Exam 3 Week 12 pp 10 cerebellum & motor learning Flashcards
How does Cerebellum influence Visceromotor Functions?
- Hypothalamic projections to the cerebellum.
- Cerebellar nuclei send a crossed projection to the hypothalamus via the superior cerebellar peduncle.
- Reciprocal connections- the cerebellum may receive visceral input and influence neurons that control visceral functions
Visceral deficits with cerebellar damage
Decrease in heart rate and blood pressure
Changes in vascular resistance
Changes in pupil diameter
Why is it difficult to separate the effects of cerebellar dysfunction on motor learning from those related to motor performance?
- Effects are somewhat dependent on the type of behavior being learned
- Appears to be involved in different aspects of the learning process of motor behaviors (i.e., acquisition, consolidation, and memory storage of movement patterns)
What structure Plays a very critical role in the learning of relatively simple reflexive motor behaviors?
cerebellum
Who is Moses’s favorite basketball player?
Kobe Bryant
List some relatively simple reflexive motor behaviors the cerebellum plays a role in
-Adaptation of the vestibulo-ocular reflex
-Classical (Pavlovian) conditioning of reflexes evoked by aversive stimuli
Eye-blink
Withdrawal reflexes
True or False: New motor skills can be learned with cerebellar dysfunction
True
How does Cerebellar dysfunction affect learning of voluntary, complex motor skills?
- a decrease in the quality & consistency of the learned behaviors
- a slowing of the rate of motor learning
When is Cerebellar nuclei most active during motor learning?
when first learning to perform the task correctly and consistently on successive trials
When is Cerebellar nuclei least active during motor learning?
already learned movement or one where skill is already demonstrated
True or False: There is evidence the cerebellum is involved with storage of learned of voluntary, complex motor skills
False.
Patients with cerebellar damage can often reproduce already learned skills.
Where is the storage of learned of voluntary, complex motor skills?
likely in the supplementary motor cortex
What does the cerebellum likely provide storage for?
long term suppression of learned adaptation of reflexes, such as VOR (vestibulo-ocular reflex)
necessary for storage or activation of storage
(There is evidence of long term suppression of learned adaptation of reflexes (such as VOR) with cerebellar damage so
- Either cerebellum is either a storage site
- Or cerebellum is necessary for activation of storage)
Connections and role of Archicerebellum (vestibulocerebellum)
- Midline – flocculonodular lobe
- Connections thru fastigial nucleus
- Highly interconnected with vestibular & reticular nuclei
- Roles in VOR, posture, balance & equilibrium
Connections and role of Paleocerebellum (spinocerebellum)
- Intermediate – vermis & paravermal areas
- Connections thru fastigial & interposed (globose & emboliform) nuclei
- Interconnected with spinal cord and brainstem
- Coordination of reciprocal contraction of agonists and antagonists in motor activities
Connections and role of Neurocerebellum (Pontocerebellum)
- Most lateral – lateral cerebral hemispheres
- Associated with Dentate Nucleus
- Substantial inputs from cerebral cortex and outputs to motor cortex via VA/VL thalamus and circuit back into cerebellum via inferior olivary nucleus
- Functions in coordination of sequential motor activities initiated by cerebral cortex
Functions of the cerebellum (7)
- Anticipatory programming of agonist and antagonist to maintain posture & balance during rapid movements
- Comparison of plan of movement with the actual position of the limbs with correction if errors
- Movement precision
- Preprogramming of ballistic movements
- Planning and timing of complex sequential movements
- Integration of visual & proprioceptive information to execute planned movements
- Consolidation of motor memory but not storage
Two possible functions of cerebellum
- Possible coordination of some visceral actions
2. Possible role in emotional & cognitive function
How does cerebellum maintain posture & balance during rapid movements?
via outputs to vestibular nuclei & reticular formation
How does cerebellum make comparison of plan of movement with the actual position of the limbs?
input from cerebral cortex and feedback from spinocerebellar pathways
How does cerebellum correct errors in movement
if errors via outputs to cerebral cortex and red nucleus
