Lecture 1 & 2 : Organisation Of The Nervous System + CNS Structure Flashcards

1
Q

How many neurons roughly are there and does the number change?

A
  • 86 Billion Neurons
  • Not making anymore, can’t replace but need to repair
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2
Q

What is the prefrontal cortex responsible for?

A
  • Forward Planning, decision making —> setting goals
  • Also grows the last -> needs myelination
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3
Q

What are Ependymal cells?

A
  • Type of glial cell that line the fluid filled spaces in brain and spinal cord.
  • Produce cerebrospinal fluid
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4
Q

What are neuroglia?

A
  • Cells that provide metabolic support or immune protection for neurones
  • 10x as many neuroglia than neurons
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5
Q

What are the types of neuroglia in the Central nervous system (Brain and Spinal Cord) and the peripheral nervous system?

A
  • Ependymal cells
  • Oligodendrocytes
  • Astrocytes
  • Microglia
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6
Q

What are Oligodendrocytes and what are their functions?

A
  • Produce myelin which are protective and insulating sheaths over nerve fibres (axons)
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7
Q

What are Astrocytes and what are their functions?

A
  • Star shaped cells
  • Have connection to blood vessels and maintains homeostasis of blood flow, transmitters, extracellular ions for neurons
  • Formation and support of the blood brain barrier
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8
Q

What are microglia and what are their function?

A
  • Fight off infection
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9
Q

What are some of the features of a neurone?

A
  • Dendrites
  • Nucleus
  • Cell body (soma)
  • Axon hillock
  • Axon
  • Node of Ranvier
  • Myelin
  • Terminal boutons (axon terminals)
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10
Q

What are the function of dendrites?

A
  • Tree branch like structure from cell body
  • Receive electrical impulses from other neuron’s and the environment in the form of chemical messengers (neurotransmitters)
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11
Q

What is an axon hillock and node of ranvier?

A
  • Axon Hillock: Bump in cell body that takes all the signals/ info and decides if it will pass the message or not
  • Node of ranvier: Gaps in the myelin sheath in the axon. Allows ions to diffuse in and out propagating electrical signalling. Action potential happens in these gaps
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12
Q

What is the direction of flow of info in a neuron?

A
  • Unidirectional
  • Flows from dendrites/ cell body to axon terminal
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13
Q

What are some features of a neuronal synapses?

A
  • Presynaptic axon terminal and post synaptic dendrite
  • Mitochondria
  • Synapse and synaptic cleft
  • Synaptic Vesicles and receptors
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14
Q

What do the words anterior, posterior, superior, dorsal, ventral and inferior mean

A
  • Anterior: In front of
  • Posterior: Behind
  • Superior: Higher/ above
  • Dorsal: Relating to the back/ posterior of structure
  • Ventral: In front and lower side (abdomen)
  • Inferior: Lower/ below
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15
Q

What are the main brain structures?

A
  • Cortex: outer layer of cerebrum (brain)
  • Gyrus: Raised tissue layer of cortex
  • Sulcus: Trough of cortex
  • Cerebellum
  • Brainstem: Connects brain to spinal cord
  • Spinal Cord
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16
Q

What is the Cerebellum important for?

A
  • Mini brain and contains more neurons that rest of brain
  • Co-ordinating movement and balance, language processing and memory (cognitive)
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17
Q

What does grey matter and white matter consist of?
+ what is a longitudinal fissure

A
  • Grey matter: Dendrites and Cell body of neurons
  • White matter: Axons and myelin sheaths make it white
  • Groove in the middle that separates 2 hemispheres of the brain
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18
Q

What are the 4 lobes of the brain?

A
  • Frontal
  • Parietal
  • Temporal
  • Occipital
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19
Q

What is the Frontal Lobe responsible for?

A
  • Motor control (movement)
  • forward planning/ decision making
  • recognition of smell
  • speech
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20
Q

What is the parietal lobe responsible for?

