Fundamentals of Neuroscience: Final Lectures 20-24 Flashcards
Motor control: Red muscle fibers are large numbers of ________ and ________, slow to contract and can sustain contraction. Antigravity muscles of the leg and torso.
mitochondria and enzymes
White muscle fibers are ______ (fast or slow) fibers. They have fewer __________ and contract and fatigue _________. These are the arm muscles.
Fast fibers, have fewer mitochondria and contract and fatigue rapidly.
In regards to white muscle fibers, FR fibers are
White fibers with moderate strength and fast contractions.
In regards to white muscle fibers, FF muscle fibers are
The fastest, strongest white fibers, but rapidly fatiguing.
Each motor unit (the motor neuron and all the muscle fibers it innervates) contains muscle fibers of ___________. (multiple type/single type)
Only a single type.
A single action potential triggers variable contractions. (True/False)
True
Repeated trains of AP’s lead to different rates of fatigue. (True/False)
True
Varying the amount of activity of muscles can change muscle fibers. There are two terms for this; _______ and ________.
Hypertrophy and Atrophy.
Crossed-innervation is
When nerve input is switched, i.e; there is a switch in muscle phenotype, which can be induced simply by changing the activity in the motor neuron.
Muscle Fiber Structure: When are muscle fibers formed?
Early in fetal development via the fusion of muscle precursor cells.
Each muscle cell has more than one nucleus. (True/False)
True.
Muscle fibers are enclosed by an excitable cell membrane called the
sarcolemma.
Within the muscle fiber are a number of cylindrical structures called _________, which contract.
myofibrils
What are the steps of muscle excitation/contraction coupling?
- Alpha motor neurons release ACh
- ACh produces large EPSP in muscle fibers.
- EPSP evokes muscle action potential.
- Action potential triggers Ca2+ release.
- Fiber contracts.
- Ca2+ reuptake
- Fiber consequently relaxes.
Myofibrils are divided into segments or disks by _______ lines.
Z lines
What is a sarcomere?
Two Z lines and a myofibril
A series of bristles anchored to Z lines are called
Thin filaments
Thick filaments exist where?
Between and among thin filaments.
Where does muscle contraction occur?
Muscle contraction occurs when the thin filaments slide along the thick filaments, bringing adjacent Z lines towards one another.
Steps in Excitation-Contraction Coupling: Sliding-Filament Assay Model
Binding of Ca2+ causes myosin (thick filament protein) to bind to actin (thin filament protein)
The Myosin “heads” pivot, causing the filaments to slide.
ATP unlocks this interaction.
Repetition of process “walks” myosin heads along filament.
Death does not cause stiffening of the muscles. (True/False)
False. Death DOES cause stiffening of the muscles.
Deep within the skeleton muscles are specialized structures known as ______.
spindles
Spindles serve what purpose?
Sensory feedback from muscle spindles = Stretch receptor
The spindles and their associated Ia axons are specialized for the detection of changes in muscle length (stretch) and are examples of proprioceptors (“body sense”).
The stretch reflex is regarded as an ______________.
Antigravity feedback loop.
A weight is placed on a muscle, the muscle spindles are stretched. This leads to depolarizaiton of the Ia axon endings due to the opening of mechanosensitive ion channels. As a result, increased action potential discharge of the Ia axons synaptically depolarizes the alpha motor neurons.
This causes the muscle to contract, thereby shortening it.
This system is known as the
Stretch Reflex
Example of a Stretch Reflex:
Knee-jerk reflex.
Muscle pulled -> Tendency to pull back.
Discharge of Ia sensory axons is closely related to the length of the muscle. I.e; As the muscle is stretched, the discharge rate goes up.
As the muscle is shortened and returns back, the discharge rate goes down.
This is a feedback loop with monosynpatic transmission to motor neuron.
Many inputs to motor neurons are mediated by ____________________.
spinal interneurons
Contraction of one muscle set is accompanied by the relaxation of an antagonistic muscle. This type of inhibition is called
Reciprocal inhibition
When withdrawing a limb from an adverse or aversive stimulus, your body uses a
flexor reflex.
The flexor reflex requires an excitatory input. (True/False)
True.
Describe the circuitry of the flexor reflex.
An aversive stimulus activates interneurons in several different spinal segments. These cells eventually excite the motor neurons that control ALL OF THE flexor muscles of the affected limb.
What is the crossed-extensor reflex?
The crossed-extensor reflex is the activation of extensor muscles and inhibition of flexors on opposite sides during flexor reflex.
The purpose of this is to compensate for the extra load imposed by limb withdrawal.
Spinal Control of Motor Units:
What are the circuits that give rise to rhythmic motor activity?
Central Pattern Generators
What are some examples of central pattern generators?
Spinal motor programs for walking (stride)
Circuitry for walking resides in the spinal cord, the rhythmic activity in spinal interneurons.
Coordination between the two depends on multiple mechanisms.
Rhythmic activity in a spinal interneuron: In the resting state, the channels are ______.
Glutamate causes the NMDA receptors to open, depolarize and allows a ________ influx.
_______ activated K+ channels open. The K+ efflux, hyperpolarization. The hyperpolarization allows ______ to enter and clog the NMDA channel, arresting the flow of ________.
As ___________ falls, the K+ channels close, resetting the membrane for another oscillation.
closed, Ca2+, Ca2+,Mg2+, Ca2+, Ca2+
Possible circuit for rhythmic alternating activity:
A steady input excites two interneurons that connect to the motor neurons
controlling the flexors and extensors, respectively.
* The interneurons respond by bursts of outputs. The activity of these
interneurons alternates because they inhibit each other via interneurons.
* Activity in one interneuron strongly inhibits the other, and vice versa.
* The movements of the opposite limb could be coordinated so that flexion
on one side is accompanied by extension on the other.
The Brain is a product of two mutually interacting factors: __________ and ______________
Heredity/Gene/Genetics and Environment/Life experience/Epigenetics
A diagnosable disorder of thought, mood, or behavior that causes distress or impaired function is called a
mental illness
Two prior beliefs about mental illness include: _______ and _______
Disorders of the body and disorders of the mind
Current belief in regards to mental illness:
Most disorders of mood, thought, and behavior have biological explanations.
An adaptive response to threatening situations. This can be innate and species-specific, while others may be learned.
Fear
This disorder is caused by inappropriate expressions of fear and is the most common of psychiatric disorders.
Anxiety disorders
Fear evoked by a threatening stimulus is known as a _________.
stressor
The hallmark of anxiety is the occurrence of an inappropriate stress response either when a stressor is not present or when it is not immediately threatening. (True/False)
True
List common symptoms of a stress response:
Avoidance behavior
Increased vigilance and arousal
Activation of the sympathetic division of the autonomic nervous system
Release of cortisol from the adrenal glands
Humoral response: Hypothalamic Pituitary-Adrenal (HPA) Axis includes
The Hypothalamus corticotropin-releasing hormone (CRH)
Anterior pituitary: Adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH)
Adrenal Cortex: Cortisol (A glucocorticoid)
Both the _______ and ______ regulate the HPA Axis.
Amygdala and Hippocampus
The Amygdala ________ (activates/deactivates) the HPA axis.
activates
The hippocampus ________ (activates/deactivates) the HPA axis.
Deactivates
Describe the Push-Pull Regulation of the HPA Axis.
The Amygdala activation stimulates the HPA system and the stress response.
The Hippocampal activation suppresses the HPA System.
The Hippocampus has glucocorticoid receptors that are sensitive to circulating cortisol, feedback regulation of the HPA axis in preventing excessive cortisol release.
Amygdala —> + [HPA] - <— Hippocampus