Nervous System Flashcards
What is the Cerebellum?
Part of the hindbrain that coordinates movement (limb movements, muscle tone) and maintains balance.
Name the 4 lobes of the cerebrum
Frontal lobe, Temporal lobe, Parietal lobe, Occipital lobe.
List two things the Frontal lobe responsible for?
.voluntary motor control .smell (olfactory bulb) .speech .personality .intellectual activities (planning, foresight)
List two things the Temporal lobe responsible for?
.advance visual processing
.smell interpretation
.hearing
.auditory interpretation
List two things Parietal lobe responsible for?
.primary sensory areas for taste, touch, temperature
.language
.body awareness
What is the Occipital lobe responsible for?
.vision and visual interpretation
Name three types of neurones.
.sensory neurones
.motor neurones
.interneurones
What is the peripheral nervous system made up of?
it’s made out of the sensory-somatic and the autonomic nervous systems. (together they sense and respond to external and internal stimuli.
What does the autonomic nervous system consist of?
it consists of the sympathetic and parasympathetic systems.
What does the sympathetic system do?
it prepares the body for stress.
What does the parasympathetic system do?
it’s returns the body to a resting state.
What is the nervous system mainly divided into? (2 things)
.central nervous system (brain and spinal cord)
.peripheral nervous system (autonomic and somatic nerves)
What is a neurotransmitter?
a chemical messenger released by the presynaptic neuron that binds to receptors on the postsynaptic neuron. (eg. acetylcholine , norepinephrine, dopamine, serotonin)
What is an action potential? The resting potential?
.the voltage difference across a nerve cell membrane when the nerve is excited
.voltage difference across a nerve cell membrane when it is not transmitting a nerve impulse (usually negative)
What’s the difference between grey and white matter?
White matter can regenerate (it’s myelinated) while grey matter is un-myelinated)
Define active transport.
movement of substances across cell membranes that uses energy; often moves substances against a concentration gradient.
What is a polarized membrane?
.a membrane charged by unequal distribution of positively charged ions inside and outside the nerve cell
What is saltatory conduction?
.generation of action potentials only at nodes of Ranvier in myelinated axons. resulting in rapid transmission of nerve impulses
What is the all-or-none response?
a nerve or muscle fibre responds completely or not at all to a stimulus
What is the threshold level?
the minimum level of a stimulus required to produce a response
What is summation?
the effect produced by the accumulation of neurotransmitters from two or more neurons
Define ganglion
collections of nerve cell bodies located outside the central nervous system
What is an effector?
a cell or organ that produces a physiological response when stimulated by a nerve impulse
Define the reflex arc
neural circuit through the spinal cord that provides a framework for a reflex action (ie. sensory receptors > sensory neuron > interneuron > motor neuron > effector)
What is the cerebrospinal fluid?
cushioning fluid that circulates between the innermost and middle membranes of the brain and spinal cord; it provides a connection between neural and endocrine systems
What is the cerebrum?
largest and most highly developed part of the human brain, which stores sensory information and initiates voluntary motor activities
What is the cerebral cortex?
The outer layer of the cerebral hemisphere
What is the corpus callosum?
the nerve tract that joins the two cerebral hemispheres
What is the thalamus?
the area of the brain that coordinates and interprets sensory information and directs it to the cerebrum
What is the hypothalamus?
the “brain within the brain”, it controls the autonomic nervous system, receives information from internal organs, and coordinates nervous/ endocrine (hormone) system and many other things
What are the pons?
region of the brain that acts as a rely station by sending nerve messages between the cerebellum and the medulla
What is the medulla oblongata?
region of the hindbrain that joins the spinal cord to the cerebellum, an important site for autonomic control
What is the olfactory bulb?
the area of the brain that processes information about smell (one bulb in each hemisphere)
What is the function of the spinal cord?
.communication between the brain and the peripheral nervous system
.simple reflex actions.
What are the functions of the dorsal root and the ventral root?
Dorsal root: sensory neurons enter into the spinal cord
Ventral root: motor neurons leave the spinal cord
What is a vagus nerve?
a major cranial nerve that is a part of the parasympathetic nervous system
