Lecture 1: Introduction Flashcards
What is Neurology?
The medical specialty encompassing diseases, conditions and infections of the nervous system
What is Neurology usually associated with?
Physical changes in the nervous system. A biological or organic change in the nervous system
What is Psychiatry?
A medical specialty encompassing the diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of mental illnesses and includes addiction and substance abuse disorders
What changes in the NS are seen in Psychiatry?
Physical changes in the NS are not usually obvious
What is Neuroscience?
The scientific study of the brain and nervous system
What century did the scientific studies on the brain occur?
The 17th century
When did the scientific study of the brain branch into neurology and psychiatry?
Between the 19th and 20th centuries
What century was Clinical neuroscience developed?
The 21st century
When was the Society for Neuroscience formed?
1969
What was the first early idea about brain function in ~300 BC?
People recognized that the brain is the major controlling center in the body as opposed to the heart
What did Galen do in ~100 BC?
- Galen examined brains by vivisections in animals and introduced the idea of spirits (pneumata) circulating between liver, heart and brain and produced movement
- The seat of the rational soul was in the brain
Who was Al-Zahrawi?
- Pioneer of neurosurgery
* First description of surgery to relieve hydrocephalus
Who was Avicenna?
- The father of modern medicine
- The Cannon of Medicine (medical encyclopedia)
- Early identification of schizophrenia
What did Andreus Vesalius do?
- Founded modern anatomy
* Discovered that critical features of Galen’s anatomy were incorrect
What gland did Descartes put emphasis on?
The pineal gland
What three major concepts were promoted by Descartes?
- Only humans have a thinking mind
- Dualism
- Mind and body interact in the pineal gland
What does Dualism presented by Descartes say?
Mind and Body are separate
How did Descartes suggest mind and body interact in the pineal gland?
Movement of the gland direct the flow of spirits through the nervous system
What was proven about all of Descartes concepts?
They were all false
What was the Renaissance driven by?
The idea that natural laws can explain the working of the material world
What did Luigi Galvani do?
Obtained indirect evidence for intrinsic electrical activity in the nervous system
Who was the founder of modern neurology?
Jean-Martin Charcot
What are some things that Jean-Martin Charcot did?
- Carefully examined nervous systems in post mortems
* Described/classified features of many disorders (MS, parkinsons, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis)
What did Santiago Ramon y Cajal do?
- Golgi staining to reveal the structure of individual nerve cells
- Concept of unidirectional flow of information along nerve cells
What did Charles Sherrington say?
- Behaviour could be explained by networks of neurons
- Said the complex behaviours could be reduced to simpler components
- Discovered inhibition in the nervous system
- Introduced the term synapse
What is the unconditioned stimulus in Pavlov?
Food
What is the unconditioned response in Pavlov?
Salivation
What is the Conditioned stimulus in pavlov?
The Bell
What is the Conditioned Response in Pavlov?
Salivation
What kind of conditioning does skinner box cause?
Operant conditioning
What does a Skinner Box do?
Delivers a reinforcers after a desired response. This reinforced behavior that is closer to the target behavior
What is important about Rita Levi-Montalcini?
She identified NGF as critical for neuronal survival and outgrowth
What was Milner Important for?
- Foundational studies on the brain and behavior
- Patient HM, the man who couldn’t make new memories
- Importance of the hippocampus for the formation of new memories
What was Barres important for?
Foundational studies on the importance of glia for proper CNS function
