Lecture 2 - Brain and Cognition Flashcards
What makes up the CNS
brain and spinal cord
role of CNS
control centre
integration
what makes up the PNS
cranial and spinal nerves
role of PNS
communication lines between CNS and rest of body
basic makeup of brain in colours
white - white matter
grey - grey matter
black - substantial nigra
red - blood vessels
dorsal
towards back
above midbrain: superior
below midbrain: posterior
dorsal stream
how stream
stream for action
ventral
towards the belly;
above the midbrain: inferior,
below: anterior
ventral stream
what stream
conceptual/semantic processing
what is the dual stream hypothesis in?
vision, hearing, language, math etc
blood-brain barrier
semi-permeable membrane that protects the brain from harmful substances
meninges
connect brain & skull, produce CSF, host vessels to deliver blood to CNS
pia mater – arachnoid mater – dura mater
cerebrospinal fluid (CSF)
in ventricles & sub- arachnoid space: “brain’s cushion”, waste removal, circulation of nutrients
fissures
deep grooves that separates major regions of the brain
o transverse fissure separates cerebrum and cerebellum
o longitudinal fissure/interhemispheric fissure separates hemispheres
sulci
grooves
make up the folded surface of the cerebral cortex
gyri
folds, ridges
make up the folded surface of the cerebral cortex
pattern of gyri
- overall pattern of main gyri and sulci is not random; it is the same for humans, details may differ from one person to the other
part of brain affected in Parkinson’s
o Parkinson’s disease is a slowly progressive disorder that affects movement, muscle control and balance
* Cells destroyed particularly in substantia nigra part of brain stem
grey matter
- Surface of hemisphere/cerebellum + deep grey matter
- Cortex: outer layer of grey matter
white matter
o Long-range axons (fibres) connecting regions
o Fibres usually myelinated making them white and fast
o Fibres bundled into fibre tracts
3 types of fibres
projection, association and commissural fibres
projection fibres
connect cortex with other areas in CNS like deep nuclei or brainstem. They run vertically.
association fibres
intrahemispheric tracts - within one hemisphere, cortex-cortex connections)
* Arcuate fasciculus (Broca’s-Geschwind’s-Wernicke’s areas connections) (left pic)
commissural fibres
cross the midline, connecting the same cortical area in opposite hemispheres (right-left hemispheric connections) (right pic)
plasticity
- The ability of the nervous system to modify its structural organisation and its function throughout an individual’s lifetime
neurons
- Cells that communicate with each other and perform information-processing tasks
- Billions of neurons and thousands of varieties
synapses
- Allow transmission of nervous impulse from one neuron to another
- Connections between neurons vary in strength based on different factors like the number of synapses and amount of chemicals that pas between them
synaptic plasticity
- The ability of synapses to emerge, strengthen or weaken over time, in response to increases or decreases in their activity
brain development
- Develops from a simple neural tube into a complicated structure with a distinct and complex folding pattern
synaptogenesis
massive overproduction of synapses (starting ~23 weeks of gestational age)
pruning
loss of synapses, highly dependent on experience
Hebbian learning
cells that fire together wire together
function of frontal lobe
o motor movement & planning speech production
o complex cognitive behaviour
o decision making
o problem solving
o emotion regulation
o Personality
o executive functions
o working memory
o inhibition
o shifting attention
function of parietal lobe
o touch, taste, pain, temperature
o proprioception
o attention
o spatial orientation & planning
o movement control
o speech comprehension
function of temporal lobe
o long-term memory
o speech comprehension
o face recognition
o place recognition
o emotional regulation
o Hearing
o smell
function of occipital lobe
o visual processing
o local orientation
o size, shape, colour
function of brainstem
breathing
HR
temperature
function of cerebellum
posture
balance
motor control
learning
function of basal ganglia
motor control
motor learning
reward processing
function of thalamus
relay station
function of limbic system
emotional processing
memory
reward evaluation
function of primary motor cortex
motor execution (homunculus,
somatotopic organisation)
function of premotor cortex and supplementary motor area
motor planning, sensorimotor integration
function of frontal eye lids
control voluntary eye movements
function of brocas area
speech production; close proximity to hand & mouth area of the motor cortex
function of basal ganglia
motor control (start, stop, regulate intensity of voluntary movement), motor learning (e.g., writing)
function of wernicke’s area
speech perception/comprehension
