Physiology Flashcards
ACh
FUNCTION:
Voluntary movement
Memory and learning
Sleep-wake cycle
DISEASE: Low in Alzheimer’s and Dementia
BRAIN: Prevalent in Hippocampus
Dopamine
FUNCTION: movement, mood, memory, sleep, reward system
DISEASE: schizophrenia (too much), Parkinson’s tremors & rigidity (too little), Tourette’s and tic disorders (too much)
BRAIN: Substantia Nigra, Caudate Nucleus (Tourette’s), Mesolimbic system (reward sys)
Norepinephrine /noradrenaline
FUNCTION: mood, attention, dreaming, learning, autonomic functions
DISEASE: Depression (too little), Mania (too much)
BRAIN: N/A
Dopamine hypothesis of schizophrenia
Too much DA > schizophrenia positive symptoms
**However, too little DA receptors in the prefrontal cortex causes cognitive impairments and negative symptoms
Catecholamine hypothesis
Too little Norepinephrine can cause some forms of depression
Serotonin/ 5-HT
FUNCTION: mood, hunger, sex, aggression, sleep, migraine headaches, temperature regulation
DISEASE: too much > Schizophrenia, anorexia, Autism, mania
Too little > depression, bulimia, aggression, suicide, PTSD, OCD
BRAIN: N/A
GABA
FUNCTION: Eating, seizure, anxiety, movement, vision, sleep
DISEASE: too little > Huntington’s Disease and anxiety
BRAIN: Basal ganglia (Huntington’s)
Excitatory vs inhibitory
Excitatory increases the likelihood of an action potential
ACh, NE, Glutamate
Inhibitory decreases the likelihood of an action potential
GABA, endorphins
Glutamate
FUNCTION: Long term potentiation
DISEASE: too much (excitotoxicity)> seizures, brain damage, Huntington’s Disease, Alzheimer’s
BRAIN: N/A
Afferent vs efferent
Afferent nerves connect to skin and carry sensory info
Efferent nerves have cell bodies in the spinal cord and connect to muscles to transfer motor info
Quadriplegia /tetraplegia
Damage at the cervical level, which causes loss of sensory and motor functions of arms and legs
Paraplegia
Damage at thoracic level causes sensory and voluntary functions of the legs
Peripheral Nervous System
Somatic - governs voluntary movements. Skeletal muscles
Autonomic - governs involuntary movement. Smooth muscles, cardiac muscle and glands
Autonomic Nervous System
2nd part of PNS, with somatic NS
Primary function is to maintain homeostasis. Controls involuntary movement.
Sympathetic - arousal and energy expenditure. Flight-or-fight, feeding, fucking
Parasympathetic - energy conservation. Active during digestion and rest
Neuroimaging techniques
MRI, CT/ CAT - structural imaging
EMG, SSEP - conduction of nerve signals
fMRI, PET, SPECT- functional imaging
Glial cells
Cover axons
Paresis
Muscle weakness caused by incomplete severing of the spinal cord.
Amino acids
GABA
Glutamate
Glycine
Catecholamines
“Not Dogs”
Norepinephrine
Dopamine
Peptides
Endogenous opioids
Substance P
Endogenous opioids
Enkephalins
Endorphins
Both regulate pain and stress
Substance P - regulates pain
Cerebellum
Balance and posture
Works with the basal ganglia and motor cortex to coordinate movement
Damage causes ataxia (slurred speech, tremors, poor balance)
Ataxia
Involves slurred speech, severe tremors and loss of balance.
Caused by damage to the cerebellum.
Reticular activating system
Screens sensory input and triggers the brain to be alert when important info is detected, especially during sleep.
Like an alarm system!
Cerebral cortex
Least developed at birth
Divided into right and left hemispheres By corpus callosum
Divided by frontal, parietal, temporal and occipital lobes
Left hemisphere
Logic and language
Most people are left hemisphere dominant
Damage to left hemisphere can result in aphasia (language) disorder, other language problems and ataxia (motor) problems, and problems on right side of body
Right hemisphere
Perceptual, Visuospatial, artistic, musical and intuitive activities
Expression of emotion
Damage here results in prosopagnosia, visual-perception problems, agnosia for music sounds
Affective abnormalities include apathy, hysteria, mania, impulsivity, abnormal sexual behaviors.
Frontal lobes
Largest portion of the brain (1/3)
Devised of
Prefrontal cortex
Pre motor cortex
Motor cortex
Damage usually causes changes in personality, perseveration, inattention, Broca’s
Premotor cortex vs motor cortex
Premotor is involved in planning movement
Motor cortex is involved in voluntary movement
Parietal lobes
Contains the primary sensory cortex that processes somatosensory information
Allow for integration of senses and detection of heat, pain, and proprioception (sense body positioning)
Damage causes all the “ia’s”, right-left disorientation
Gerstmann’s Syndrome
Caused by lesions to left parietal lobe
Results in Agraphia Acalculia Right-left disorientation Finger agnosia (can’t recognize own fingers as part of body)
Sensory memory
Representation of an external stimulus after it has ended
Lasts 2-3 seconds
