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The Brain > Problem 4 > Flashcards

Problem 4 Flashcards

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1
Q

What is the pharmacologic working of MPH and AMP?

A

MPH results in less dopamine reuptake of the presynaptic neurons, AMP does the same but also result in more dopamine release. Both resulting in more dopamine in the synaptic cleft.

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2
Q

What could be alternative reasons for users experience effects of ‘smart pills’?

A

Placebo effect; the drug alters the students perception of work quality and amount; the drug enhances energy, wakefulness and motivation improving the work with an unchanged level of cognitive ability

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3
Q

Can you come up with additional explanations as to why smartpills have an effect?

A

Regression to the mean, undiagnosed ADHD, lower scoring baseline participants benefit more

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4
Q

What is the effects of AMP and MPH on learning?

A

The stimulants enhance consolidation in declarative learning, results where better after longer test periods

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5
Q

What is the effects of AMP and MPH on working memory?

A

Mixed results. Stimulants probably do enhance working memory for spme individuals (val/val)

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6
Q

What is the effects of AMP and MPH on cognitive control?

A

More null results than positive results. People who perform poorly on placebo, people with COMT val val gene, and people who are impulsive experienced cognitive enhancement

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7
Q

What is the effects of AMP and MPH on other executive functions?

A

Only two of eight studies found that stimulants enhanced cognitive performance so it is difficult to draw a conclusion

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8
Q

What is the pharmacological working of modafinil?

A

Stimulant drug that affects both online and offline processes; it directly inhibits central dopamine and norepinephrine uptake trabsporters, causing an elevation in the catecholamine levels, this enhances serotonin glutamate histamine and orexin and reduces GABA

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9
Q

What problems are there with using neuropsychological tests to examine cognition enhancing effects?

A
  • simple tasks are too simple, whereas complex tasks are too difficult to standardize
  • complex tasks cannot measure a single subcomponent of cognition
  • there is a practice effect in a within-subject design
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10
Q

What are the differences between simple and complex tasks?

A
  • simple tasks have a ceiling effect, complex tasks do not
  • simple tasks can measure discrete subcomponents and compare them
  • complex tasks can measure more integrated features of cognition
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11
Q

What did Battleday find on the effect of Modafinil in Simple tasks?

A

Simple tasks found benefits for executive functions (inhibitory control), learning (non-verbal short term memory)

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12
Q

What did Battleday find on the effevts on Complex tasks?

A

Complex tasks found an effect on attention, executive function and memory

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13
Q

What did Battleday find on the relationship between mood and modafinil?

A

Overall no changes in mood; some studies reported increasing anxiety and decreased contentedness

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14
Q

What recommendations does Battleday give for future task design?

A
  • for use of healthy rather than clinical animal populations
  • focus on one or more cognitive domains and their subcomponents
  • integrate adaptive training and testing
  • include testing on other un-trained cognitive domains
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15
Q

What recommendations does Battleday give for future trail design?

A
  • test over multiple days
  • include follow-up testing
  • use a design that includes between and within subject
  • include analysis of higher and lower baseline performers
  • be required to report side effects
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16
Q

Ilieva et al suggestexplanations for mixed results for the enhancing properties of stimulants, what are they?

A
  • moderation of enhancement by individual differences
  • regression to the mean and baseline performance
  • moderation by order of drug administration
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17
Q

Explain the goal of the MAS experiment:

A

Examining the actual cognitive rnhancing effects of MAS, and comparing it to the perceived cognitive effects

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18
Q

Explain the set up of the MAS experiment

A

first, there was a practice session where participants got acquainted with the tasks. After 2-4 days, the participants made baseline cognitive tests such as the SAT. After a week, the first pill was administered and again the cognitive tasks were made. After another week, the second pill was administered and again the cognitive tasks were made.

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19
Q

Did they use control groups in the MAS experiment?

A
  • The placebo group is the control group; it’s a 2x2x2 design, where the first factor is drugs vs. placebo; it is a placebo-controlled study!
  • Counterbalancing in the order of the drug administration (between-subjects);
  • The study was double-blind
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20
Q

Explain the results of the MAS expermient?

A
  • The was no enhancinf effect on cognitive performance
  • below-median performers had more enhancement
  • Participants perceived more enhancement subjectively
21
Q

What shortcomings of their study do Ilieva et al. mention?

A

Did not vary drug doses; only used Adderall and no other enhancers; did not measure bioavailability; the participants were not representative of the general population (all white males); all participants had a health criteria

22
Q

Explain the set-up of the Wadha et al. experiment

A

Rats were used and given caffeine and modafinil, during a phase of 48 sleep deprivation. The sleep deprivation was induced by shaking the cage when the rats fell asleep. The effects of sleep deprivation on short term memory performance was evaluated by a novel recognition tasks. After, the rats were euthanized and the brain tissue was collected and examined.

23
Q

Did Wdha et al. use control groups?

A

yes. They had seven conditions, where sleep deprivation, normal sleep, and aparatus control were compared. And Modafinil, caffeine, and saline were compared.

