Macroscopic & Microscopic Flashcards by Charlotte Bendelow

What makes up the CNS

Brain & Spinal cord

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Describe the brain structure

Forebrain (Prosencephalon) -
- Telencephalon (cerebral hemispheres)
- Diencephalon (thalamus/hypothalamus/pituitary/epithalamus/basal ganglia)

Midbrain (Mesencephalon)

Hindbrain (Rhombencephalon) -
- Metencephalon (cerebellum/pons)
- Myelencephalon (medulla oblongata)

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Describe the spinal cord structure

Cervical
Thoracic
Lumbar
Sacral
Coccygeal

Passes through vertebral foremen & terminates at L2 vertebrae

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Name the 4 main lobes of the brain

Frontal lobe
Temporal lobe
Parietal lobe
Occipital lobe

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What is the frontal lobe responsible for

Movements
Problem solving
Concentrating/thinking
Behaviour/personality/mood

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What is the temporal lobe responsible for

Hearing
Language
Memory

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What is the parietal lobe responsible for

Sensations
Language
Perception
Body awareness
Attention

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What is the occipital lobe responsible for

Vision
Perception

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What is the brain stem responsible for

Consciousness
Breathing
Heart rate

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What is the cerebellum responsible for

Posture
Balance
Coordination of movement

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What are the layers of the scalp

Skin
Subcutaneous connective tissue
Galea aponeurotica
Loose areolar connective tissue
Pericranium (periosteum)

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What are the meninges

3 protective layers of tissue. Protect the brain from trauma with CSF

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Name the 3 layers of meninges

PIA
ARACHNOID
DURA
(All matter)

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How do meninges sit in context

Deep to the skull, deep to the scalp

Epidural space - between skull & dura
Subdural space - between dura & arachnoid
Subarachnoid space

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What are the functions of the ventricles

Production, transport & removal of CSF

Protection
Buoyancy
Chemical stability

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The blood brain barrier function

Transmission of nutrients & oxygen to brain

Prevents toxins, pathogens, inflammation, injury & disease effecting CNS tissue/brain

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Adult derivatives of the brain

Telencephalon - Cerebral hemispheres
Diencephalon - Thalamus, hypothalamus (pituitary gland), epithalamus (pineal gland)
Mesencephalon - Midbrain
Metencephalon - Pons & cerebellum
Myelencephalon - Medulla oblongata

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Cerebral hemispheres

Left - speech, comprehension, writing, arithmetic

Right - creativity, special awareness, artistic & musical skills

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What is the function of the thalamus

Relay centre for sensory neurone & motor signals
Consciousness & alertness

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What is the function of the hypothalamus

Homeostatic - hunger, thirst, sexual desire, sleep-wake cycles etc.

Endocrine - via the pituitary

Autonomic control

Limbic mechanisms - HOME (Homeostasis, Olfaction, Memory, Emotion)

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Pituitary gland

Post -
Oxytocin (behaviour & reproduction)
Vasopressin (osmotic balance, BP, kidney function)

Ant-
Adrenocorticotropic hormones (regulates cortisol & androgen)
Growth hormone
Prolactin (lactation)
Thyroid-stimulating hormone
Luteinizing hormone (reproduction)
Follicle-stimulating hormone (sexual development)

What is the function of the cerebellum

Maintenance of balance & posture
Coordination of voluntary movements
Motor learning
Cognitive functions

What is the function of basal Nuclei (B.ganglia)

Regulates the muscle tone & smooths the voluntary motor activities
Different type of issues arise from basal ganglia pathology (eg; Huntington’s & Parkinson’s)
Emotional control, cognition & eye movements

What is the limbic system made up of and what is its function

Hippocampus & amygdala

Involved in behavioural and emotional responses, especially need for survival: feeding, reproduction and caring for young, fight/flight responses

Function = HOME
Homeostasis, Olfaction, Memory, Emotion

Define a neurone (nerve cell)

Reception of stimuli & conduction of impulses

Structure of a neurone

Cell body (inc. nucleus), dendrites (inputs) and axons (outputs), myline sheath (shwann cells), Nodes of ranvier

Neuroglia (Glial cells)

Supportive cells (structurally & functionally)

Types of neurones and their locations (according to polarity)

Pseudo unipolar - dorsal root ganglia Bipolar - retinal bipolar cells, olfactory epithelium Multipolar - brain and spinal cord

Types of neurones and their locations (according to size)

Golgi type 1 (long axon) - purkinje cells of cerebral cortex Golgi type 2 (short axon) - cerebral & cerebellar cortex

What is a sensory neurone

Carry’s sensory information from receptor to CNS

What is a motor neurone

Carry’s impulses from CNS to muscle

What makes up the PNS

Cranial nerves - 12 pairs exit through skull foramina Spinal nerves - 31 pairs exit through the intervertebral foramina

What does the PNS split into

Autonomic - communicates with internal organs & glands Somatic - communicates with sense organs and voluntary muscles

What does the autonomic nervous system split into

Sympathetic division - (fight or flight) Parasympathetic division - (rest and digest)

What does the somatic nervous system split into

Sensory (afferent) - from sensory receptors to the CNS Motor (efferent) - from CNS to the body

Rostral meaning

Towards the front end of the body

Caudal meaning

Towards the back end of the body

Describe the neural tube

1. Sheet of ectodermal cells 2. Early embryo - sheet folds to form neural tube 3. Swellings & outpouchings develop 4. Outpouchings within head becomes brain 5. Neural tube down back of embryo becomes the spinal cord 6. Cavities within neural tube develop & become ventricles filled with CSF 7. During embryonic development the brain bends (flexures)

Describe the term GYRI

The outwardly rounded ridges of cortex (Pre & post central gyrus)

Describe the term SULCI

The grooves between the gyri (Central sulcus, parieto-occipal sulcus, lateral sulcus)

Functional areas of the brain (3)

Sensory Motor Associative

Sensory area function

Skin sensations (temperature, pressure, pain)

Motor area function

Control of voluntary muscles

3 spaces or potential spaces

Epidural space - between skull & dura Subdural space - between dura & arachnoid mater Subarachnoid space - arachnoid trabecular

What is the function of the epithalamus and what does it consist of

Consists of the pineal gland and the habenula Responsible for cardiac rhythm

What happens at a synapse

1. Action potential arrives axon terminal 2. Voltage gated Ca2+ channels open and Ca2+ enters the presynaptic neurone 3. Influx of Ca2+ causes neurotransmitter vesicles to move and fuse with presynaptic membrane 4. Neurotransmitter is released via exocytosis and diffuses across the synaptic cleft 5. Neurotransmitter binds to receptors on the postsynaptic neurone causing depolarisation

Excitatory vs inhibitory neurotransmitters

Excitatory - promotes generation of action potential Inhibitory - prevents generation of action potential

MSK neurotrasmitter examples

Acetylcholine Norepinephrine Dopamine Serotonin

Neuroglia in CNS

Astrocytes - in BBB Ependymal cell - in ventricles Oligodendrocytes - myelin production in CNS Microglia - removes cell debris, pathogens that invade CNS

Neuroglia in PNS

Satellite cells - surround nerve cell bodies Schwann cells - form myelin

What is gray & white matter

Gray matter - CNS mainly made up of cell bodies White matter - CNS myelinated axons