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Questions and Answers

What is the primary role of an axon in a neuron?

Transmit signals away from the neuron's cell body (correct)

Communicate with muscles only

Process sensory and motor information

Transmit signals towards the neuron's cell body

Which structure is involved in processing emotions and fear responses?

Basal Ganglia

Hippocampus

Thalamus

Amygdala (correct)

What defines a 'tract' in the Central Nervous System?

Sensory receptors responsive to stimuli

Bundles of axons transmitting signals within the CNS (correct)

Clusters of neuron cell bodies in the CNS

Nerve endings transmitting signals outside the CNS

In which anatomical direction would you find the dorsal aspect of the brain?

Away from the belly Signup and view all the answers

Which of the following best describes ganglia?

Clusters of neuron cell bodies in the PNS Signup and view all the answers

What is the primary function of the hippocampus?

Memory formation and spatial navigation Signup and view all the answers

What do the terms medial and lateral describe in neuroanatomical directions?

Towards the midline and away from the midline Signup and view all the answers

Which of these planes of view is used to cut the brain into front and back sections?

Coronal Signup and view all the answers

What is semantics primarily concerned with?

The study of meaning in language Signup and view all the answers

Which type of aphasia is characterized by fluent but meaningless speech?

Wernicke's aphasia Signup and view all the answers

What is the function of the Angular Gyrus in language processing?

To translate phonological and semantic codes Signup and view all the answers

What area of the brain is primarily responsible for speech production?

Broca's Area Signup and view all the answers

Which of the following describes agraphia and dysgraphia?

Inability or impairment to write Signup and view all the answers

In Lichtheim's House Model, what role does the Concept Area play?

Handles higher-level language processing Signup and view all the answers

What is a characteristic of non-fluent speech in aphasia?

Speaking with considerable effort Signup and view all the answers

According to the Wernicke-Geschwind Model, which step comes first in language processing?

Hearing and decoding words in the auditory cortex Signup and view all the answers

What function is primarily associated with the Dorsolateral Prefrontal Cortex (DLPFC)?

Working memory Signup and view all the answers

Which neuropsychological measure assesses cognitive flexibility?

Wisconsin Card Sorting Test Signup and view all the answers

A deficit in the Orbitofrontal Cortex (OFC) may lead to which of the following challenges?

Emotional instability Signup and view all the answers

The Mediofrontal Cortex (MFC) is important for which of the following functions?

Error detection Signup and view all the answers

What type of cognitive challenge can arise from deficits in the Prefrontal Cortex?

Problem-solving difficulties Signup and view all the answers

What is the primary function of efferent axons?

To carry motor commands away from the CNS Signup and view all the answers

Which test would best measure emotional and social responses as per Orbitofrontal Cortex deficits?

Family/Caregiver Reports Signup and view all the answers

A person showing apathy and diminished emotional response may be experiencing deficits in which area?

Mediofrontal Cortex Signup and view all the answers

Which cranial nerve is responsible for regulating organ functions in the thoracic and abdominal cavities?

Vagus Nerve Signup and view all the answers

Which of the following describes Acquired Brain Injury (ABI)?

Injury to the brain after birth Signup and view all the answers

What is the primary function of the choroid plexus in the brain?

To produce cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) Signup and view all the answers

What characterizes the sympathetic system of the autonomic nervous system?

It prepares the body for fight-or-flight response Signup and view all the answers

What is the primary function of dendrites in a neuron?

To receive messages from other neurons Signup and view all the answers

Which hemisphere of the brain is more specialized for language processing?

Left hemisphere Signup and view all the answers

Which part of a neuron is responsible for carrying messages away from the soma?

Axons Signup and view all the answers

What unusual behavior might be observed in patients with a severed corpus callosum?

Right hand grabbing an object while the left hand puts it back Signup and view all the answers

What role do glial cells play in the nervous system?

They support and nourish neurons Signup and view all the answers

What is the role of the spinal cord within the peripheral nervous system (PNS)?

It distributes motor signals from the brain to muscles Signup and view all the answers

Which layer of the meninges is closest to the skull and has a tough exterior?

Dura Mater Signup and view all the answers

What is the name of the gap between two neurons?

Synaptic cleft Signup and view all the answers

What is the primary role of the blood-brain barrier?

To protect the brain from harmful substances Signup and view all the answers

Which glial cell is responsible for covering the axons of neurons with myelin?

