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Physiology 2 > Neuro: Structure of the Nervous System > Flashcards

Neuro: Structure of the Nervous System Flashcards

1
Q

What does the central nervous system refer to?

A

Regions of the nervous system that are encased in bone - brain and the spinal cord.

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2
Q

What does the peripheral nervous system refer to?

A

All parts of the nervous system other than the brain and the spinal cord. It is subdivided into the somatic nervous system and the autonomic nervous system. They are each responsible for unique functions.

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3
Q

What is the somatic nervous system?

A
  • Provides innervation to skin, joints and skeletal muscle

- Permits the voluntary control of movement and locomotion.

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4
Q

What is the autonomic nervous system?

A
  • Provides innervation to the cardiovascular system, internal organs and smooth muscle to control heart rate, blood pressure, breathing and digestion.
  • Can be further subdivided into the sympathetic and parasympathetic divisions
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5
Q

What is sympathetic innervation?

A
  • Involved in ‘fight or flight’ responses.

- E.g. increased heart rate and blood pressure and decreased digestive function

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6
Q

What is parasympathetic innervation?

A
  • Involved in ‘rest and digest’ processes.

- E.g. decreased heart rate and blood pressure and increased digestive function.

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7
Q

What are the three major regions of the brain?

A
  • Forebrain - comprised of the telencephalon (cerebrum) and diencephalon
  • Brainstem - subdivided into midbrain, pons and medulla oblongata
  • Cerebellum - prominent hindbrain structure
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8
Q

Describe the hippocampus including its function and hippocampal dysfunction.

A
  • Region of the cerebral cortex embedded deep within the temporal lobe.

Function of the hippocampus:

  • Learning
  • Memory formation and retrieval
  • Regulation of hypothalamus pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis (important in regulating stress response)

Hippocampal dysfunction:

  • Anterograde amnesia (unable to create new memories)
  • Retrograde amnesia (generally unable to recall past memories)
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9
Q

How do the different planes divide the brain?

A
  • Coronal sections divide brain into anterior and posterior sections.
  • Horizontal sections divide your brain into a superior and inferior section.
  • Sagittal sections divide the brain into two hemispheres - the left and right
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10
Q

List the names of the 12 cranial nerves.

A
  1. Olfactory Nerve
  2. Optic Nerve
  3. Oculomotor Nerve
  4. Trochlear Nerve
  5. Trigeminal Nerve
  6. Abducens Nerve
  7. Facial Nerve
  8. Vestibulocochlear Nerve
  9. Glossopharyngeal Nerve
  10. Vagus Nerve
  11. Accessory Nerve
  12. Hypoglossal Nerve
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11
Q

Describe Cranial Nerve I - Olfactory Nerve

A
  • Purely sensory - olfaction (smell)
  • Within our noses we have an olfactory epithelium. This contains olfactory receptor cells. The olfactory bulb then transmits the smell information to 3 different places:
  • frontal cortex: conscious perception of the smell
  • hippocampus: odour memory
  • hypothalamus amygdala: motivational and emotional aspects of smell
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12
Q

Describe Cranial Nerve II - Optic Nerve

A
  • Purely sensory - vision.
  • Transmits information from rods and cones in our retina via the lateral geniculate nucleus (located in the thalamus) to the visual cortex (which is located in the occipital lobe).
  • This is what allows us to interpret colour/contrast etc
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13
Q

Describe Cranial Nerve III - Oculomotor

A
  • Both motor and parasympathetic.
  • For the motor part, it controls some of our eyeball and eyelid movement (CN III + IV + VI).
  • For the parasympathetic part, it’s concerned with control of pupil size
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14
Q

Describe Cranial Nerve IV - Trochlear

A
  • Somatic motor nerve

- It is involved in eyeball movement (CN III + IV + VI).

