Module 3 - Biological Psychology Flashcards
Premise of Psychology
Human mind and body are one
- unique among other animals on the planet
- how the body functions involuntary
The “atoms” of the mind
Neurons
What is the basic unit of the brain (and nervous system)
Dendrites - Receive information from other neuron
Cel Body - Contains the nucleus and decides he activation
Axon - Conducts nerve impulses
Terminal Button - Communicate with next neuron
Action Potential
A neural impulse that travels to te terminal buttons by the axon and is generated by moving positive and negative charges ( wave moving in and out - to + and + to -)
Synapse
Action potential causes the release of neurotransmitters in synaptic gap
Neurotransmitters
Chemicals used to send a signal across the synaptic gap
- “float” across the synaptic gap until they bind with specific receptors sites on the dendrites of another neuron
- different neurotransmitters have different receptors sites
Reuptake
The process by which the vesicles reabsorbs the neurotransmitters
Reuptake Inhibitors
Medication inhibits the reuptake process
- making the vesicles wait longer in the synaptic gap before it is absorbed
Acetylcholine
Enables muscle action, attention and memory/learning
Dopamine
Influences movement, learning, attention, and emotions
Serotonin
Affectes hunger and sleep, linked to mood
Norepinephrine
Helps control alertness/attention, and arousal
Glutamate
Excitatory neurotransmitter, involved in memory learning and memory
Gamma-aminobutyric acid
Inhibitory neurotransmitter; lowers arousal, facilitates sleep, involved also n learning memory
Agonist
Molecule that fills the lockbox that the neurotransmitter cannot get in and activate the receptor site
3 Different types of neurons
Multipolar - Takes information and combines
Motor - Muscle movement
Sensory - Stimuli sends message to brain that sends signals
Nerve
Consist of neural cables containing many axons
Synaptic pruning
Elimination and creation of new connection
Neurogenesis
Production of new neuron’s from from immature stem cells (stem cells ca be programmed)
2 functional divisions of the human nervous systems
- Central nervous system
- Peripheral nervous system
Sympathetic division of autonomic nervous system
- Arousing
- “fight or flight” response (when your body excessively reacts in a moderate situation)
Parasympathetic devisions of the autonomic nervous system
- Calming
- “Rest and digest” (Slows down body functions and reactions)
Neural Communication
Peripheral nervous system
Hormonal Communication
Endocrine system ( allows brain to communicate information)
Hormones
Substances synthesized by the endocrine glands and travel through the bloodstream
Endocrine system
Set of glands that produce chemical messengers called hormones
- ex. Hypothalamus, pituitary, thyroid, testis, ovary, pancreas, adrenal, pancreas and parathyroids
Difference between endocrine and nervous system
Endocrine: slow, minutes to years, affects multiple organs
Nervous system; very rapid, typically within seconds and localized to one area of the body
Genes
The basic units of heredity
- guiding the process of creating proteins that make up physical structures and regulate development and physiological processes throughout the lifespan
Deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA)
A molecule formed in a double helix shape that contains four nucleotides: adenine, cytosine, guanine and thymine
Genotype
Unique genetic makeup of an organism that comprises the individual’s genetic
Phenotype
The physical traits and behavioural characteristics that show genetic variation (eye colour, intelligence and personality)
Chromosomes
Structures in the cellular nucleus that are lined with all of the genes an individual inherits
Homozygous
Two corresponding genes at a given location on a pair of chromosomes are the same
Heterozygous
Two corresponding genes at a given location on a pair of chromosomes that differ
Behavioural genomics
Study of DNA and the ways in which specific genes are related to
Human Genome Project
Massive effort to identify the components of the entire human genome
Behavioural Genetics
Study of how genes and the environment influence behaviour
Monozygotic Twin
Come from a single egg - almost 100% genetically identical
Dizygotic twins
Come from two separate egg fertilized by two different sperm cells - 50% of genes in common
Longitudinal studies
Studies that follow the same individuals for many years
Heritability
Statistic, expressed as a number between zero and one, that represents the degree to which generic differences among individuals contribute to individual differences in a behaviour or trait found in a population
Gene expression
Occurs when the information in our genes is set to produce proteins
Epigenetics
Study of changes in gene expression that occur as a result of experience and that do not alter the genetic code
CRISPR-Cas 9
A technique that allow genetic material to be removes, added, or altered in specific locations of the genome
Natural Selection
The process by which favourable traits become increasingly common in a population of interbreeding individuals, while traits that are unfavourable become less common
Evolution
The change in frequency of genes occurring in an interbreeding population over generations
Evolutionary Psychology
Attempts to explain human behaviours based on the beneficial functions they may have served in out species’ evolutionary history
Hunter-gatherer theory
Which explicitly links performance on specific tasks to the different roles performed by males and females over the course of our evolutionary history