A
  • Identify objects
  • Pain and touch sensations
  • Understanding speech
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21
Q

What is the occipital lobe responsible for?

A
  • Vision
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22
Q

What is the temporal lobe responsible for?

A
  • Short term memory
  • Hearing
  • Smell recognition
23
Q

What are some features seen on the inside of the brain and what do they do?

A
  • Corpus Callosum: Thick bundle of nerve fibres that connect the 2 hemispheres together
  • Thalamus: Receives sensory info except smell and distributes to brain
  • Hypothalamus: Releases hormones
  • Pituitary Gland: Dumps hormones into blood stream
  • Midbrain, Pons, Medulla oblongata (brain stem)
24
Q

What is the Cerebrospinal fluid?

A
  • Flows from ventricles to subarachnoid space, reabsorbed into blood in dural sinuses through arachnoid villi.
  • Fills ventricles (cavities) in brain and absorb shock
  • A medium for nutrient and waste exchange
  • Formed in choroid plexus (network of capillaries in the pia mater) and Ependymal cells
25
Q

What are the divisions of the nervous system?

A
  • Central nervous system: Brain and spinal cord
  • Peripheral nervous system: Everything outside the CNS
26
Q

What are the major structures of the nervous system

A
  • Brain
  • Spinal Cord
  • Cranial Nerves
  • Spinal Nerves
  • Ganglia
  • Enteric Plexuses
  • Peripheral Nerves
  • Sensory receptors
27
Q

What are the names and functions of the sub divisions of peripheral nervous system?

A
  • Autonomic Nervous System: involuntary control, regulates processes (homeostasis) (HR, BP, digestion, breathing rate)
  • Somatic Nervous System: Voluntary (muscle movement and sensory info from skin)
28
Q

What are the divisions of the autonomic nervous system?

A
  • Parasympathetic: Rest and digest (cranio-sacral outflow)
  • Sympathetic: Fight or Flight (thoraco-lumbar outflow)
29
Q

What is the layer that wraps around the brain called and what are the 3 layers of tissue called?

A
  • The meninges
  • 3 layers called Dura mater, arachnoid mater and pia mater
30
Q

What is the dura mater and what does it cover?

A
  • Outermost layer - protecting from outside
  • Consisting of periosteal layer and meningeal layer
  • Tough outer layer
  • Continuous with epineurium of the spinal nerves
31
Q

What is the arachnoid layer?

A
  • Second layer
  • Thin membrane and wispy
32
Q

What is the pia mater layer?

A
  • Bound tightly to the surface and covering brain
  • Forms the filum terminale which anchors spinal cord to coccyx (last bone of the bottom base of the spine)
  • Form the denticulate ligaments that attach the spinal cord to durability
33
Q

Why are the different spaces called in the brain?

A
  • Epidural: external to the dura
  • Subdural space : serous fluid
  • Subarachnoid : between pia and arachnoid. Filled with CSF
34
Q

What are the 3 major vessels that supply the brain ?

A
  • Internal carotid arteries: supply anterior and middle parts
  • Vertebral arteries: Supply posterior part. Branching from subclavian artery and merge to form basilar
  • Basilar artery: supplies brain stem and cerebellum as contributes to posterior supply. Union of vertebral.
35
Q

What is the Blood brain barrier and how is it formed?

A
  • A highly selective permeable membrane.
  • Separates circulating blood from brain
  • Formed by capillary endothelial cells, which are connected by tight junctions
36
Q

What is the function of the blood brain barrier?

A
  • Allows passage of water, some gases, lipid soluble molecules by passive diffusion
  • Selective transport of molecules (glucose/AA) for neural function)
  • Prevent neurotoxins and drug entry by way of an active transport mechanism mediated by P-glycoproteins
37
Q

What is one of the roles of Astrocytes foot processes in the blood brain barrier and why is useful?

