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Introduction to neuroscience > Examen set > Flashcards

Examen set Flashcards

1
Q

Describe two features of long term potentiation (LTP) that makes it an attractive cellular mechanism for learning and memory (2)

A

Rapid induction, associativity, cooperativity, input specificity

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2
Q

What is the name of the enzyme converting glutamate to GABA? (1)

A

Glutamate decarboxylase GAD

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3
Q

How is glutamate removed from the synaptic cleft? (1)

A

Uptake transporters mostly on astrocytes

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4
Q

Taste buds are organized in structures called papillae. Humans have three types of papillae. Provide the name for all three of them (2)

A

fungiform, circumvallate, foliate

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5
Q

Gustatory afferent axons projects directly to a specific nucleus in the brain stem. Provide the name of this nucleus. (1)

A

Nucleus of the solitary tract

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6
Q

Give a definition of the ion equilibrium potential. What is the name of the mathematical equation used to calculate the equilibrium potential? (2)

A

no net ion movement/current (1). Nernst equation (1)

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7
Q

Define the absolute refractory period and the relative refractory period. Which mechanisms produce the two types? (4)

A

Absolute refractory period: Impossible for the neuron to fire another AP (1) because the voltage gated sodium channels are inactivated(1) . Relative refractory period: Highly unlikely that the neuron will fire an AP because the neurons is hyperpolarized beyond resting potential(1) due to increased conductance of potassium through open voltage gated potassium channels (1)

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8
Q

Define the term ‘motor unit’. (1)

A

a motor neuron together with the muscle fibers on which it acts.

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9
Q

Describe the response pattern of a rapidly adapting neuron and of a slowly adapting neuron (2)

A

A: Rapidly adapting neurons respond briefly to changes in the sensory environment (0.5). The neurons return to the baseline activity after the response (0.5) even if the stimulus continues (0.5). Slowly adapting neurons respond for a longer time (0.5), or as long as the stimulus is present.

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10
Q

Explain the transduction mechanism in the olfactory receptor neurons, i.e. how chemical signals are transformed into electrical signals. (3)

A

A metabotropic receptor activates second messengers (cAMP), which act upon specific ion channels leading to increase of sodium and calcium intracellularly. This forms a depolarization.
Also, calcium acts upon chloride channels, here leading to increased depolarization since chloride flows out

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11
Q

Name two structures in the brain that are involved in fear. (2)

A

amygdala, hypothalamus, autonomic nervous system

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12
Q
  1. Which hemisphere is usually most important for language and how can this be tested? (2)
A

Left hemisphere and with the Wada test by anesthetizing one hemisphere and do a language test

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13
Q
  1. Describe two ways by which the force of muscle contraction can be regulated. (2)
A
  1. Increase the firing rate of the alpha motor neurons

2. Recruit more motor units – causing the contraction of more muscle fibers.

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14
Q
  1. Name the five primary taste qualities in humans and indicate the type of transduction mechanism (ionotropic or metabotropic) for each taste. (2)
A

Sour and salt – ionotropic, bitter, sweet and umami – metabotropic

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15
Q
  1. What is the name of the sensory ganglion which contains the neurons that mediate the transfer of information from the hair cells in the inner ear are located. (1)
A

Spiral ganglia

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16
Q
  1. The middle ear bones malleus, incus and stapes transmit vibrations from the ear drum to the inner ear. In that process, they transform the signal. Which transformations take place? (2)
A

Power transformer, from high amplitude and low power at the ear drum to low amplitude and high power at the oval window , transmitting efficient energy from gas to liquid.

