Flashcards Due 10/28/06

Front 1

If I am doing long division in my head, what type of "memory" am I using?

Back 1

Working memory (Specifically, "active" working memory)

Hint 1

WM involves holding a particular concept briefly in awareness while a mental operation is performed.

Front 2

If I am doing long division in my head, I am relying especially on the ___________ lobe, specifically the ____________ region.

Back 2

frontal lobe (better: "frontal network"), especially the DORSOLATERAL PREFRONTAL region, mainly the LEFT (language-based) side.

Hint 2

Working memory (especially "active" working memory) is primarily an *executive* function and not a declarative memory function.

Front 3

What kind of working memory is involved in doing long division without paper (in your head): Active or Passive?

Back 3

Active ("mental blackboard" memory).

Hint 3

Passive working memory involves tasks like repeating digits forward. When you repeat them backwards, that's "active" working memory.

Front 4

True or False: Unlike declarative memory loss, implicit memory usually is not significantly impaired by specific lesion.

Back 4

True (B 782). Remember that implicit memory (skills, habits, conditioning) is very robust against any form of injury and may involve many different memory structures.

Hint 4

H.M. was able to learn certain tasks that did not require conscious recall. Also training implicit memory (use of habits) is the basis of much cognitive rehabilitation work with elderly and brain-damaged individuals.

Front 5

Learning of skill and habits most likely involves plasticity (encoding) in three main areas--name them.

Back 5

1) Basal ganglia
2) Cerebellum
3) Premotor area.

(B782). Please refer to the HINT card also!!

Hint 5

Recall that the basal ganglia are called a "procedural learning unit", and that the cerebellum is functionally very similar. The premotor area (especially supplementary motor strip) is involved in executing skilled actions. FYI (not for testing): The premotor area may simply process (rather than store) motor programs "sent" to it from Gerstmann's area--the area involved in dyspraxia (inability to mimic cutting with scissors).

Front 6

A landmark case of amnesia, H.M. underwent surgery in what brain
region in an attempt to control epileptic seizures?

Back 6

bilateral (right and left) medial temporal lobes. Bilateral "hippocampi" is also acceptable. (B: 780)

Hint 6

H.M still participates in memory related research today. His seizures
improved and he has intact memories from childhood and up until a couple of
years before the surgery. His personality and general intelligence remains
similar to pre-surgery status, but he is no longer able to convert short term
memories into long term memories.

Front 7

What structures does "medial temporal lobe" usually refer to? Name the two most important ones.

Back 7

"hippocampus" (or hippocampal formation) and the parahippocampal gyrus.

Hint 7

The hippocampal formation and parahippocampal gyrus are continuous with each other, with the hippocampus at the forward "bulb" end and the parahippocampal gyrus just before that.

Front 8

The hippocampal formation and parahippocampual formation are connected with each other as a continuous unit. What structure connects with the parahippocampal gyrus, ARCHing over the ventricles and attaching to the mammilary bodies?

Back 8

fornix. (Means "arch").

Hint 8

See the illustration in Blumenfeld ("Limbic System" chapter).

Front 9

Olfaction, declarative memory, emotions/drive, and homeostasis, are all primary functions of what brain system?

Back 9

The limbic system. (B: 816)

Hint 9

Recall the HOME mnemonic.

Front 10

Olfaction is part of the __________ system of the brain, which also includes declarative memory and other functions.

Back 10

The limbic system.

Hint 10

Recall the HOME mnemonic.

Front 11

True or False: Implicit memory is usually associated with the limbic system.

Back 11

False. *Declarative* memory is associated with the limibic system (Circuit of Papez).

Hint 11

Implicit memory tends to be associated with a wide variety of brain structures, especially basal ganglia, cerebellum, and premotor cortex.

Front 12

The Circuit of Papez is an important part of the ________ system of the brain, and is primarily associated with __________ (a cognitive function).

Back 12

limbic system, primarily involved with (declarative) memory.

Front 13

What type of memory is mediated by the Circuit of Papez?

Back 13

Declarative memory.

Front 14

Multiple Choice: When you store the definition of "dysdiadichokinesis" or what you had for breakfast, you are primarily engaging what brain structures (choose the BEST single answer):

(1) basal ganglia and dorsolateral prefrontal area,
(2) left parietal angular gyrus and primary auditory areas,
(3) Circuit of Papez

Back 14

Circuit of Papez. Please see the HINT card.

Hint 14

The basal ganglia and prefrontal cortex are strongly involved in memory RETRIEVAL, not memory encoding (memorizing "dysdiadichokinesis"). The angular gyrus is not part of the declarative memory system

Front 15

The dendate gyrus, subiculum, and hippocamus are collectively called the ____________ _________.

Back 15

Hippocampal formation.

Front 16

Although the medial temporal lobe system is the primary area involved in memory encoding, the basal forebrain (flat bottom side of brain) is also involved. What is its general role?

Back 16

Provides cholinergic input (acetylcholine) to the limbic memory system, providing "modulation" and "activation". The exact function is not well understood. Please see the HINT card for important information.

