Neuroscience Flashcards
Examples of monoamines and the role they provide?
Serotonin - feelings of well-being
Dopamine - reward seeking behaviour, role in movement
Noradrenaline - fight or flight
Histamine
What is the purpose of acetylcholine? what symptoms do anticholinergic drugs cause?
Memory, attention
Anticholinergics used in dementia
SE of confusion, drowsiness, dry mouth, constipation, urinary retention, blurred vision
What does glutamate do?
Triggers action potentials and excitement
What does GABA do and what does it cause in cells? Examples of drugs that effect GABA transmission?
GABA causes chloride influx into cells causing depolarisation and therefore reduced activity
AEDs, alcohol, hypnotics all increase GABA
What is the limbic system invovled in?
Memory, fear, emotion
What is corpus callosum?
White mater that connects the hemispheres
What is the hippocampus?
Memory involvement shifting short to long term
What is the fornix?
White mater connecting hippocampus to mamillary bodies
What is the purpose of mamillary bodies?
Memory especially converting short term to long term
What is the purpose of amygdala? what does it stimulate?
Amygdala is involved in emotional response, stimulates fight or fight response
What is the purpose of the thalamus?
Act as a relay station for sensory information on its way to the cortex
Had motor nuclei to process commands from cortex and basal ganglia
What is the purpose of the basal ganglia?
Process motor actions linking cognition to action
What is the purpose of the ventral striatum?
Primitive structure based on primitive commands like hunger, sex and aggression
What does the pons control?
Sleep
Motor nuclei to facial muscles and eye
What does the medulla oblongata do?
All reticular nuclei besides facial muscles and eyes respiratory centre Muscle tone Swallowing vomiting centre Coughing
Types of GABA modifying drugs used in neuropathic pain?
Gabapentin
Pregabalin
Why are anticholinergics used to treat parkinsons?
Act like a break on dopamine systems in the basal ganglia to reduce extrapyramidal SE
Purpose of dopamine in the prefrontal cortex and in the limbic system?
Frontal cortex - drive and motivation
Limbic system - rewards, emotion, meaning
Purpose of norepiphrine in the prefrontal cortex and then limbic system?
Prefrontal cortex - motivation and drive
Limbic system - fight or flight response
What is the purpose of serotonin and what pathways is it involved in?
Frontal, cortical and limbic systems
Invovled in rewards, emotion, sexual and social behaviour, stress response, attachment
Decreased serotonin in limbic system causes what? treatment?
Decreased memory, hunger, sleep
Depression
SSRI
What happens to dopamine signalling in the positive effects of psychosis and what does the drug action focus on?
Abnormal dopamine signalling in the limbic system pathways causes strange thoughts and reward cognition
Antipsychotics - dopamine blockers
Why do antipsychotics lead to extrapyramidal side effects? Treat with?
Aim to block the limbostriatal pathways but also block to nigrostriatal pathways in basal ganglia
Causes parkinsonian side effects and tardive dyskinesia
Need anticholinergic
What is the 2 step physiology in the development of mania?
Starts with overactive serotonin in limbic system
Then overactive dopamine which causes motivation and drive
Drug class used in dementia?
Acetylcholinesterase inhibitor
Why is short term memory so bad in Wenickes Korsakoffs Syndrome?
Mamillary bodies are damaged
Why are benzodiazepines used in delirium tremens?
Drinking alcohol causes GABA receptors and therefore cells to switch off. When you stop drinking GABA stops and therefore seizure activity. Benzos cause release of GABA and therefore switch cells off.
What is neuroleptic malignant syndrome?
Reaction to antipsychotics drugs
fever, altered mental status, muscle rigidity, and autonomic dysfunction
