Experience-dependent plasticity

Question 1

Non-associative learning is learning based on ____ experience with a ____

Answer 1

repeated, stimulus

Question 2

What does the term habituation mean?

Answer 2

Decrease in effect

Question 3

The term sensitisation means ____ in ____

Answer 3

Increase in effect

Question 4

What is associative learning?

Answer 4

Learning relationships between stimuli, behaviours and/or events

Question 5

What are the 2 types of conditioning?

Answer 5

1. Respondent (Type 1) conditioning
2. Operant (Type 2) conditioning

Question 6

What are two subtypes of declarative/explicit memories?

Answer 6

Semantic - factual knowledge about world
Episodic - events, autobiographical

Question 7

What are two types of non-declarative/implicit memory?

Answer 7

Procedural - if… then… memories
Skill learning, conditioning, non-associative

Question 8

What did small vs large lesions of cortical areas result in?

Answer 8

Discrete lesions of cortical areas did not interfere with maze learning, but large areas of damage did

Question 9

What is the “Principle of Equipotentiality”?
All ____ regions can ____ learning ____

Answer 9

cortical, mediate, equally

Question 10

What is the “Principle of Mass action”?
Ability to ____ is ____ to the amount of ____ available

Answer 10

learn, proportional, cortex

Question 11

What types of memory are the following brain areas storage areas for?
1. Hippocampus
2. Cerebellum
3. Amygdala
4. Frontal cortex

Answer 11

1. Declarative and spatial memories
2. Procedural memories
3. Emotional memories
4. Short-term/working memory

Question 12

What did Pavlov’s cortical model state about memories?
Formation of ____ creates new ____ ____

Answer 12

associations, cortical connection

Question 13

What did raising rats in enriched enclosures increase?
1. ____ weight
2. Dendritic ____ and ____
3. Vascular ____
4. Number of ____ per neuron
5. ____ volume

Answer 13

1. Brain
2. length, complexity
3. volume
4. synapses
5. Mitochondrial

Question 14

What did Cajal propose stores memories?
S____/m____ c____ store memories

Answer 14

Structural/morphological changes store memories

Question 15

Fill in the gaps about synaptic basis of memory
1. New s____ could be generated to store s______ new memories
2. Existing synapses could be m________ to store the memories
3. A p____ of new synapses could be c________ generated in the brain, learning and memory i_________ them into a functional storage network

Answer 15

1. synapses, specific
2. modified
3. pool, continuously, incorporates

Question 16

Fill in the gaps about Donald Hebb’s ideas…
1. New synapses are a_______ and p_______ connected, but not part of a memory n_______
2. Upon appropriate a_______, synapses are “s________” and incorporated into a memory n__________

Answer 16

1. anatomically, physiologically, network
2. activation, strengthened, network

Question 17

What are three key points of Hebb’s ideas?
1. S____ pre and post ____ activity
2. Some sort of change in the ____ between the neurons
3. Increase in the ____ that pre synaptic neuron has over postsynaptic ____

Answer 17

1. Simultaneous, synaptic
2. connection
3. influence, activity

Question 18

What is the definition of habituation?

Answer 18

Learning suppression of a response to a repeated stimulus

Question 19

Long lasting changes in hippocampal synaptic efficacy were found following what?

Answer 19

High frequency (titanic) stimulation

Question 20

Tetanic stimulation and pavlovian conditioning produces l____-t____ p____ in amygdala?

Answer 20

Long-term potentiation (LTP)

Question 21

What is meant by the term neurogenesis?

Answer 21

The birth of new neurons

Question 22

What is the key quote that summarises Hebb’s idea?
Cells that ____ together, ____ together

Answer 22

Cells that fire together, wire together

Question 23

How does sholl analysis measure dendritic arbaritisation?

Answer 23

If dendrite of neuron passes enough circles, can assess length and therefore complexity of neuron
If has long and complicated neuron, likely to occur because connecting to something so arborisation of neurons implies more connections

Question 24

Synaptic spines are where c____ with other n____ occur

Answer 24

Where connections with other neurons occur

Question 25

Which mice are the dendrites thicker on?

Answer 25

Enriched mice (also more synaptic spines)

Question 26

How do neurons change through learning?
P__synaptic neurons have p____ changes that i____ the number of n____ v____
P__synaptic neruons therefore have more i____ c____ open and this means c____ between n____ is a lot more e____

Answer 26

Presynaptic neurons have physiological changes that increase the number of neurotransmitter vesicles
Postsynaptic neurons therefore have more ion channels open and this means communication between neurons is a lot more efficient

Question 27

What was found in snails in relation to habituation?

Answer 27

Eventually stopped withdrawing gills; had become habituated
BUT
sensory neuron still fired in the exact same way but neurotransmitter release was reduced in both direct and indirect pathways
(so habituation leads to decrease in neurotransmitter release)

Question 28

When does a conditioned emotional response occur?

Answer 28

When an animal learns to associate a stimulus with fear

Question 29

Briefly explain the neurochemical basis of long-term potentiation

Answer 29

presynaptic neuron releases more neurotransmitter as a result of this type of learning.
application of high frequency stimulation. Results in the postsynaptic neuron inserting More ample receptors on the postsynaptic membrane meaning there are more receptors available, more channels available. To open and to respond, to a neurotransmitter.
Part of what causes long term potentiation