Oligodendrocytes Signup and view all the answers

What does the term 'afferent axons' refer to in the context of the spinal nerves?

Nerves that gather sensory information towards the CNS Signup and view all the answers

What is filled with cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) and acts as a shock absorber for the brain?

Ventricular system Signup and view all the answers

What occurs immediately after the peak of the action potential?

Potassium channels open, allowing K⁺ ions to flow out. Signup and view all the answers

During which phase of the action potential does hyperpolarization occur?

After the repolarization phase. Signup and view all the answers

What is the role of the sodium-potassium pump after an action potential?

It restores the membrane potential to resting state. Signup and view all the answers

What happens to neurotransmitters after they are released into the synaptic cleft?

They diffuse across the synaptic cleft. Signup and view all the answers

What type of postsynaptic potential increases the likelihood of firing an action potential?

Excitatory Postsynaptic Potential (EPSP). Signup and view all the answers

Which mechanism is NOT involved in terminating neurotransmission?

Synaptic recycling. Signup and view all the answers

What effect do Inhibitory Postsynaptic Potentials (IPSPs) have on a neuron?

They lead to hyperpolarization of the neuron. Signup and view all the answers

How do neurons integrate combined signals from EPSPs and IPSPs?

They sum the effects of all signals received. Signup and view all the answers

Study Notes

PYB102 - The Mind and the Brain

Course name: PYB102 - The Mind and the Brain
Student: Anne Vas
Exam date: November 14th, 2024

Central Nervous System (CNS) and Peripheral Nervous System (PNS)

Axon: Transmits signals away from the neuron's cell body to communicate with other neurons or muscles.
Tracts vs. Nerves:
- Tracts (CNS): Bundles of axons transmitting signals within the CNS.
- Nerves (PNS): Bundles of axons transmitting signals outside the CNS.
Nuclei vs. Ganglia:
- Nuclei (CNS): Clusters of neuron cell bodies associated with specific functions (e.g., processing sensory or motor information).
- Ganglia (PNS): Similar clusters in the PNS, typically involved in sensory or autonomic functions.

Central Nervous System (CNS) Neuroanatomical Directions

Ventral: Towards the belly.
Dorsal: Away from the belly (towards the back).
Anterior (Rostral): Towards the front (nose).
Posterior (Caudal): Towards the back of the head (tail).
Medial: Towards the spine or midline.
Lateral: Away from the midline.

Neuroanatomical Planes of View

Sagittal (Medial): Cuts the brain into left and right sides.
Coronal: Cuts the brain into front (anterior) and back (posterior) sections.
Horizontal: Cuts the brain into top and bottom sections.

Divisions of the Brain

Forebrain:
- Telencephalon:
  - Cerebral Cortex: Involved in higher-level functions like thought, reasoning, sensation, and voluntary muscle movement.
  - Limbic System: Involved in emotion, memory formation and motivation. Includes Amygdala (processes emotions and fear responses) and Hippocampus (critical for memory formation and spatial navigation).
  - Basal Ganglia: Plays a major role in movement control and planning.
- Diencephalon:
  - Thalamus: Relay station for sensory information (except smell), filtering and organizing inputs.
  - Hypothalamus: Regulates basic drives (e.g., hunger, thirst, sex) and controls autonomic nervous system, influencing functions like body temperature and fight-or-flight responses.
Midbrain
- Superior Colliculi: Relay and process visual information.
- Inferior Colliculi: Relay and process auditory information.
Hindbrain:
- Medulla: Controls essential autonomic functions (e.g., heart rate, blood pressure, respiration).
- Pons: Acts as a bridge between different brain regions, regulating consciousness and alertness.
- Cerebellum: Coordinates voluntary movements, balance, and posture.

Brain Development

Divisions originate in the earliest stages.
Neural tube grows to form the central nervous system.
Developing neural tube forms discrete enlargements or vesicles.
Embryonic vesicles develop into major brain regions (forebrain, midbrain, hindbrain).

Lobes of the Cerebral Cortex

Occipital Lobe: Primarily responsible for vision.
Parietal Lobe: Processes sensory information (touch, pressure, temperature, pain).
Temporal Lobe: Processes auditory information, memory formation, and language.
Frontal Lobe: Involved in complex processes like reasoning, planning, movement, speech, and problem-solving.

