Limbic System Flashcards
What is emotion?
Subjective feelings and associated physiological states
What are subjective feelings?
explicit conscious awareness, such as fear, anxiety,
happiness
Are physiologic states of emotion implicit or explicit?
Implicit (unconscious)
What are the two components of the physiologic part of emotion?
Skeletal muscle activity
Visceral activity
What are the two characteristics of the limbic system that make it ideal for regulating emotions?
Connects cortex and lower parts of the brain
What are the affective responses of the limbic system?
Fear
Rage
Pleasure
Motivation
True or false: the limbic system plays no role in memory
False–critical for certain types of memory
What is the role of the limbic system in homeostasis? (4)
Reproductive drive
Eating/drinking
Endocrine
Autonomic regulation
What are the main components of the limbic system?
Cingulate gyrus Hippocampus Hypothalamus Amygdala Olfactory system Septal nuclei Insula Thalamus
What are the two nuclei of the thalamus that are a part of the limbic system?
Anterior nucleus
Mediodorsal nucleus
What are the three parts of the limbic cortex?
- Anterior cingulate gyrus
- Orbitofrontal, medial prefrontal cortex
- Insula
What is the primary output of the limbic system?
Hypothalamus
What is the higher part of the brain that the amygdala is connected to?
Limbic cortex
What is the role of the hypothalamus in the limbic system?
governs and monitors internal homeostasis and
basic needs such as hunger and thirst.
Higher order limbic nuclei (e.g. amygdala, hippocampus), do what?
achieve
some awareness of external reality and begin to form memories.
What is the role of the limbic cortex?
more efficiently, effectively, and safely satisfy
limbic needs and impulses; associated with the conscious, rational
mind.
True or false: Under certain circumstances, emotions can hijack the logical mind,
and the limbic system can overturn the neocortex
True
What part of the brain utilizes dopamine?
Mesolimbic system
What are the parts of the mesolimbic system?
NAcc, mPFC, septal nuclei
Nigrostriatal projections
What neurotransmitter does the Locus ceruleus use?
NE
What neurotransmitter does the raphe nuclei use?
5HT
What neurotransmitter do the nucleus basalis and septal nuclei use?
Ach
True or false: the hypothalamus is fully functional at birth
True
How is the hypothalamus involved in the emotional response?
Through the ANS
What are the two way the hypothalamus send information?
Neuronal circuitry
Endocrine
The hypothalamus can mediate body responses between internal and external information. What is the part of the brain that is necessary for conscious appreciation of stimuli, and emotional response?
Limbic system
What is the role of the amygdala?
Integrative center for emotions, emotional behavior, and
motivation
What are the three groups of nuclei in the amygdala?
- Corticomedial nucleus
- Basolateral nucleus
- Central nucleus
What are the major inputs into the amygdala? (4)
Sensory cortex
Sensory thalamus
Associative cortex
Prefrontal cortex
What are the two outputs of the basolateral nucleus of the amygdala?
Thalamus
Basal ganglia