Hint 16

The basal forebrain is one of the first structures damaged in Alzheimer's (along with medial temporal lobe). Current medications try to replace the lost acetylcholine which is provided by the forebrain. For example, "aricept".

Front 17

What neurotransmitter is involved in "cholinergic" neurons (e.g., basal forebrain).

Back 17

acetylcholine.

Front 18

What neurotransmitter is usually depleted by damage to the basal forebrain caused by Alzheimer's

Back 18

acetylcholine.

Front 19

The primary INPUT to the hippocampal formation arrives from the e____________ cortex, which transmits information from association cortex.

Back 19

entorhinal cortex (B: 777)

Hint 19

Entorhinal cortex as a whole, therefore, receives highly-processed input from every sensory modality, as well as input relating to ongoing cognitive processes.

Front 20

The primary output from the medial temporal lobe is via the f________ as well as the cingulum (internal "wiring" of the cingulate)

Back 20

fornix.

Front 21

Name two diseases (or conditions) which cause major damage to the hippocampal formation.

Back 21

Alzheimer's Disease and anoxia (lack of oxygen). Severe head trauma can also cause damage.

Hint 21

The hippocampus is perhaps the most sensitive part of the brain to oxygen depreviation and one of the first areas damaged. Professional mountain climbers who climb at high altitutdes without oxygen tanks have been found to have memory damage due to this reason.

Front 22

Professional mountain climbers frequently have mild memory impairment. What structure is primarily damaged, and what kind of memory (encoding, storage, recall) is affected?

Back 22

Hippocamus. (Medial temporal lobe, hippocampal formation are also correct). Primarily affects encoding.

Hint 22

Recall that the hippocampus is EXQUISITELY sensitive to oxygen deprivation.

Front 23

If you have a heart-bypass operation and there is a brief interruption in the oxygen supply to the brain, what brain structure is one of the most likely to be affected?

Back 23

Hippocampus. See HINT card.

Hint 23

Factoid: In addition to hippocampus, areas of blood circulation in the brain which are furthest from the main arteries (so called "watershed areas) are also very vulnerable to damage. Mild aphasia may result, among other things.

Front 24

Storage of declarative memory is primarily in the cerebral _______________.

Back 24

Cortex (or "association areas").

Hint 24

Storage is usually in the association areas closest to where original processing occured. For example, auditory information may be near the temporal lobes. Such information is not usually "modality specific"--it involves a blending of different sensory information, such as your memory of an object (includes color, shape, weight, location, etc).

Front 25

Your memory of a particular object (including color, shape, weight, location, etc), is likely to be stored in what kind of cerebral cortex: 1) primary sensory cortex, 2) heteromodal association cortext, 3) isocortex, or 4) archeocortex?

Back 25

Heteromodal association cortex.

Hint 25

Recall that association areas consist of a "blended", highly processed mixture of sensory information (touch, vision, hearing, etc.)

Front 26

The word "fornix" means _______ in latin, which is appropriate because it __________ over the top of the ventricles (in the middle).

Back 26

"arch". It "arches" over the ventricles.

Front 27

Name three "C"-shaped structures located near the lateral ventricles.

Back 27

Fornix, Corpus Callosum, and Caudate Nucleus. (B:778).

Hint 27

"C"-shapes tend to be associated with structures near the ventricles.

Front 28

The Fornix, Corpus Callosum, and Caudate all have a "___"-shape, because they all curve around or arch over the top of the _______________.

Back 28

C-shape. Curve around and over the ventricles.

Hint 28

Examine the brain model which is available in class.

Front 29

Name the major output pathway of the hippocampal formation.

Back 29

fornix (B778).

Hint 29

It connects the medial temporal lobe (hippocampus) to the mammilarry bodies.

Front 30

True or False: The cingulum is the most prominent white matter pathway underlying the Cingulate Gyrus.

Back 30

True. (B779).

Front 31

Global cerebral anoxia, such as caused by cardiac arrest, is characterised by marked damage (loss of pyramidal cells) especially in the ___________________.

Back 31

hippocampus.

Hint 31

The hippocampus is one of the most sensitive structures in the entire brain--both to anxoxia and to any form of trauma.

Front 32

Wernicke-Korsakov patients may have some deficits in ADDITION to memory loss. Name two such cognitive impairments and what structure is damaged (in addition to thalamus and mamillary bodies).

Back 32

Possible answers include the following, due to damage in the frontal-network:

1) Judgment
2) Impulse control
3) Initiative
4) Sequencing
5) Confabulation

(B:785)

Hint 32

Recall that these are all associated with frontal-network functioning. (e.g., the mnemonic "RIO" or "ORDR")

Front 33

Why do we refer to "frontal NETWORK" damage rather than "frontal LOBE" damage?

Back 33

Because the frontal lobe is tightly linked to subcortical strucures, especially the basal ganglia. So they tend to operate as a unit. Thus, it may be impossible to separate frontal lobe function from basal ganglia function, for example.

