Nervous system 2

Question 1

Cephalization, the clustering of neurons and
interneurons in the anterior part of the animal, is
apparent in
A) Hydra
B) Cnidarians
C) sea stars
D) Planaria

Answer 1

D (flatworms)

Question 2

What does the central nervous system consist of? What does it do?

Answer 2

The brain and spinal cord.
Spinal cord conveys information to and from the brain, and can produce reflexes independent of the brain.

Question 3

What does the peripheral nervous system consist of? What does it do (overall)?

Answer 3

Nerves and ganglia
Transmits information to and from the CNS

Question 4

What is the difference between afferent neurons and efferent neurons?

Answer 4

Afferent - transmit information to the CNS (input)
Efferent - transmit information away from the CNS (output)

Question 5

What are the two systems of efferent neurons? What do each of these systems do?

Answer 5

Motor system - voluntary; carries signal to skeletal muscles
Autonomic nervous system - involuntary; regulated smooth muscles and cardiac muscles

Question 6

What are the two divisions of the autonomic nervous system and what do they each do?

Answer 6

Sympathetic division - “fight or flight”
Ex. Accelerates heart, dilates pupil of eye, stimulates glucose
Parasympathetic division - “rest and digest”
Ex. Slows heart, constricts pupil of eye, stimulates gallbladder

Question 7

What is the enteric nervous system? (not too important to know)

Answer 7

Controls digestive movement

Question 8

What are the three major regions of the brain?

Answer 8

Forebrain (cerebrum & diencephalon in adult), midbrain, and hindbrain (both make up the brainstem)

Question 9

How has the forebrain evolved in the animal phylogeny?

Answer 9

Mammals have the largest forebrain. As you go down the phylogenetic tree, the forebrain size increases.

Question 10

What does the cerebellum do?

Answer 10

Coordinates movement and balance
Receives sensory information about the position of joints and muscles
Regulates motor function (hand-eye coordination)

Question 11

What happened to the woman without a cerebellum? What key trait of the brain does this show?

Answer 11

She was deficient in movement/balance, regulating motor function, and position of limbs, but otherwise fully functional!
Shows compartmentalization!

Question 12

What does the diencephalon consist of? What does it regulate?

Answer 12

Consists of the thalamus, hypothalamus, and pituitary gland.
Regulates homeostasis, hunger, thirst, social and sex behaviors, and the fight-flight response

Question 13

What does the brainstem consist of? What does it mediate?

Answer 13

Consists of the midbrain, pons, and medulla oblongata
Mediates the sending of information to different parts of the brain. Direct information between cereberum and spinal cord

Question 14

What does the limbic system consist of? What does it do?

Answer 14

Interfaces with diencephalon, brainstem, and cerebrum
Consists of: amygdala, hippocampus, thalamus, and hypothalamus
Functions in emotion, memory, learning, fear, motivation, behavior, and olfaction

Question 15

What does the cerebrum overall function in? What are the four lobes?

Answer 15

Functions in awareness, language, cognition, memory, and consciousness
4 lobes: frontal lobe, temporal lobe, parietal lobe, and occipital lobe

Question 16

What does the frontal lobe consist of? What do those two parts do?

Answer 16

Prefrontal cortex -decision making, planning, facial recognition
Motor cortex - control of skeletal muscles

Question 17

What does the parietal lobe do? How do the two parts connect?

Answer 17

Deals with sense of touch
Signal comes from skin, goes to somatosensory cortex, then goes to sensory association cortex, which integrates the sensory information

Question 18

What does the occipital lobe do? How do the two parts connect?

Answer 18

Deals with sense of sight
Signal comes from eyes, goes to visual cortex, then goes to visual association cortex, which combines images with object recognition

Question 19

What does the temporal lobe do? How do the two parts connect?

Answer 19

Deals with sense of sound
Signal comes from the ears, goes to the auditory cortex, then goes to Wernicke’s area, which comprehends language and sounds associated with certain objects

Question 20

How does the cerebrum function overall?

Answer 20

Receives input from sensory organs, including touch, and sends output signals out in response.
- Primary motor cortex (sends signals out to move body) - frontal lobe
- Primary somatosensory cortex (receives touch signals from the body) - parietal lobe

Question 21

How does the thalamus (limbic system) function overall?

Answer 21

It directs different types of input to distinct locations in the cerebrum. Physically organizes where signals are coming from.

Question 22

What does the left hemisphere vs the right hemisphere do?

Answer 22

Left hemisphere - language, math, logical operations
Right hemisphere - pattern recognition, spatial relations, nonverbal thinking (intuition)

Question 23

What connects the two hemispheres of the brain?

Answer 23

The corpus callosum

Question 24

In humans, fear, emotion, motivation, olfaction,
behavior, and memory are mediated by the
A) occipital lobes of the cerebral cortex
B) frontal lobe of the cerebral cortex
C) limbic system
D) cerebellum

Answer 24

C

Question 25

Neural plasticity

Answer 25

The ability of neurons to strengthen/weaken connections through experience. Physical changes in how neurons connect to other neurons, that can be strengthened or weakened by experience. Ex. presence/absence of synapses, or number of synapses

Question 26

Increasing the amount of receptors _________.

Answer 26

increases the response

Question 27

What is memory formation mediated by?

Answer 27

The hippocampus in the limbic system and the association corticies

Question 28

Short term memory

Answer 28

Involves neurons in hippocampus. The strengthening and then weakening of neural plasticity

Question 29

Long-term memory

Answer 29

Involves neurons in hippocampus and cerebrum. Side note: consolidating memories is thought to occur during sleep.

Question 30

What are some disorders of the nervous system and what do they do? (Generally)

Answer 30

Schizophrenia - causes hallucinations, delusions
Depression - has 2 forms (major and bipolar)
Drug addiction - brain becomes dependent on drugs
Alzheimers disease - characterized by amyloid plaques
Parkinson’s disease - characterized by muscle tremors