Brain Structure Assignment PDF - BIO329 Spring 2024

Name: Louise Bacon BIO329 Spring 2024 Quinnipiac University Brain Structure Assignment (submit individually!) Part I Please visit the following website: https://www.brainfacts.org/3d-brain#intro=false&focus=Brain Take some time to explore each hemisphere and lobe interactively. Then, investigate the...

Name: Louise Bacon BIO329 Spring 2024 Quinnipiac University Brain Structure Assignment (submit individually!) Part I Please visit the following website: https://www.brainfacts.org/3d-brain#intro=false&focus=Brain Take some time to explore each hemisphere and lobe interactively. Then, investigate the following structures (be able to identify them) and write a couple of sentences regarding their function or role: Brain Stem à responsible for important functions such as breathing, consciousness, blood pressure, heart rate, and sleep. Prefrontal Cortex à responsible for regulating thoughts, actions, and emotions through connections to other parts of the brain. Motor Cortex à generate signals to direct the movement of the body, it consists of the primary motor cortex, premotor cortex, and the supplementary motor area. Primary Visual Cortex à responsible for receiving and integrating visual information and send to other regions of the brain. Ventricles à The ventricles store and produce cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) and are responsible for keeping the CSF moving. Cerebellum à The cerebellum helps improve motor skills in individuals by detecting errors in movements and adjusting the next movement, which strengthens the connections from the brain to the body. Corpus Callosum à consists of white mater tracts that connect the left and right cerebral hemispheres. Basal Ganglia à The basal ganglia is responsible for motor control, motor learning, executive functions, behaviors and emotions. Thalamus à Relays information about the body’s senses to the rest of the brain. Responsible for vision, hearing, touch, proprioception, and taste signals Hypothalamus à The hypothalamus provides a link between the central nervous system and the endocrine system, controls the pituitary gland, regulates body temperature, and Hippocampusà Responsible for long term memory, it communicates with the rest of the brain using the entorhinal cortex. Cranial Nerves à there are 12 cranial nerves in the body and they connect the brain to other parts of the face, neck and body. Part II (TBI and CT) Every year, thousands of people in the US suffer from some type of traumatic brain injury (TBI) due to accidents such as motor vehicles accidents, sports accidents, and war injuries. A traumatic injury to the brain may cause handicaps in various aspects of a person’s life, and therefore it is very critical that TBI be identified and intervention be presented to the patients as quickly as possible. Regardless of the severity of the injury (mild, moderate or severe) an important step is to identify the extent of the injury. As soon as a traumatic brain injury patient is brought to the hospital, the doctors typically have the patient get a head CT (computerized tomography) scan. CT has become a vital tool in the assessment of patients with serious head injury and has enabled much better quality in management of TBI. CT scans can show the bleeding, swelling, or pressure in the brain, fractures in the skull, as well as other structural abnormalities that may be caused by a traumatic injury. Looking at a CT scan, physicians can determine the best course of action and discuss about the functional difficulties that the patient may have after the accident as suggested by the locations of the injury in the brain. Case Study A significant event occurred that altered Taylor’s cognitive abilities significantly. Taylor’s family was in a motor vehicle accident. When their car was hit by another car, Taylor hit the back of her head to her seat and she was catapulted from the back seat to the windshield. They were brought to the emergency room 20 minutes after the accident. Taylor was unconscious when she was brought to the hospital. Taylor was immediately given a CT scan. CT Scan Results: When the doctor looked at Taylor’s CT image, he saw the following signs of an epidural hematoma: There was a high-density collection of blood (appears white on a CT) between the brain and the inner layer of the skull, biconvex, lens shaped. The build-up of blood was in the epidural space of the head, which is between the dura mater (the outer membrane of the brain) and the skull. Q: As Taylor’s physician, what action can you / should you take clinically? And what is the expected outcome? Taylors physician should try to remove the blood from the brain by draining it or surgically remove the part of the skull to remove the hematoma. An epidural hematoma can be fatal if not treated quickly and efficiently, and even if it is some disabilities many occur. Part III 1. Name the three main parts of the hindbrain. Which of these is also part of the brainstem? - Medulla Oblongata - Pons - Cerebellum The medulla oblongata and the ponds are also part of the brain stem. 2. What is the fate of tissue derived from the embryonic neural tube? Neural crest? Tissues derived from the embryonic neural tube gives rise to the CNS, which includes the brain and spinal cord. Tissues derived from the neural crest give rise to various components in the PNS. 3. Where is CSF produced? What path does it take before it is absorbed into the bloodstream? Name the parts of the CNS it will pass through in its voyage from brain to blood. CSF is produced by the choroid plexus in the ventricles. After it is produced, CSF flows through the ventricle system of the brain. It passes through the lateral ventricles, third ventricle, and fourth ventricle. 4. Is the myelin sheath of optic nerve axons provided by Schwann cells or oligodendroglia? Why? The myelin sheath of optic nerve axons is provided by oligodendroglia not Schwann cells. This is because the optic nerve is part of the central nervous system which oligodendrocytes are responsible for myelinating.