PSB3002 – Flashcard
Unlock all answers in this set
Unlock answersquestion
Types of neurons
answer
Sensory, motor, inter (local and relay), multipolar, bipolar, unipolar
question
Which neurons are located in the Central Nervous System?
answer
motor, inter, multipolar
question
What type of molecules does the membrane of a cell contain?
answer
a double layer of lipid, or fat-like, molecules
question
What is the process for creating protein, and what organelles are involved in this process?
answer
The nucleolus produces ribosomes. Chromosomes contain DNA - when active, they produce mRNA. mRNA produces protein... side note: ncRNA does not encode for protein, but it has other functions.
question
What chemical do mitochondria provide cells with?
answer
ATP - adenosine triphosphate - a special molecule whose breakdown liberates energy and is important to metabolism.
question
What process of transportation do cells participate in to send information?
answer
-axoplasmic transport, which consists of anterograde axoplasmic transport and retrograde axoplasmic transport
question
What are the possible causes of social anxiety disorder?
answer
-hereditary component -history of panic disorder triggered by treatments that activate the autonomic nervous system (this would include injections of lactic acid, yohimbine, or doxapram) -breathing in a lot of carbon dioxide
question
Which parts of the brain are suggested by fMRI studies to be involved in anxiety disorders?
answer
-amygdala (high concentration of GABA receptors) -cingulate, prefrontal, and insular cortices
question
Treatment for social anxiety disorders
answer
-benzodiazepines -treatments that desensitize patients to the objects of situations they fear
question
Possible causes of OCD and Treatments for it
answer
-Tourette's syndrome association with OCD -treatment - damaging the prefrontal cortex or disconnecting it from other parts of the brain
question
Autistic Disorder
answer
-approximately 13 in 10,000 develop it - 4 times more common in males than females
question
Glia
answer
-supporting cells of the CNS
question
What is an astrocyte?
answer
An astrocyte is a type of glial cell providing support for neurons of the CNS; it provides nutrients and other substances, and regulates the chemical composition of the extracellular fluid; physical support to neurons, cleans up debris within the brain.
question
Where do neurons receive their nutrients from?
answer
Mostly from astrocytes, but some of nutrients are received from glucose directly from capillaries.
question
What is the most common type of neuron in the Central Nervous System?
answer
multipolar neuron
question
Activation of cells within what area by a poison in the blood would be predicted to produce what?
answer
area postrema; vomiting
question
Which of the following is true of ion distribution across the axon membrane?
answer
Sodium ions are more concentrated outside the axon membrane.
question
Presynaptic facilitation is associated with ________ synapses and involves a(n) ________ in the amount of transmitter released per action potential.
answer
axoaxonic; increase
question
The difference in electrical charge between the inside and the outside of the axon membrane is defined as the _______ potential.
answer
membrane
question
Regrowth of a damaged axon can occur more readily in the peripheral nervous system than in the brain because of what reasons?
answer
-Schwann cells digest dead or dying axons in the peripheral nervous system. -Schwann cells form cylinders through which new axons can grow and reinnervate a target cell nerve cell. -Schwann cells generate a chemical signal that instructs nerve cells to divide. -Schwann cells form cylinders through which new axons can grow and reinnervate a target cell nerve cell.
question
What is a key function of lysosomes?
answer
to degrade surplus cellular materials
question
Where are synaptic vesicles produced?
answer
in the neuron soma
question
What happens as a consequence of the activity of the sodium-potassium transporters?
answer
intracellular sodium concentrations are kept low
question
What is the name for a large groove found in the surface of the human cortex?
answer
fissure
question
Which type of fibers conduct sensory information toward the brain?
answer
afferent
question
The ______ is the only sensory system for which the cell bodies of the incoming axons are located inside the CNS.
answer
visual
question
Which lobe of the cortex contains the primary auditory cortex?
answer
temporal lobe
question
The motor neurons of the sympathetic nervous system project from the ________ to the ________ .
answer
gray matter of the thoracic and lumbar spinal cord; sympathetic ganglia
question
Reticular formation
answer
-The reticular formation is involved in sleep and arousal. -The term "reticulum" means "little net." -The reticular formation is located below the tectum. -Over 90 nuclei comprise the reticular formation.
question
What is a key function of apoptosis?