A
  • Astrocytes feet sécrète parachronisme that promote tight junction formation
  • Tight junctions prevent solute movement between endothelial cells
38
Q

What structures does the hindbrain contain?

A
  • Cerebellum
  • Pons
  • Medulla oblongata
39
Q

What structures does the midbrain contain?

A
  • Tectum: superior colliculi (vision) and inferior colliculi (hearing)
  • Tegmentum: Substantia Nigra, periaqueductal grey
40
Q

What structures does the Forebrain contain?

A
  • Telencephalon: cerebral cortex, limbic system etc
  • Diencephalon: thalamus, hypothalamus, pituitary and pineal gland
41
Q

What are the main 3 specialisations of the cerebral cortex?

A
  • Sensory areas
  • Motor areas
  • Association areas: integrate info from sensory and motor areas, can direct voluntary behaviours
42
Q

Where is the primary somatosensory cortex and what is its function?

A
  • Post central gyrus of parietal lobe behind central sulcus. Behind primary motor cortex
  • Detecting and processing sensory info from the body
43
Q

Where is the primary motor cortex and what is its function?

A
  • Located in the precentral gurus
  • Made of pyrimidal cells whose axons make corticospinal tract
  • Consious control of precise movements
44
Q

Name some higher brain centres involved in motor control

A
  • Somatosensory cortex
  • Motor cortex (M1)
  • Supplementary area (SMA)
  • Pre motor area (PMA)
45
Q

What does the Limbic system control and what are the main features in it?

A
  • Limbic System: motivation, learning and memory
  • Cingulate Gyrus: Co-ordinates senses to emotions and pain
  • Hippocampus: Learning and memory
  • Amygdala: emotional responses and linking emotions with memory
46
Q

What is the role of the hypothalamus (below thalamus)

A
  • Recieves sensory inputs
  • Sends neural outputs to motor control nuclei & sympathetic/parasympathetic nervous systems
  • Sends neural and hormonal outputs to pituitary
  • Regulates body temp, thirst, urine output
47
Q

What does the midbrain control?

A
  • Visual and auditory systems
  • Portions of midbrain called red nucleus and substantia nigra (dark pigments contain dopamine producing neurons) involved in control of body movement
  • Degeneration of neurons in substantia nigra is associated with Parkinson’s disease
48
Q

What are the 3 important parts of cerebellum and what do they do?

A
  • Vestibulocerebellum - balance and control of eye movement
  • Spinocerebellum - Enhances muscle tone and co-ordinates skilled voluntary movement
  • Cerebrocerebelum - Planning and initiation of voluntary activity by providing input to cortical motor areas involved in procedural memories
49
Q

What is the Pons in the hindbrain responsible for?

A
  • Motor control and sensory analysis
  • Acts as sensory/motor relay centre
  • Support control respiration
  • Maintain sleep wake cycle
50
Q

What is the Medulla oblongata responsible for in the hindbrain?

A
  • Contains relay stations and reflex centres
  • Contains cardiovascular (regulates rate and force of heartbeat) and respiratory (basic breathing rhythm) rhythmicity centres
  • Acts as a protective system that eliminates things through sneezing and coughing
51
Q

Where is the reticular activating system and what does it control?

A
  • Network of neurons in the brain stem (hindbrain)
  • Arousal, sleep, pain and muscle tone (alertness and wakefulness)
  • Ascending fibre sends signals upward
  • Arouses and activates cerebral cortex
52
Q

Describe the pathway when a hammer is hit on the tendon of the knee

A
  • Stimulus: Hit
  • Receptors: Muscle spindle stretches and fires
  • Afferent path: action potential travels through sensory neuron
  • Integrating centre: Sensory neuron synapses in spinal cord
  • Efferent path 1: quadriceps muscle stretch, efferent path 2: hamstring muscle inhibited
53
Q

What are the roles of the basal nuclei?

A
  • Inhibition of muscle tone
  • Co-ordination of slow, sustained movements
  • Suppression of useless movements