Lateralisation and Contralateral Arrangement

Left cerebral hemisphere is lateralised for language.
Left hemisphere processes somatosensory stimuli from the right side
Visual stimuli from the left visual field is projected to the right hemisphere.
Right hemisphere processes somatosensory stimuli from the left side.
Visual stimuli from the right visual field is projected to the left hemisphere.

Split-Brain Experiments

Used to investigate the lateralisation of the cerebral hemispheres.
Patients with severe epilepsy had their corpus callosum severed.
Left hemisphere is more specialised for language.

Brain Support Systems

Meninges: Protective sheaths around the brain and spinal cord (dura mater, arachnoid membrane, pia mater).
Cerebrospinal Fluid (CSF): Shock absorber, protects the brain.
Blood Supply: Blood-brain barrier; protects the brain.

Peripheral Nervous System (PNS)

Spinal Nerves: Fusion of dorsal and ventral roots, carry sensory and motor information.
Cranial Nerves: 12 nerves attached to the ventral surface of the brain, control many senses in the head and neck region.
Autonomic Nervous System: Serves basic life functions (heart beating, response to stress, regulation of smooth muscle, regulation of cardiac muscle and glands).
- Sympathetic system: Expenditure of energy from body reserves.
- Parasympathetic system: Increases the body's supply of stored energy.

Neurons

Basic Units: Communicate with each other via synapses (synaptic cleft).
Functions: Reception, Conduction, Transmission
Types of Glial Cells: Oligodendrocytes (cover axons with myelin).
Parts of the neuron: Dendrites, Soma, Axon, Terminal buttons, Myelin

Cell Membrane and Action Potential

Cell Membrane: Composed of a lipid bilayer with proteins controlling materials into and out of the cell.
Action Potential: Brief reversal in resting charge of the neuron, triggered by the exchange of ions triggered when depolarization reaches a threshold.

Synaptic Transmission

Neurotransmitters are stored in vesicles in terminal buttons,
Action potentials trigger neurotransmitter release.
Neurotransmitters diffuse across the synaptic cleft.
Attach to receptor molecules, generating an action potential (Excitatory or Inhibitory).
Neurotransmission terminated by reuptake, enzyme deactivation, or autoreception

Types of Postsynaptic Potentials

EPSPs (Excitatory): Make the neuron more positive (depolarization)—increase likelihood of firing.
IPSPs (Inhibitory): Make the neuron more negative (hyperpolarization)—decrease likelihood of firing.

Basic Processes of Memory

Encoding: Transforming sensory stimuli into a form that can be placed in memory.
- Key Component: Attention: Acts as a filer, allowing one stimulus to pass.

Storage

Sensory Register: Registers and briefly holds information from the senses.
- Types:
 - Iconic Memory: Visual system, duration < 1.5 seconds, Capacity 9-10 items
 - Echoic Memory: Auditory system, duration ~2 seconds, Capacity ~5 items.
Short-Term Memory (STM): Intermediate storage (chunking, rehearsal). Duration can exceed 20 seconds with rehearsal, loses information via decay/interference.
Working Memory: Temporary storage and manipulation of information, involves multiple components like phonological loop.

Retrieval

Types:
- Free Recall: Recalling items in any order (primacy/recency effects, context, internal state).
Memory Memory by Duration: Iconic, short-term, and long-term memories.

Memory by Type

Declarative Memory: Explicitly stated knowledge, like semantic or episodic memory.
Nondeclarative Memory: Implicit memory, knowledge from doing, including: - Skills: riding a bicycle - Priming: increased likelihood of using a word. - Conditioning: reaction to a stimulus

Brain Structures Involved in Memory

Case Studies: Henry Molaison (HM): Patient with hippocampus removed— severe anterograde amnesia
Hippocampus: Essential for forming new memories.
Formal Assessments of HM's Amnesia: Digit Span + 1 test; failure to form new long-term verbal memories.

Synaptic Mechanisms of Learning and Memory

Long-Term Potentiation (LTP): Strengthening of synapses with repeated activity. Essential for forming long-term memories.

Consciousness and REM Sleep

EEG: Measures electrical activity of brain waves.
Types of Brain Waves: Beta (alertness), Alpha (relaxed), Theta (light sleep), Delta (deep sleep), and K-Complexes (wakefulness, NREM).
EOG: Measures eye movements, detecting REM sleep.
EMG: Measures muscle activity, detects muscle atonia (paralysis) in REM sleep.

