creierul 1

Question 1

What is the weight of the brain?

Answer 1

1.4kg

Question 2

What are the 3 planes of the brain?

Answer 2

The sagittal plane: splits brain right and left hemisphere
The horizontal plane: up and down
The frontal (coronal) plane: front and back

Question 3

What are the 4 views of the brain?

Answer 3

Anterior vs posterior - the from front vs from the back of the brain

Superior vs inferior - higher up vs lower down

Dorsal vs ventral - looking from above vs looking from below

Lateral vs medial - towards the sides vs towards the middle

Question 4

What are convolutions in the brain?

Answer 4

Wrinkles - the more wrinkles, the more advanced the brain is

Question 5

What are the 3 surface anatomical features of the brain?

Answer 5

Gyri: bulges, bump, mountain, hill
Sulci: shallow folds, cracks
Fissures: deep folds

Question 6

What are the 2 hemispheres of the brain divided by?

Answer 6

the longitudinal fissure

Question 7

What are the 3 major fissures that divide each hemisphere into different lobes?

Answer 7

Central sulcus
Sylvian (lateral) fissure
Transverse cerebral fissure

Question 8

What does the ventral view of the brain show?

Answer 8

• Some structures which are separate from the hemisphere e.g. brain stem and cerebellum
• Some nerves originating from the brain e.g. optic nerve
• The brain’s vascular system - system of blood vessels carrying blood to and from the brain

Question 9

What is the brain’s vascular system made up of?

Answer 9

1. Middle cerebral arteries: supply mainly the temporal and parietal lobes and some lateral surfaces of occipital lobe
2. Posterior cerebral arteries: arteries that run at the back of the head: irrigates mainly the occipital lobe
3. Anterior cerebral arteries: arteries that run at the front of the head: irrigates middle regions of the frontal lobe
4. Basilar artery: irrigates brainstem
5. Circle of willis: circular feeder system - can take blood from more than 1 source

Question 10

What is the mid-sagittal view of the brain?

Answer 10

Splitting the brain into left and right hemisphere and looking inside
You separate along the longitudinal fissure

Question 11

What are the 3 main parts of the brain?

Answer 11

The hindbrain
The midbrain
The forebrain

Question 12

1. What is the hindbrain?

Answer 12

Rhombencephalon
Oldest part of the brain
Controls many essential functions (e.g. breathing, heart rate, blood pressure)

Comprised of 3 main structures:
- Pons
- Cerebellum
- Medulla

Question 13

What do the pons do in the hindbrain?

Answer 13

-Does contralateral control: left hemisphere controls right side of the body, right hemisphere controls left side of the body

-Helps coordinate hindbrain with midbrain and forebrain

-Plays important roles in: sleep, respiration, swallowing, bladder control, hearing, taste, eye movements, facial expressions and sensations, posture

Question 14

What does cerebellum do in the hindbrain?

Answer 14

-Has 2 lobes
-Important for motor control - coordination, precision and accurate timing
-joins to rear of medulla by 3 pairs of stalks (cerebellar peduncles)

Question 15

What does the medulla do in the hindbrain?

Answer 15

• controls breathing, heart rate, vomiting, salivation, coughing, sneezing
  Damage to medulla is nearly always fatal

Question 16

2. What is the midbrain?

Answer 16

Mesencephalon
has 2 major parts:
- tectum
- tegmentum

Associated with: vision, hearing, motor control, sleep cycle, arousal, temperature regulation

Question 17

What is the tectum in the midbrain?

Answer 17

Includes:
- superior colliculus (part of the visual system)
- inferior colliculus (part of the auditory system)

Question 18

What is the tegmentum in the midbrain?

Answer 18

Made up of:
- Periaqueductal grey matter: controls sequences of movements
- Substantia nigra (black substance): involved in reward and movement
- Red nucleus, involved in limb control
- All important components of the motor system

Question 19

3. What is the forebrain?

Answer 19

prosencephalon
Plays an important role in perception but also all forms of higher cognition.

Structures include:
- the cerebrum
- thalamus
- hypothalamus
- limbic system

Question 20

What is the thalamus in the forebrain?

Answer 20

2-lobed structure
sits on top of the brainstem
Massa intermedia is the bridge that connects the 2 lobes

It functions as a gateway to the higher cortical regions
Most sensory information apart form smell passes through the thalamus
Information is processed and then outputted to cortex for further processing
Plays a major role in sleep and wakefulness
Damage can lead to permanent coma

Question 21

What is the hypothalamus in the forebrain?

Answer 21

Contains many nuclei and tracts
Controls the autonomic nervous system and the endocrine system with direct links to pituitary glands
Pituitary gland releases hormones related to stress, growth and reproduction

Question 22

What is the limbic brain in the forebrain?

Answer 22

Important for motivation and emotion
Associated with the four Fs of survival: fleeing, fighting, feeding and fornication

Question 23

What is the hippocampus in the forebrain?

Answer 23

Surrounds the thalamus
Seat of our spatial memory
London taxi drivers have enlarged hippocampus

Question 24

What is basal ganglia?

Answer 24

Subcortical structures
Ganglia: clusters of nerve cell bodies
Basal: forming a bottom layer

Involved in movement and motor control

Diseases of the basal ganglia:
Parkinsons
Huntingtons

Question 25

What are ventricles?

Answer 25

There are 4 in the brain.
They are cerebrospinal fluid chambers
there are:
- 2 large lateral ventricles in the forebrain
- 1 central ventricle below and between them
- 1 ventricle just behind the medulla and pons

Question 26

What is the importance of the forebrain?

Answer 26

Hydrocephalus:
- a condition in which ventricles are enlarged by overfilling with CSF
- associated with cognitive deficits