answer
to terminate the formation of new neurons within the developing brain
question
The ________ region of cortex lies buried within a fissure between the ________ and the ________ lobes.
answer
insular; frontal; temporal
question
What area is the origin of the cells that form the central nervous system?
answer
ventricular zone
question
What term refers to structures that are found on the opposite sides of the body?
answer
contralateral
question
What did early anatomists name observable brain features after?
answer
similarity of the structure to everyday objects
question
When referring to the brain, what term means "above"?
answer
superior
question
What is another term for "caudal"?
answer
posterior
question
What are the most common neurotransmitters in the central nervous system?
answer
-glutamate -GABE -glycine
question
What does activation of the cannabinoid receptors by THC result in?
answer
-stimulates appetite. -occurs when a person smokes marijuana. -results in analgesia. -reduces nausea and vomiting.
question
Which route of drug administration has the advantage of bypassing the blood-brain barrier?
answer
intracerebroventricular
question
A drug that binds at a postsynaptic site different from that of the neurotransmitter and facilitates the opening of ion channels would be termed as what?
answer
an indirect agonist
question
Neuropeptides are distinctive in that these transmitters do what?
answer
they are secreted from all parts of a terminal button
question
Which peptide acts in the brain to activate thirst circuits?
answer
angiotensin
question
Which amino acid is the synthesis precursor for dopamine and norepinephrine?
answer
tyrosine
question
What is a key characteristic of a drug, defined in the textbook?
answer
It is an exogenous chemical.
question
Degeneration of neurons within what dopamine system leads to Parkinson's disease?
answer
nigrostriatal
question
What is an important drawback to the intravenous route of drug administration?
answer
accidental overdose
question
Which serotonin receptor is classified as an ionotropic receptor?
answer
5-HT3
question
Opioid Effects in the Brain
answer
-Heroin is an example of an opioid receptor agonist. -Opioids can induce euphoria and reward. -Opioids act to reduce pain. -Naloxone is an example of an opioid receptor antagonist.
question
The activation of 1- and 2-adrenoreceptors in the brain produce what 2 things respectively?
answer
slow depolarization and slow hyperpolarization
question
What is the effect of the drug picrotoxin and its effect on GABA function?
answer
It acts as an indirect antagonist of the GABAA receptor.
question
Humans can detect sound pressure waves that cycle between what 2 frequencies per second?
answer
30 and 20,000
question
High-threshold free nerve endings are sensitive to what?
answer
angina or migraine
question
The neurotransmitter at the afferent synapses of the auditory nerve is ________, which acts to produce ________ within the nerve axons.
answer
glutamate; EPSP's
question
Why is it thought that a place code is involved in detecting medium to high-pitched sounds?
answer
Antibiotics can degenerate hair cells in a basal to apical direction and produce corresponding deficits in pitch perception.
question
The painful prospect of what is offset by the release of endogenous opiates.
answer
copulation
question
Which nuclei are the relay nuclei for somatosensation?
answer
ventral posterior thalamic
question
According to imaging studies, what cortex does the unpleasant aspect of pain involve?
answer
anterior cingulate cortex
question
Cutaneous receptors signal information regarding what "events"?
answer
-pressure -vibration -temperature -events that damage the skin
question
Cochlear implants restore the ability to understand speech by doing what?
answer
electrically stimulating different regions of the basilar membrane
question
Damage to the floculonodular lobe of the cerebellum would be expected to impair what?
answer
postural reflexes
question
What are the pathways that are a part of the Lateral group?
answer
-lateral corticospinal tract -red nucleus -rubrospinal tract -corticobulbar pathway
question
What is a key function of the rubrospinal tract?
answer
to control independent movements of the forearms and hands.
question
The withdrawal of a limb in response to pain is an example of what kind of reflex?
answer
polysynaptic reflex
question
What do we call the spatial representation of the specific cortical areas that control specific body movements?
answer
motor homunculus
question
Huntington's Disease (HD) is caused by a defective gene on which chromosome?
answer
Chromosome 4
question
Why do the physical effects of a muscle twitch last longer than the action potential that triggered the contraction?
answer
because it takes time to extrude calcium ions out of the fiber
question
What does damage to the intermediate zone of the cerebellum result in?
answer
limb rigidity
question
The cerebellar ________ receives somatosensory information and influences the vestibulospinal and reticulospinal tracts.