Sleep Disorders

Insomnia: Difficulty falling or staying asleep.
Sleep Apnea: Breathing interruptions during sleep.
Somnambulism (Sleepwalking): Engaging in activities while asleep.
Night Terrors: Intense fear episodes during sleep.
REM Sleep Behavior Disorder (RBD): Acting out dreams during REM sleep.
Narcolepsy: Excessive daytime sleepiness and sudden sleep attacks.

Brain Regions Involved in Sleep Regulation

Suprachiasmatic Nucleus (SCN): Master clock for circadian rhythms.
Retina & Optic Nerve: Detect light signals to SCN; influences wakefulness and sleepiness.
Hypothalamus: Controls various functions including sleep, hunger and body temperature,
Pineal Gland: Produces melatonin, induced by light exposure.
Pons: Crucial for regulating REM sleep; Inhibits motor neurons during REM to prevent acting out dreams.
Thalamus: sensory relay station; involved in transitions between wakefulness and sleep.
Lateral Geniculate Nucleus (LGN): Relays visual information to the visual cortex.

Emotion and Stress

Basic Emotion Approach: Suggests a definitive number of emotions (surprise, anger, fear, sadness, disgust, happiness).
Emotional vs Mood: Emotions are short-term, intense responses, whereas Mood is a longer-term state.
Theories of Emotion:
- James-Lange Theory: Emotion is a result of physiological responses.
- Cannon's Criticism: Physiological responses are slow.
- Schachter-Singer Two-Factor Theory: Physiological arousal is interpreted within a particular context to lead to emotions.
Facial Feedback Hypothesis: Facial expressions influence emotional experience.

Brain Regions Involved in Emotional Processes

Limbic System (Emotional Processing)
Frontal Lobes (Expression of Emotions).
Interaction among various brain regions for emotional experience.

Stress

Stress: A challenge to a person's capacity to cope with demands.
Physiological and Emotional Arousal: Lead to physical and emotional changes.

Autonomic Nervous System (ANS):

Sympathetic Division: Activated during "fight or flight"
Parasympathetic Division: Supports energy conservation and restoration.
Hypothalamus: Activates stress response pathways.

Neural vs. Endocrine Communication

Neural Communication: Fast, directed communication using neurotransmitters.
Endocrine Communication: Slower, widespread communication using hormones.
The HPA Axis: The Hypothalamic pituitary adrenal axis is responsible for regulating stress response throughout the body using endocrine and neural systems simultaneously.

Language and Aphasia

Aphasia: Language disorders; from Greek "a-phato", meaning not speakable.
Phonemes: Smallest units of sound in language.
Morphemes: Smallest units of meaning in language.
Semantics: the study of meaning in language.
Syntax/Grammar: The set of rules that govern how we put words together.
Dysgraphia: Inability to write effectively.
Alexia: Inability to read effectively.
Aphasia: Language disorder, resulting from damage to the brain language centers.
Signs of aphasia:
Paraphasia
Neologism
Non-fluent speech
Types of Aphasia: Broca's Aphasia (difficulty producing speech), Wernickeʼs Aphasia (difficulty comprehending speech or producing meaningful language).

Acquired Brain Injury (ABI)

Definition: Injury to the brain after birth resulting in cognitive, physical, or behavioral deterioration
Causes: Traumatic brain injury resulting from accidents, falls, assaults; other causes include conditions such as strokes, poisoning, infections, drug/alcohol abuse, progressive conditions (Alzheimer's, Parkinson's).
Consequences Physical, emotional, and cognitive impairments.
Assessment of Damage: GCS (Glasgow Coma Scale), LOC (loss of consciousness), PTA (post-traumatic amnesia).

Strokes

Ischemic Stroke: Blood clot blocks blood flow to the brain. (Cause: thrombus / embolus).
Hemorrhagic Stroke: Rupture of an artery in the brain. (Cause: aneurysms / other conditions); causes blood leakage and damages brain cells.

High-Order Cognition: Executive Functions

Executive functions: Cognitive processes allowing individuals to override, switch, and maintain goals, working memory.
Cold Executive: Dealing with logical tasks.
Hot Executive Functions: Involved with emotional tasks.
Frontal Lobes: Key regions for executive functions, including Dorsolateral PFC ("executive circuit"), Orbitofrontal Cortex, and Mediofrontal Cortex.

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