Front 34

Confabulation in Wernike-Korsakov patients is thought to be a result of _____________________ (name of a brain structure) dysfunction.

Back 34

Frontal network dysfunction.

Hint 34

Due to disinhibition and loss of self-monitoring capabilities.

Front 35

What is the primary cause of Wernicke-Korsakov syndrome? (Not the brain structure but rather the event/agent which damages the brain).

Back 35

Thiamine (vitamine B1) deficiency caused by severe alcohol abuse.

Hint 35

Alcohol tends to block the uptake of thiamine. As a result the thalamus and, in some cases, mammilary bodies are damaged. Both are part of the Circuit of Papez

Front 36

What is a common cause of permanent memory loss due to damage in the *anterior* (front) medial temporal lobes and the basal orbitofrontal cortex?

Back 36

Cerebral contusions (bruising), such as caused by car accidents. (B:784)

Hint 36

Visualize what the front part of the temporal lobe looks like. It "points" forward towards the forehead, and therefore is very vulnerable to car crash, for example. The orbitofrontal cortex is vulnerable for a slightly different reason, not yet discussed--the bony "shelf" (just over the eyes) underneath the orbitofrontal cortex has many sharp edges, which tend to shred orbitofronal cortex.

Front 37

True or False: Patients with Wernicke-Korsakoff syndrome tend to have good to excellent awareness of their memory deficit.

Back 37

False. (B: 785)

Hint 37

They tend to lack awareness of their memory deficit. They may confabulate, providing spurious answers to questions rather than saying they do not remember.

Front 38

A patient comes to you with complaints of severe memory loss, as well as lack of initiative and poor ability to sequence. His wife states that he "makes up stories", has terrible judgment, and "drinks way to much"--all of which the client strongly denies. What neurological disorder might you suspect as an etiology/diagnosis?

Back 38

Wernicke-Korsakov syndrome.

Hint 38

The patient exhibits the most important feature of Wernicke-Korsakov syndrome (severe memory problems) plus many associated features. And he has an apparent history of alcoholism.

Front 39

True or False: In patients with reversible causes of amnesia, the period of retrograde amnesia often gradually shrinks forward, so that older memories are recovered before more recent ones.

Back 39

True.

Front 40

A patient presents with a memory loss which involves loss of RECENT memories but relatively preserved OLDER memories. Do you think this is primarily caused by an ENCODING or a RETRIEVAL deficit.

Back 40

Encoding, because formation of new memories is prevented. (By contrast, retrieval deficits result in difficulty placing older events in a chronological order).

Hint 40

We will be discussing this in class.

Front 41

A patient states that he can't remember what he did last Christmas, the people who attended his birthday party 6 months ago, or when he first started on his blood pressure medication. However, he has no problem with recent events during the last several days. Is this more likely an ENCODING or a RETRIEVAL deficit?

Back 41

Retrieval. (By contrast, encoding deficits involve forming new memories of RECENT events)

Hint 41

This has not been discussed in class, but should be self-evident.

Front 42

"Source" memory involves placing a memory in its temporal and spatial _________.

Back 42

Context. This means you can remember the specific time, place, and circumstances of an event.

Hint 42

The abiltiy to remember a memory's context (source memory) is involved in "episodic" memory--memory for events. As you recall, episodic memory is a type of declarative memory. The context of an event tends to be especially impaired in retrieval deficits, such as caused by vascular dementia or basal ganglia disorder.

Front 43

Multiple Choice: Working memory is a type of (chose one):

1) "declarative" (explicit) memory
2) "nonclarative" (implicit) memory
3) executive functioning
4) none of the above

Back 43

Executive functioning. It's specifically associated with the DOROSLATERAL region of the frontal lobe.

Hint 43

Working memory (especially active working memory) is one of the oldest, best researched aspects of executive functioning.

Front 44

What two measures could you use to assess "active working memory", and what part of the brain is this function associated with? (Pardon the clumsy sentence structure).

Back 44

WAIS-III "digits backward", "number-letter sequencing" subtests). It's associated with DORSOLATERAL PREFRONTAL CORTEX, primarily on the LEFT (language dominant) hemisphere.

Front 45

Some inputs reach the hippocampus from the contralateral hippocampus (opposite side of brain) via the h______________ c______________.

Back 45

hippocampal commissure. See HINT for additional important information.

Hint 45

This may help explain why removing just one hippocampus does not result in severe memory

Front 46

Please label the parts (empty boxes).

Back 46

One label is not on this diagram (bottom). This is the hippocampus (or "hippocampal formation").

Front 47

The term "hippocampus" is often used as a synonym for the h__________ f___________. This is can be confusing!

Back 47

hippocampal formation (subiculum, hippocampus, dentate gyrus).

Front 48

The "entorhinal cortex" is actually the covering (cortex) around the p____________________ gyrus

Back 48

parahippocampal gyrus

Hint 48

This is not very important--just wanted to clarify a possible confusion regarding the relationship between the two areas.

Front 49

Please label the parts (empty boxes).

Back 49

We will do clay modeling in class to get a clearer idea of how these structures fit in the brain.