Cell Body
Part of a neuron that contains the nucleus that houses the cell’s genetic material
Dendrites
Small branches radiating from the cell body that receive messages from other cells and transmit those messages toward the rest of the cell
Axon
Transports information in the form of electrochemical reactions from the cell body to the end of the neuron
Axon terminals
Bulb-like extensions filled with vesicles
Glial Cells
Specialized cells of the nervous system that are involved in mounting immune responses in the brain, removing waste, and synchronizing the activity of the billions of neuron’s that constitute the nervous system
Refractory Period
Brief period in which a neuron cannot fire
All or none principle
Individual nerve cells fire at the same strength every time an action potential occurs
GABA
Primary inhibitory neurotransmitter of the nervous system, meaning that it prevents neuron’s from generating action potentials
Antagonists
Inhibitory neurotransmitter activity by blocking receptors or preventing synthesis of a neurotransmitter
Endorphins
Hormones produced by the pituitary gland and the hypothalamus that function to reduce pain and induce feelings of pleasure
Medulla
Base of brainstem that helps with life sustaining functions ex. breathing and heart beat
Pons
Coordinates unconscious movements and involuntary muscle
- Sleep (REM)
- taste and texture
Mdbrain
Associated with movement, tracking of visual stimuli and reflexes triggered by sound
- startle reflexes
Reticular Formation
Numerous small neural networks spread throughout the brain stem and filters incoming sensory information
- deciphers between relevant vs. irrelevant stimuli
- regulating cardiovascular system, breathing, sleep and consciousness
Cerebellum
- Back of the brain stem
- coordination of voluntary movement and balance
- acquire muscle memory
- Classical condition over repeated exposure (smells or sounds)
Thalamus
Relay centre for sensory and motor information to different parts of the cerebral cortex, medulla and cerebellum (except smell)
Limbic System
- Located on both sides of the thalamus
- Processes information about our internal states
- Emotional experiences lead to memory formation
- Hypothalamus, amygdala and hippocampus
Hypothalamus
- emotions and motivations
- regulation of hunger and thirst
- Experience of rewards
- adjusts body temperature as a function of changing environment (adaptations)
- directs the endocrine system via messages to the pituitary gland
Amygdala
- Consists of two neural clusters
- Associated with the experience of different emotions, particularly negative ones
- key role for fear contioning
- damage = more fear
Hippocampus
- processing conscious, episodic memories
- neurogenisis
- works with the amygdala to form emotionally charged memories
- storing memories
Case of H.M
- complete removal of the hippocampus and amygdala
- Anterograde amnesia and moderate retrograde amnesia
- short term memory was intact
- no new long term memories
(Could ride a bike but could not remember learning how to ride the bike)
Cerebral Cortex
Layer covering the brain with cerconvolutions, grey matter (cell bodies), white matter (axons) and billions of glial cells that feed and protect neurons and assist neural transmission
(Processing of 5 senses)
Occipital lobe
- visual information
- vision
- visual association area
Temporal Lobe
- Auditory information
- Language comprehension
- smell
Parietal Lobes
- sensory information
- touch and body position
- reading, speech and taste
Frontal Lobes
- Muscle movement, including language production
- Higher cognitive functions
- motor cortex
Cerebral Hemispheres
Right and left hemisphere that do the same thing but function contra laterally
Motor Cortex
Axons receiving motor signals FROM the cortex
Sensory Cortex
Axons sending sensory information TO the cortex
Corpus Callosum
- How hemispheres communicate and exchange information
- million axons
Broca’s Area
Speech atriculation and production
Wernicke’s Area
Speech comprehension
Split Brain Patients
Corpus callosum surgically severed but the optic chaism remain intact
- visual fields “switch sides”
Right Hemisphere
Visual and Spatial Tasks
ex. creativity, motor skills for artistic work and imagination
Left Hemisphere
Language and analytical thinking
ex. speaking, understanding spoken words and mathematics
Prefrontal Cortex
- Executive Function
- Social behaviour and relationships
- Dunbar’s number (size relative to # of connections)
- Restraint and moral code
4 strategies to stimulate brain
- Stimulation
- Lesion based
- Animal models
- Imaging
Stimulation
Most recent
ex. chemically numbing, magnetically deactivating, or electrically stimulating parts of the brain
Lesion Based Approaches
Surgeries and accidents
ex. Non-invasive magnetoecephalography
Animal Models - Rats
Rats raised in an environment enriched vs unenriched
Results used to help in Neonatal Unit
Electroencephalogram (EEG)
- study the cortex
- maintain where electronegativity is happening in brain
- O2 or glucose consupmption
Non-invasive imaging devices
CAT, MRI - structures
PET, fMRI - deciphering what’s active and what’s not through oxygen and glucose consumption
Understanding how research can help us understand the brain Ex. Taxi Drivers
More months working = larger midposterior hippocampi
Are the specific centres for different functions in the brain?
No, Areas of brain are constantly interacting. However, other areas are suppressed to “focus” on one part of the brain