answer
vermis
question
What is a key function of the reticular formation?
answer
to control muscle tone through the gamma motor system
question
The tongue, face, and some eye muscles are controlled by what?
answer
the corticobulbar pathway
question
What is the difference between single-unit and multi-unit smooth muscle?
answer
-single-unit smooth muscle contracts in a rhythmic fashion -multi-unit smooth muscle is normally inactive, but will contract in response to neural stimulation or to certain hormones.
question
What is the reason for the dark stripes in skeletal muscle?
answer
The dark stripes are just overlapping segments of actin and myosin filaments.
question
What is a circadian rhythm?
answer
an endogenous cycle of activity over the course of a day.
question
Why is the observation that a person's brain shows beta wave activity not a reliable indicator of them being awake?
answer
because this brain wave pattern also appears during sleep.
question
An episode of cataplexy is commonly caused by what?
answer
strong emotions or physical exertion.
question
Where is melanopsin found?
answer
in ganglion cells
question
What kind of sleep occurs soon after the appearance of rapid eye movements in the sleep record?
answer
paradoxical sleep
question
The theta brain wave pattern is characterized by changes in frequency of electrical activity of how many Hertz?
answer
3.5-7.5 Hz
question
Narcoleptics generally enter what stage of sleep when an attack happens?
answer
they generally enter REM sleep directly from the waking state - this also supports the notion that narcolepsy involves faulty brain regulation of sleep.
question
What sleep disorder is characterized by a buildup of carbon dioxide in the blood?
answer
sleep apnea
question
Daytime hangovers can be caused by what?
answer
sleeping pills
question
Hypocretin neurons are more active during ________ but are inactive during ________.
answer
normal waking; sleep
question
In what way is the sleep pattern of a dolphin unique?
answer
Sleep and waking occur independently in the two hemispheres.
question
The administration of what drug is an effective treatment for REM-sleep behavior disorder?
answer
clonazepam
question
When men view beautiful pictures of women, where does neural activity increase?
answer
nucleus accumbens
question
Damage to what part of the brain would be expected to impair instrumental learning?
answer
basal ganglia
question
Relational learning involves changes in what?
answer
connections between different regions of sensory association cortex
question
Increased activity of the right hippocampal formation could be caused by what activity?
answer
a person describing the route she would take from point A to point B
question
Which cortex plays a role in short-term memory for all sensory systems?
answer
prefrontal cortex
question
The increase in synaptic strength that occurs in long-term potentiation is due to a modification of the cell that includes what more of what receptors?
answer
postsynaptic AMPA receptors
question
What is an example of a task that measures perceptual learning?
answer
recognizing broken drawings
question
Damage to what hemisphere impairs the production of prosody (production of which resembles singing)?
answer
right hemisphere (think right auditory cortex, strongly involved in learning and perceiving music)
question
A person who is fluent in speech but poor in naming, repetition, and comprehension has what aphasia (also known as a receptive aphasia)?
answer
Wernicke's aphasia
question
In Japanese language, Kanji symbols are what?
answer
a visual representation of a concept.
question
Damage to the right parietal lobe results in difficulty in perceiving what?
answer
spatial directions
question
Prosody
answer
-It often serves as a vehicle for conveying emotion -The right hemisphere plays a role in the production and perception of prosody -It is normal in people with Wernicke's aphasia -Punctuation symbols are mimics of prosody
question
Damage to the right hemisphere results in impairment of our capacity to what?
answer
read a map
question
What is anomia?
answer
a difficulty in choosing the right word for a sentence
question
Sound cues as to ________ are short, whereas those for ________ are long.
answer
word identity; prosody
question
A person with pure word deafness ability retains the ability to what?
answer
-read lips. -understand the emotion expressed in speech. -read and write. -recognize nonspeech sounds such as a dog barking.
question
The primary difficulty noted in Broca's aphasia involves what?
answer
producing speech
question
Wernicke's aphasia is caused by damage to the superior temporal gyrus of which hemisphere?
answer
left hemisphere
question
A person with a reduced volume of gray matter in the left insular cortex is likely to experience what?
answer
tip-of-the-tongue phenomenon
question
An easy way to think of transcortical aphasia syndrome is as:
answer
Wernicke's aphasia without pure word deafness