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15
Q

Describe Cranial Nerve V - Trigeminal

A
  • Both somatic sensory and somatic motor.
  • In terms of sensory function, it is involved in sensing touch to the face.
  • In terms of motor function it is involved in the movement of muscles responsible for chewing.
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16
Q

Describe Cranial Nerve VI - Abducens

A
  • Somatic motor nerve.
  • Involved in controlling eye movements.
  • Responsible for movement of the lateral rectus, allowing for the lateral movement of the eye.
17
Q

Describe Cranial Nerve VII - Facial

A
  • This is sensory.
  • In terms of somatic sensory function, it is involved in the muscles responsible for facial expressions.
  • In terms of special sensory function, it is involved in the sensation of taste in the anterior tongue.
18
Q

Describe Cranial Nerve VIII - Vestibulocochlear (auditory vestibular nerve)

A
  • Sensory nerve

- Involved in hearing (cochlear) and balance (vestibular)

19
Q

Describe Cranial Nerve IX - Glossopharyngeal

A
  • Both sensory and motor functions.
  • In terms of sensory function, it is involved in the sensation of taste in the posterior tongue. It is also involved in the detection of blood pressure changes in the aorta.
  • In terms of motor function, it is associated and involved with the movement of muscles in the throat for swallowing as well as the parasympathetic control of the salivary glands in producing saliva.
20
Q

Describe Cranial Nerve X - Vagus

A
  • Both sensory and motor function.
  • In terms of sensory function, it is involved in the sensation of pain associated with viscera (internal organs of the body)
  • In terms of motor function, it is involved in the movement of muscles in the throat to allow for speech and swallowing in combination with cranial nerve IX. It is also involved in the parasympathetic control of the heart, lungs and abdominal organs.
21
Q

Describe Cranial Nerve XI - Spinal Accessory

A
  • Somatic motor nerve

- Involved in the movement of muscles in the throat and neck

22
Q

Describe Cranial Nerve XII - Hypoglossal

A
  • Somatic motor nerve.

- Involved in movement of the tongue, allowing for both swallowing and speech

23
Q

What are three systems vital in the protection and support of the human brain?

A
  • Meninges
  • Ventricular System
  • Vasculature System of brain
24
Q

Describe the meninges.

A

The brain doesn’t come into contact with the skull. There are three membranes surrounding the brain called the meninges.

They are the:

  • dura mater: tough, in-elastic
  • arachnoid membrane: adheres the two layers together
  • pia mater: a thin membrane that adheres closely to the brain

The subarachnoid space is filled with cerebrospinal fluid (CSF).

Function:

  • Protection of the brain and spinal cord
  • Passage of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) - in relation to the ventricular system
  • Support of cerebral and spinal blood vessels - within the brains vasculature system
25
Q

Describe the ventricular system of the brain.

A
  • Comprises a series of interconnected, (CSF)-filled spaces that lie at the core of forebrain and brain stem
  • Lateral ventricles - paired structures that sprout like antlers from the third ventricle and the two cerebral hemispheres surround these
  • Third ventricle
  • Fourth ventricle - extends from a structure known as the cerebral aqueduct

Within each of these ventricles is the chorioid plexus responsible for producing the cerebral spinal fluid, filling the ventricular spaces

  • Protects of the brain (e.g. can act as a cushion for physical shocks)
  • Transport (e.g. nutrients, waste products via the CSF that fills each of the ventricles)
  • Regulation of buoyancy (CSF reduces the net weight and pressure on base of the brain)
26
Q

Describe the two pairs of arteries that supply blood to the brain.

A
  • The internal carotid arteries and the vertebral arteries

Internal carotid arteries:

  • Branches of the common carotid artery.
  • Anterior circulation of brain - supplies the forebrain (cerebrum and diencephalon)
  • Internal carotid arteries branch to form three middle cerebral arteries and the anterior cerebral arteries
  • Anterior cerebral arteries are connected by the anterior communicating artery
  • Ring of connected arteries (anterior communicating arteries) form the circle of Willis at the base of the brain

Vertebral arteries:

  • Arise from the subclavian arteries.
  • Posterior circulation - supplies the brainstem, cerebellum and upper spinal cord
  • Converge near base of pons to form the basilar artery
  • Basilar artery splits into the right and left superior cerebellar arteries and the posterior cerebral arteries at the level of the midbrain
  • Posterior cerebral arteries send branches known as posterior communicating arteries in order to connect to the internal carotid arteries to form circle of Willis.
27
Q

What is the function of the vasculature system?

A
  • Delivery of oxygen rich blood to brain tissue
  • Removal of carbon dioxide (deoxygenated blood)
  • Transport (e.g. nutrients, waste products)

Physiology 2 (35 decks)

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