CNS Overview Flashcards
What kind of neurotransmitter is involved with cognitive functions, especially memory?
Acetylcholine
What disease is the majority of dementia cases?
Alzheimer’s Disease
What causes Alzheimer’s Disease?
Due to neuronal accumulation of abnormal proteins (A-Beta Amyloid and tau -a microtubule associated protein) and Neurofibrillary Tangles.
What areas are most severely impacted by Alzheimer’s disease?
hippocampus and temporal lobes
What does Alzheimer’s disease cause?
degeneration of cholinergic neurons in the Nucleus Basalis of Meynert that project throughout the cortex
What is the treatment for Alzheimer’s disease?
Acetylcholinesterase Inhibitors and NMDA (Glutamate receptor) antagonist
What neurotransmitter influences a multitude of functions, including sleep, cognition, sensory perception, motor activity, temperature regulation, nociception, mood, appetite, sexual behavior, and hormone secretion?
Serotonin
Where are Raphe nuclei located?
Midbrain (ex. Nucleus Raphe Dorsalis), Pons (ex. Nucleus Raphe Pontis) and Medulla Oblongata (ex. Nucleus Raphe Magnus).
What do Raphe nuclei do?
Nucleus Raphe Magnus is involved in dampening ascending pain (nociceptive) signals.
What neurotransmitter control includes reward, emotion, cognition, memory, and motor activity?
Dopamine
What is the pathway for degeneration in Parkinson’s disease?
Neurons in the Substantia Nigra Compacta project to the Basal Nuclei;
What is associated with damage in the Ventral Tegmental Area?
Dysfunction in this pathway is associated with addiction, schizophrenia and psychoses (bipolar depression) and learning deficits.
What neurotransmitter impacts all areas of the brain and facilitates excitatory synaptic transmission leading to attention and arousal?
Norepinepherine