24
Q

Explain the results of Wadha et al. at the behavioral level

A

Sleep deprived rats scored more poorly on the NORT test; however, caffeine and modafinil treatment improved the memory performance on NORT for the sleep deprived rats, compared to sleep deprived rats that were treated with saline. Rats that were not sleep deprived showed no effect whether they were treated with caffeine, modafinil or saline

25
Q

Explain the results of Wadha et al. at the chemical level

A

Presynaptic proteins decreased after sleep deprivation compared to apparatus control. Both caffeine and modafinil during sleep deprivation significantly improved synapsin I and synaptophysin; modafinil but not caffeine improved the expression of PSD-95

26
Q

What can we infer from Wadha et al ?

A
  • Sleep deprivation results in impairment of recognition memory and lower density of synaptic proteins.
  • Caffeine and modafinil during sleep deprivation can improve memory performance and improved presynaptic proteins
27
Q

What can we not infer from Wadha et al?

A
  • We cannot infer that caffeine and modafinil have (the same) cognitive enhancing effect on other sub-functions of cognition
  • We cannot infer that caffeine and modafinil have the same cognitive enhancing effects on healthy, non-sleep deprived participants
  • we have only tested rats and cannot generalize this to humans
28
Q

What did they examine with immunohistochemistry (IHC)?

A

Immunohistochemistry is a method for detecting antigens in cells of a tissue section. This technique makes it possible to visualize the distribution and localization of specific cellular components within cells.

29
Q

What is the working of modafinil? (Dresler)

A

Modafinil works on GABA, glutamate, dopamine, and norepinephrine

30
Q

What is the working of methylphenidate? (Dresler)

A

Methylphenidate dopamine reuptake blocker

31
Q

What is the working of Acetylcholinesterase inhibitors? (Dresler)

A

inhibit acetylcholinesterase; more acetylcholine is left in the synaptic cleft; used in dementia

32
Q

What is the working of Memantine? (Dresler)

A

Memantine is an antagonist of MMDA receptors; blocks the MMDA receptors resulting in less glutamate binding therefore less action potentials; also used in dementia

33
Q

According to Dresler, how effective are these pharmacological enhancers?

A

Too little research on acetylcholinesterase and memantine; there are positive effects found for memory for methylphenidate. Effectiveness depends on doses and expectations

34
Q

What is the working of the two types of nutrition that are described by Dresler?

A
  • Caffeine: effective on simple tasks, but hard to make distinctions between psychological and pharmacological effects
  • Glucose: high blood glucose levels are associated with improved memory function; the effects are more pronounced in the elderly
35
Q

Which groups and which kind of exercises are mainly used in research according to Dresler?

A

The specific groups used are school aged children and (middle aged) older adults. The kinds of exercises used are brief bursts of exercise versus high intensity exercises

36
Q

What is most likely the basis of the neural mechanism underlying the effects of physical exercise on human cognition?

A

Better efficiency of the cortex and better blood flow in the hippocampus

37
Q

Which cognitive capacities in particular are thought to be enhanced by sleep according to Dresler?

A

Consolidation of memories; especially procedural and perceptual memories are consolidated during sleep; non-REM helps with consolidating declarative memories; REM helps with consolidated procedural memories
This was too simplistic at the end and depended more on sleep cycles

38
Q

What is the contemporary idea on the neural mechanisms that underlie the effects of sleep?

A

Multiple microprocesses all add to cognitive functions in their own independent way

39
Q

Which cognitive capacities in particular are thought to be enhanced by meditation?

A

Attention, flexibility, and impulse control

40
Q

What is the contemporary idea on the neural mechanisms that underlying the effects of meditation?

A

Theta and alpha waves during meditating

41
Q

Discuss the effectiveness of mnemonics in enhancing cognition in human. Which 4 approaches are often described?

A

Method of loci; phonetic system; keyword method; retrieval practice

42
Q

With what kind of tasks are the effects of mnemonics largest?

A

Memory tasks

43
Q

Describe the effectiveness of computer training in enhancing cognition in human. Which aspects of cognition might benefit?

A

Much interest has been focused on enhancing long term memory or brain plasticity in healthy or mildly impaired older adults using training programs, especially to prevent dementia and age related cognitive disorders. Computerized training programs have shown moderate improvements of memory that are sustained 3 months after end of training. Mixed results about the effectiveness of these aspects of cognition.

44
Q

Describe advantages and drawbacks of this computer training;

A

Easy to perform this method; drawback is almost no far transfer

45
Q

. Which techniques are currently available to stimulate the brain electrically?

A

TMS and TDCS (noninvasive); DBS and DVNS (invasive)

46
Q

Which cognitive capacities in particular are thought to be enhanced by brain stimulation?

A

Memory

47
Q

What is the contemporary idea on the neural mechanisms that underlie the effects of brain stimulation?

A

TDCS there are differences in excitability; TMS and DVNS can help by encoding memory; DBS results in direct modulation of memory systems

48
Q

Describe possible advantages and drawbacks of brain stimulation

A

advantage; direct targeting of brain systems,

drawback; invasive might be too risky by direct invading the human brain

The Brain (5 decks)

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