
is a protein that exhibits bright green fluorence when exposed to blue light
Brainbow
neuroanatomical technique that involves inserting various mutuations of the green fluorescent protein gene into neural tissue so that different neurons fluorence in different color
Wechsler Adult Intellingence Scale
provide the patient’s IQ …. experience neuropsychologist can draw inferences of the patients dysfunctions
digit span
identifies the longest sequence of random digits that a person can repeat correctly 50% of the time (digit span of 7 is the most common)
token test
used for screening for a language related deficit
sodium amytal test
involves injecting the anesthic sodium amytal into either the left or right carotid artery in the neck …invansive procedure that affects language
dichotic listening test
sequences of spoken digits are presented to subjects though stereo headphones .. subjects are to listen and respond back by stating digits heard
anterograde
affects the retention of things learned after the damage
retrograde
affects the retention of things learned before the damage
repetition priming effect
proven instrumental in the assessment and the study of amnesic patients displaying severe deficits in explicit memory with no deficit at all in implicit memory
phonology
rules governing the sounds of language
syntax
grammar of the language
semantic
meaning of the language
dyslexic
those with reading problems
Wisconsin card sorting test
neuropsychological test that evaluates a patient’s ability to remember that previously learned rules of behavior are no longer effective and to learn to respond to new rules
constituent cognitive processes
first assumption of cognitive neuroscience …. that each complex cognitive process results from the combined activity of simple cognitive processes
second assumption is that each constituent cognitive process is mediated by neural activity in a particular area of the brain
paired-image subtraction technique
The use of PET or fMRI to locate constituent cognitive processes in the brain by producing an image of the difference in brain activity associated with two cognitive tasks that differ in terms of a s single constituent cognitive process
default mode
the pattern of brain activity that is associated with relaxed wakefulness, when an individual is not focused on the external world
default mode network
network of brain structures that tends to be active when the brain is in default mode
species-common behaviors
behaviors that are displayed in the same manner by virtually all like members of a species
open-field test
the subject is placed in a large, barren chamber, and its activity is recorded
thigmotaxic
characterized of fearful rats …. rats rarely venture away from the walls of the test chamber and rarely engage in such activities as rearing and grooming
colony-intruder paradigm
A paradigm for the study of aggressive and defensive behaviors in male rats; a small male intruder rat is placed with a dominant rat in the dominant rat internal environment ( the aggressive responses of the dominant rat and the defenses responses of the intruder rat are study)
Elevated plus maze
four-armed, plus-sign-shaped maze typically mounted 50 centimeters above the floor, is a test of defensiveness commonly used to study in rats anxiolytic effects of drugs
lordosis
when female is receptive she sticks her hindquarters in the air, she bends her back in a U, and deflects her tail to the side
intromission
the male inserts his penis into the female’s vagina
ejaculates
ejects his sperm
lordosis quotient
proportion of mounts that elicit lordosis
Pavolian conditioning paradigm
experimenter pairs an initially neutral stimulus known as “CS” with an “US”…. through the process later the CS obtains the ability to produce the US alone without the need of US
Operant conditioning paradigm
rate at which a particular voluntary response such as a lever press is emitted; increase by reinforcement or decreased by punishment
self-stimulation paradigm
one of the most widely used operant conditions paradigm in biopsychology…. animals press a lever to deliver electrical stimulation to particular sites in their own brain
pleasure center
structures in the brain that supports self stimulation
conditioned taste aversion
the avoidance response that develops to taste of food consumption has been followed by illness
emetic
a nausea inducing drug
neophobic
afraid of new things
temporal contiguity
the view that animal conditioning is always a gradual step-by-step process
Principle of equipotentiality
the view that conditioning proceeds is basically the same manner regardless of the particular stimuli and responses under investigation
radial arm maze
an array of arms- usually eight or more- radiating from a central starting area… at the end of each arm is a food cup, which may or may not be baited, depending on the purpose of the experiment
Morris water maze
rats are placed in a circular, featureless pool of cool milky water, in which they must swim until they discover the escape platform which is invisible just beneath the surface of the water
conditioned defensive burying
rats receive a single aversive stimulus from an object mounted on the wall of the chamber just above the floor
