motor system (e3) Flashcards
stimulation of the primary motor cortex (M1) elicits…
movements (Penfield’s experiments)
the M1 and somatosensory cortex…
match up nicely
what is the cortex important for?
complex actions (less important for more involuntary actions)
function of the posterior parietal cortex, prefrontal cortex, and supplementary motor area (SMA)
motor planning
function of the prefrontal cortex
movement organization (sequences) and motor inhibition
one major function of the premotor cortex
the observation of other people’s actions
what are mirror neurons?
they are active both when we observe someone doing something and when we do that same thing
- understanding intentions
- automatic imitation
- empathy (autism)
what is the posterior parietal helpful for?
motion, because it helps with spatial information
subcortical (motor) areas
basal ganglia and cerebellum
the basal ganglia
- striatum (i.e., caudate nucleus and putamen), substantia nigra, globus pallidus
- critical for learning new habits and automatic responses
- important to self-initiated behaviors
damage to the basal ganglia
dyskinesia, Huntington’s disease, Tourette’s syndrome, Parkinson’s disease
dyskinesia
unwanted movements
huntington’s disease
caudate putamen cells are destroyed
tourette’s syndrome
caudate putamen damage; involuntary movements
parkinson’s disease
loss of dopamine cells in substantia nigra