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17
Q
  1. What is a genetic polymorphism? (1)
A

the occurrence of multiple alleles at a locus, where at least two alleles occur with a frequency greater than 1%

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18
Q
  1. Which nucleotide bases are found in RNA? Give the full name of each nucleotide base. (2)
A

adenine, guanine, cytosin, uracil

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19
Q
  1. Which structure in the telencephalon is most important for procedural learning?
A

Striatum/the basal ganglia

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20
Q
  1. What is the name of the cranial nerve that carries touch information from the face into the central nervous system? (1)
A

The trigeminal nerve

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21
Q
  1. What is measured with the BOLD signal in functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI)? (1)
A

A: changes in oxygenation of hemoglobin, local increase in oxygenated hemoglobin in the blood stream/arterioles;
indirectly measure of local electrical activity

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22
Q
  1. Name the three sensory systems that are most relevant to maintaining balance and mention the brainstem structure where these three inputs are initially integrated. (2)
A

visual (0.5) vestibular (0.5) and propriocepsis (touch) (0.5)

-integrated in vestibular nucleus (0.5)

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23
Q
  1. What is the name of the cranial nerve that innervates the liver? (1)
A

Vagus nerve

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24
Q
  1. Where precisely in the central nervous system do we find the cell bodies that innervate the muscles of the body? (1)
A

ventral horn of spinal cord

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25
Q
  1. Which part of the central nervous system is characteristically affected in Parkinson’s disease? (1)
A

the basal ganglia and the substantia nigra.

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26
Q
  1. Name two functional effects of the cerebellum in controlling movements (2)
A

Error detection; Adjust motor responses

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27
Q
  1. What are the names of the three cranial nerves relevant for eye movement? (2)
A

(III) (oculomotor), IV (trochlear), and VI (abducens)

28
Q
  1. When a skeletal muscle is passively stretched, explain how the muscle spindle operates to restore the muscle to its original length. (4)
A

If the muscle is stretched, the sensory neurons innervating the muscle spindle is activated. These afferent fibers make monosynaptic connections onto alpha-motor neurons controlling the contraction of the extrafusal fibers of the same muscle. They also make synapses with inhibitory interneurons that synapse onto alpha-motor neuron controlling the contraction of the antagonist muscle. Thus, activation of the muscle spindle causes contraction of the agonist muscle, together with a relaxation of the antagonist muscle, which effectively reduces the stretching of the agonist muscle.

29
Q
  1. There are three light sensitive elements in the retina. Briefly describe their main functional and organizational differences. (2)
A

Rods: Most sensitive with broad spectrum and detect black and white.
Cones: Selective and less sensitive, detect colors.
Ganglion cells: No spectral sensitivity, just light/dark sensitive

30
Q
  1. What is rhodopsin? (1)
A

Rhodopsin is the photopigment responsible for phototransduction in rods.

31
Q
  1. Which layer of the primary visual cortex (V1) receives the bulk of the thalamic input from the lateral geniculate nucleus (LGN)? (1)
A

Layer 4

32
Q
  1. Name each of the brain vesicles at the 5 vesicle stage of development from anterior to posterior. (2)
A

telencephalon, diencephalon, mesencephalon, metencephalon, myelincephalon

33
Q
  1. What is the name of the thalamic nucleus that the main input to the prefrontal cortex? (1)
A

mediodorsal nucleus

34
Q
  1. What is the name of the sulcus that forms the divide between the sensory (afferent) and the motor (efferent) domains of the cerebral cortex? (1)
A

Central sulcus

35
Q
  1. The frontal cortex has been linked to some higher order functions. Name two. (2)
A

memory, emotions, motor function

36
Q
  1. Which nucleus is considered to be the brain’s central clock, and where is it found? (1)
A

The suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN) of the anterior hypothalamus

37
Q
  1. What are the three main pathological changes seen in the brains of patients with Alzheimer’s disease? (3)
A

Cell loss/atrophy, amyloid (or senile) plaques, neurofibrillary tangles.

