CNS and PNS test Flashcards
What is the cauda equina?
Extended nerve that branches from the end of the spinal cord
How are spinal nerves grouped and numbered?
Grouped by their location along the spinal cord
What does the cervical plexus control?
Neck
What does the brachial plexus control?
Shoulders and upper arms
What does the lumbar plexus and the sacral plexus control?
The pelvic girdle and lower limb
What is a plexus?
Complex network of nerves
What does a gyrus look like?
Ridges
What does a sulcus look like?
Shallow groove
What does a fissure look like?
Deep groove
What is the function of the frontal lobe?
Controls movements of skeletal muscles, and performs higher intellectual processes
What is the function of the parietal lobe?
Has sensory areas that provide sensations of temperature, pain, touch, and pressure. Also has an association area function in understanding speech
What is the function of the temporal lobe?
Has sensory areas responsible for hearing, and association areas to interpret sensory experiences
What is the function of the occipital lobe?
Sensory areas responsible for vision
What is Broca’s area?
In the left cerebral hemisphere, it coordinates complex muscular actions of the mouth
What is Wernicke’s area?
General interpretation. Where the parietal, temporal, and occipital association areas join, plays the primary role in complex thought processing and helps arrange words
What is the role of the hippocampus?
Memory
What does the midbrain do?
Processes visual and auditory information. Regulates involuntary functions
What do the pons do?
Relay nerve impulses to and from the medulla oblongata and cerebrum. Also helps regulate deep breathing and sleep/wake cycles
What does the medulla do?
Regulates autonomic functions like heart rate, blood pressure and digestive activities
What is gray matter composed of?
Cell bodies and dendrites
What is white matter composed of?
Myelinated axons
What is the main function of the cerebellum?
Balance and coordination
What is the primary function of the brain stem?
Regulates visceral functions. To serve as a relay station. Connects brain to spinal cord.
What are the three parts the brain stem consists of?
Midbrain
Pons
Medulla oblongata
What are the three parts of the diencephalon?
Thalamus
Hypothalamus
Epithalamus
Function of the thalamus?
Relay sensory info
Function of hypothalamus?
Maintain homeostasis by regulation hormones and autonomic functions
Function of the epithalamus?
Contains pineal gland which secretes the hormone melatonin
