Neural Bases - Chapter 6

Question 1

• Located between the cerebrum and the brainstem, resting above the midbrain of the brainstem.
• Prime area for connecting the cerebral cortex to the rest of the body
• Connects the nervous system to the endocrine and hormone system
• Consists of four parts: thalamus, subthalamus, hypothalamus, and epithalamus

Answer 1

Diencephalon

Question 2

• Inner chamber or bedroom: Lies on top of the midbrain and consists of two halves or hemispheres.

Answer 2

thalamus

Question 3

blood supply

Answer 3

internal carotid artery (tuberothalamic branch), posterior cerebral artery

Question 4

• Sensory fiber relay station or switchboard between cerebral cortex and subcortical areas
  o Acts like a router that routes specific information to specific cortical areas
  o Relay station
  o Perception of pain, regulation of cortical arousal, control of sleep-wake cycle
• Involves indirectly in motor functions – directs the extrapyramidal fibers to basal ganglia

Answer 4

thalamus

Question 5

the thalamus is made up of several _______

Answer 5

nuclei

Question 6

attention, eye-hand control, emotions, and autonomic control

Answer 6

medial nuclei

Question 7

emotional processing

Answer 7

• Lateral dorsal, midline and anterior nuclei

Question 8

o Posterior part: somatosensory functions; relay sensory information about the speech musculature movements
o Anterior & lateral part: executing motor movements and motor planning for speech production
o Medial geniculate body – auditory relay center
o Lateral geniculate body – vision relay center

Answer 8

lateral ventral nuclei

Question 9

arousal and motor function

Answer 9

intralaminar nuclei

Question 10

filter for information ascending to the cortex

Answer 10

reticular nuclei

Question 11

Burning or tingling sensations and hypersensitivity to stimuli that would not cause pain normally (ex: light touch or temperature change)

Answer 11

thalamic pain syndrome

Question 12

coma, excessive day time sleepiness, akinetic mutism (unable to more or talk; being passive)

Answer 12

specific thalamic region injury/damage

Question 13

verbal fluent output but with jargon, less severe auditory comprehension deficit, minimal or intact repetition

Answer 13

thalamic aphasia

Question 14

• Lies below the thalamus, and functions like basal ganglia.
• Key role in selection of actions and impulse control
• Damage to subthalamus – one side involuntary movements of limbs, obsessive-compulsive disorder, impulsivity, etc

Answer 14

subthalamus

Question 15

• Under chamber, lies in the anterior ventral surface of thalamus.
• Connects the nervous system with endocrine system via pituitary gland.
• Regulates metabolism, body temperature, food intake, circadian rhythm, emotion, secondary sexual characteristics, homeostasis or maintaining body status

Answer 15

hypothalamus

Question 16

• Lies superior and posterior to the thalamus
• Consists of:
  o Pineal gland – regulates sleep-wake cycle, circadian rhythm, and gonad development
  o Habenula – involved in stress response as well as reward processing system

Answer 16

epithalamus

Question 17

• Made up of a group of structures in the subcortical Gray matter region
• Consists of three large nuclei the caudate nucleus (amygdala), Globus pallidus, and putamen
  o Striatum – caudate and putamen together
  o Lenticular nucleus – putamen and globus pallidus

Answer 17

the basal ganglia

Question 18

fibers between the cortical surface and thalamus create a fan-shaped sheet of axons

Answer 18

corona radiata

Question 19

narrow space between the caudate nucleus and the lenticular nucleus

Answer 19

internal capsule

Question 20

1. direct pathway – striatum to medial globus pallidus facilitates movement.
2. Indirect pathway – stratum to lateral globus pallidus inhibits movement

Answer 20

the two major pathways of the basal ganglia

Question 21

– involuntary movements
* Tremors – rhythmic shaking
* Athetosis – slow writhing movements of head and hands
* Chorea – quick abrupt flinging of a limb
* Tics – quick stereotyped motor or vocal behaviors
* Ballismus – quick flinging of a limb

Answer 21

damage to the basal ganglia: dyskinesia

Question 22

involuntary posture – unable to direct movements and having involuntary postural alignment
* Rigidity – limb resistance to passive movement
* Dystonia – simultaneous agonist and antagonist muscle contraction resulting in distorted movements and postures
* Bradykinesia – slow movements

Answer 22

damage to the basal ganglia: akinesia

Question 23

• Progressive extrapyramidal movement disorder involving degeneration of substantia nigra resulting in loss of dopamine
• Caused due to environmental toxins and genetics
• Typically begins around 60 years of age
• Bradykinesia, resting tremor, and rigidity – masked face
• Dopamine-based drugs may eleviate the symptoms
• Deep brain stimulation

Answer 23

damage to the basal ganglia: Parkinson’s disease

Question 24

• Progressive hereditary neurological disorder; regeneration of the basal ganglia and enlarges the brain ventricles
• Commonly presents between ages of 35-42 years
• Caused by a mutation on chromosome 4 (autosomal dominant inheritance pattern)
• Fidgety and clumsiness - initially

Answer 24

damage to basal ganglia: huntington’s disease

Question 25

• May present with _________- type aphasia and transcortical motor aphasia

Answer 25

Wernicke’s

Question 26

the brain contains spaces called ________

Answer 26

ventricles

Question 27

there are ____ ventricles in the brain; right and left lateral ventricle, a third, and a fourth ventricle.

Answer 27

four

Question 28

 Anterior horn – located in cerebral hemisphere frontal lobe
 Posterior horn – parietal lobe
 Inferior horn – temporal lobe

Answer 28

the three projections of the right and left ventricles

Question 29

diencephalon; articulates with the first two ventricles via the intra-ventricular foramen

Answer 29

3rd ventricle

Question 30

posterior to pons and anterior to cerebellum

Answer 30

4th ventricle

Question 31

• Filled with ___________ _______ -a clear colorless fluid that looks like plasma

Answer 31

cerebrospinal fluid

Question 32

o CSF is also found in the ___________space of the meninges

Answer 32

subarachnoid

Question 33

o The _______ plexus in each ventricle produces CSF

Answer 33

choroid

Question 34

Approximately ___ mL of CSF is replenished every seven hours

Answer 34

125

Question 35

o Protects brain tissue by acting as a water cushion
o Lightens the weight of the brain through buoyancy
o Reduces waste by removing metabolic waste from the nervous system
o Transports nutrition and hormones to the brain

Answer 35

four basic functions of cerebrospinal fluid

Question 36

• CSF accumulates in the brain ventricles causing brain tissue to be compressed against the skull; it can be congenital or acquired due to brain injury, meningitis, or tumor
  o Obstructive – narrowing of the passageways that connect the ventricles leading to CSF buildup
  o Non-obstructive – problems in the absorption of CSF
• Surgical procedure – insert stunts to drain excess CSF

Answer 36

disorders of the ventricles: hydrocephalus