38
Q
  1. Give the names of the two main ascending somatosensory pathways. Describe the main differences between these two with respect to type of information carried by them and their routes by which they reach the somatosensory cortex. (4).
A

A: The cuneate/gracilis dorsal column ascending pathways 0.5 that carry proprioceptice and touch information 0.5 to the dorsal column nuclei ipsilaterally 0.5, synaptic relay, axons cross, continue in the medial lemniscus toward ventral posterior thalamus nucleus 0.5, synaptic relay axons through thalamic peduncle into internal capsule to prim somatosensory cortex 0.5. The anterolateral ascending system (synaptic relay in dorsal horn) that crosses 0.5, ascends and terminates in VP 0.5 rest is the same. This carries pain, temperature and some course touch 0.5.

39
Q
  1. Describe the three different types of nociceptors and the stimuli they respond to.
A 
High-threshold mechanoreceptor (tear, stretch etc.) 
Polymodal nociceptor (intense mechanical stimuli, heat, chemical)
Thermal nociceptors (heat/cold)
40
Q
  1. In taste receptor cells, the T2R receptors are specialized for detecting bitter substances.
    True or false.
A

True

41
Q
  1. Astrocytes contain glycogen. True or false.
A

True

42
Q
  1. Glutamine is a neurotransmitter. True or false.
A

False

43
Q
  1. Long-term potentiation (LTP) and long-term depression (LTD) both depend on influx of Ca2+-ions to the postsynaptic cell. True or false.
A

true

44
Q
  1. Long-term sensitization in Aplysia requires activation of the transcription-factor CREB1. True or false.
A

True

45
Q
  1. Increasing the diameter of an axon, causes the membrane resistance to decrease, thereby slowing the action potential. True or false.
A

False

46
Q
  1. The nodes of Ranvier normally have a high density of voltage sensitive sodium channels. True or false.
A

True

47
Q
  1. The primary somatosensory cortex is somatotopically organized. This means that the number of neurons representing a small part of the body is fewer than the number of neurons representing a large part of the body. True or false.
A

False

48
Q
  1. On-center ganglion cells fire in response to a dark spot in their receptive field center. True or False
A

False

49
Q
  1. In mammals, chromosomes are present in the nucleus. True or false.
A

True

50
Q
  1. Energy is needed to maintain the resting membrane potential. True or false.
A

True

51
Q
  1. The amplitude of the action potential decays with distance travelled along the axon. True or False
A

False

52
Q
  1. The sympathetic cell bodies that provide the major sympathetic innervations of the bladder are located in the spinal cord at sacral levels. True or false.
A

False

53
Q
  1. The cerebral cortex of the brain is defined as the outer portion that is covered by meningeal layers. True or false.
A

False

54
Q
  1. The mammillary bodies of the hypothalamus are involved in maintaining postural balance. True or false.
A

False

55
Q
  1. The pituitary develops solely as a derivative of the neural tube. True or false.
A

False

56
Q
  1. The pineal gland or epiphysis is the main site in the brain for the production of adrenalin. True or false.
A

False

57
Q
  1. The thalamic reticular nucleus sends widespread projections to frontal and parietal cortices. True or False
A

False

58
Q
  1. BOLD fMRI has a relatively good time resolution? True or False
A

False

59
Q
  1. The vomeronasal system is mainly devoted to processing of pheromones. True of false.
A

True

60
Q
  1. The olfactory bulb is the target organ of the olfactory nerve fibers. True or false
A

True

61
Q
  1. The notochord contains the signal to induce the folding of the neural tube. True or false.
A

yes

62
Q
  1. In the six-layered cortex, neurons in layer 2 are the ones that during development are generated first. True or false.
A

False

63
Q
  1. The superior colliculus is relevant for vestibulo-ocular reflexes. True or false.
A

True

64
Q
  1. Sensory neurons in the dorsal root ganglia are neurons that originate from the neural crest. True or false.
A

Yes

65
Q
  1. The Hodgkin and Huxley model shows that electricity flowing through a copper wire is a good description of how action potentials travel along axons. True or false.
A

false

66
Q
  1. Extracellular ATP has an inhibitory effect on nociceptors. True or false.
A

False

67
Q
  1. Slow, burning pain is mediated through unmyelinated C-fibers. True or false.
A

True

Introduction to neuroscience (19 decks)

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