Section 6 : Biopsychology - The Nervous System Flashcards
The nervous system has two main parts that are…
- Central Nervous System
- Peripheral Nervous System
What is the CNS made up of
Brain and spinal cord
What is the peripheral nervous system made up of
The neurons that connect the CNS to the rest of the body
The peripheral nervous system also has two different systems which are…
Autonomic nervous system
Somatic nervous system
What is the autonomic nervous system
System that controls unconscious activities e.g. breathing
What is the somatic nervous system
Controls concious activities e.g. running, playing video games etc
The autonomic nervous system has two further divisions which are…
Sympathetic nervous system
Parasympathetic nervous system
What is the sympathetic nervous system
System that gets the body ready for action (fight or flight)
What is the parasympathetic nervous system
System that calms the body down (rest and digest)
What are neurons
specialised cells that conduct electrical impulses within the nervous system
What is a neuron typically consist of
- Dendrite
- cell body
- axon
- myelin sheath (made up of Schwann cells)
- synaptic knob
What do dendrites do
Receive information from other neurons
How does the electrical impulse move along the neuron
The impulse moves along the axon and ends up at the synaptic knob
What does the myelin sheath do
Insulates the axon and therefore speeds up nervous transmission
What is the small gap between neurons called
Synapse
What are neurotransmitters
Chemicals released from the synaptic knob. They pass across the synapse to pass on the impulse to the dendrites of the next neuron.
What are the different types of neurons
Sensory
Relay
Motor
What do sensory neurons do and what do they consist of
- transmit electrical impulses from receptors to CNS
- consist of receptor cells, dendron, cell body which sticks out and axon
What do relay neurons do and what do they consist of
- the neurons that transmit impulses in the CNS and between sensory and motor neurons
- consists of dendrites, axons to motor neurons, cell body
What do motor neurons do and what are they consisted of
- Neurons that transmit electrical impulses from the CNS to effectors
- dendrites, cell body, axon, axon terminal, effector cells
What is the the pathway in which information is transmitted
Stimulus -> receptors -> CNS->effectors->response
What are reflexes
fast automatic responses to certain stimuli. They bypass your conscious brain completely, instead they go thru the spinal cord or thru an unconscious part of the brain. These responses help us to avoid damage
What is a synapse
A junction between a neuron and another neuron or between a neuron and effector cell
What is the synaptic cleft
the space between the two neurons
The presynaptic neuron has a swelling called ….
The synaptic knob. This contains synaptic vesicles filled with neurotransmitters
What happens when the electrical impulse reach the end of a neuron
It causes the neurotransmitters to be released into the synaptic cleft. They diffuse across to the postsynaptic membrane and bind to specific receptors
When the neurotransmitters bind to the receptors what might they trigger
- an electrical impulse in a neuron
- muscle contraction in a muscle cell
- hormone to be secreted from a gland
How do the neurotransmitters travel
Only in one direction
What happens after the neurotransmitters are released and stimulate the receptors
They are removed from the cleft so the response doesn’t keep happening
How do neurotransmitters get taken back
Either taken back into presynaptic neuron or they’re broken down by enzymes
Neurotransmitters are either….
Excitatory
Inhibitory
What do excitatory neurotransmitters do
Increase the likelihood that an electrical impulse will be triggered in the postsynaptic neuron
What do inhibitory neurotransmitters do
Inhibitory neurotransmitters decrease the likelihood that an electrical impulse will be triggered in the postsynaptic neuron
What are the neurotransmitters we need to know
- Acetylcholine
- Dopamine
- Noradrenaline
- Serotonin
- GABA
What is acetylcholine
- excitatory
- involved in voluntary movement, memory, learning and sleep
- too much may lead to depression to little may lead to dementia
What is dopamine
- Neurotransmitter that helps with movement, attention and learning.
- too much is linked to schizophrenia and too little could result in depression and or Parkinson’s
What is noradrenaline
- closely related to adrenaline (associated to fight or flight)
- too much is linked to schizophrenia too little may result in depression
What is serotonin
- involved in emotion, mood, sleeping and eating.
- too much is linked to depression
What is GABA
- inhibitory
- too little is linked to anxiety disorders
