Lectures 4 & 5 Flashcards
What are the two types of declarative memory?
Semantic and Episodic
Does the hippocampus receive and information directly from the outside world?
Nope, it all comes from the entorhinal cortex
Describe the pathway of the trisynaptic circuit
Entorhinal cortex to Dentate Gyrus via Perforant Path
Dentate Gyrus to CA3 Pyramidal Cells via Mossy fibers
CA3 pyramidal Cells to CA1 pyramidal cells via Schaffer Collaterals
Describe the set up for measuring LTP
Place a stimulating electrode on a pathway and a reading electrode on it’s end point in the extracellular space. Release a weak stim via theta bursts to get a baseline of reaction. Then release a STRONG stim via theta burst. Then test the same weak stim as you did during baseline to see the increase in synaptic activity
If the cell is achieving activation, what would we expect the extracellular charge to become?
Far less positive
What is the artifact caused by?
The sound of activation the machine
What is the fiber volley caused by?
Stimulation
The steeper the slope the ____ the cell activation
Greater
What is the extracellular matrix composed of?
Molecules synthesized and secreted by neurons and glial cells
What does the Post-Synaptic Density do?
Help bind the pre and post-synaptic neuron AND to position signaling molecules near glutamate receptors so that they can be activated and lead to long term change
What does the PSD contain?
Glutamate receptors, ion channels, signaling enzymes, and scaffolding proteins
What is an important scaffolding protein?
PSD-95
Besides PSD-95, what are some important proteins in the synapse?
- actin (provides scaffolding)
- functional proteins (enzymes that catalyze reactions and modify other proteins)
- endosomes (move receptors in and out of membrane)
- ribosomes (important for translating new protein)
- smooth ER (sequester and release calcium)
What kind of synapses are the main driver of LTP?
Excitatory synapses (glutamate receptors)
What does LTP represent?
An increase in synaptic strength (the amount of postsynaptic depolarization produced by the stimulus)