Intro To The Human Brain - Final Review

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basal ganglia

Back 1

Area of the brain made up of the striatum (caudate and putamen) globus pallidus internal and external segments, substantia nigra pars compacta and substantia nigra pars reticulata. It performs selection initiation and execution of tasks, movement, cognition, and emotion.

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globus pallidus (internal) segment

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direct pathway of thalamic stimulation - inhibits the thalamus

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globus pallidus (external) segment

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indirect pathway of thalamic stimulation - inhibits the internal segment

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substantia nigra pars compacta

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where dopamine is created for the direct and indirect pathways of thalamic stimulation through the basal ganglia

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substantia nigra pars reticulata

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works with the globus pallidus internal segment to inhibit the thalamus in the direct pathway

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major depressive disorder

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depression, characterized by loss of interest, debilitating sorrow, etc. cures target monamines and NT in the synaptic cleft

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mania

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a state of abnormally elevated mood

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bipolar

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a mental illness that is characterized by shifts between manic and depressed states of being, alone with normal states called "euthymia". it affestc the affective pathways of the BG. Stress is a trigger for these episodes.

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euthymia

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"normal" state in bipolar disorder

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area 25

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also called "Brodmann Area" overactive in treatment-resistant depression.

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schizophrenia

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mental illness characterized by 1)positive symptoms like hallucinations, 2) negative symptoms like a flat affect, and 3) cognitive deficits like thought disorders.

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ventricular zone

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the brain has these. Inside the neural tube, they contain stem cells and are the place where neurons are initially made and originate from in utero.

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intermediate zone

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another layer of the neural tube

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cortical plate

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flat layer of neurons at the beginning of embryonic development?

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radial glia

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the guides or train tracks for neuron migration in utero

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neuroblast

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a dividing cell that will develop into a neuron after the migration phase

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neural crest

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part of the structure around the neural tube

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neural tube

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the place where neurons are made

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gyrencephalic

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adjective used to describe the brain, meaning containing grooves and ridges (sulci and gyri) (ex: human brain)

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lisencephalic

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adjective used to describe the brain, meaning a smooth surface (ex: rodent brain)

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floor plate

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located on the ventral midline of the neural tube, it organized the ventral tissues in the embryo

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slow wave sleep

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stage 3-4 of non REM sleep, the deepest part of sleep

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delta waves

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a high amplitude brain wave with an oscillation of 0-4 Hz. REcorded with an EEG, associated with slow wave sleep.

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rapid eye movement sleep

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REM sleep, the last part of the sleep cycle, when you dream

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EEG (electroencephalogram)

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the recording of electrical activity along the scalp

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suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN)

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in the hypothalamus above the optic chiasm, it controls your circadian rhythms

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histamine

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neurotransmitter with NE and acetylcholine, it switches the cortex into a state of arousal/ awake mode by switching the cell firing mode from bursts to a signal depolarized mode that is responsive to inputs of information.

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dopamine

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neurotransmitter that works in the BG pathways and other regions of the brain, including reward pathways, motor control, and arousal.

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norepinephrine (NE)

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NT that has opposite affects on cognitive frunction from acetylcholine and acts as a switch btw amygdala and PFC to control which side, primitive or cognitive, controls the brain.

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acetylcholine (cholinergic)

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NT that promotes conscious thought when awake by simulating the alpha-7 nicotinic receptors in PFC.

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orexin/hypocretin neurons in the hypothalamus

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NT that affects arousal, wakefulness, and appetite. They increase the effectiveness of other neuromodulators.

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VLPO neurons (ventral lateral preoptic neurons)

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in the hypothalamus, they are active during non-REM sleep, and they shut down the arousal system.

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alpha 1, alpha 2, and beta adrenergic receptors

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the same receptors in the amygdala that regulate a stress response also affect arousal states using catecholamines like norepinephrine and epinephrine.

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Broca's Area

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associated with language, making and structuring speech. lesions to this area cause effortful and poorly articulated speech. this extends even to deaf patients and sign language impairment.

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Wernicke's Area

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associated with understanding the meaning of language (semantics). lesions to this area result in fluent but empty/meaningless speech.

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production aphasia

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what happens when Broca's area is damaged (bad syntax)

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receptive aphasia

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what happens when Wernicke's area is damaged (bad semantics)

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angular gyrus

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the written word may be translated into an internal monologue here, i.e. reading. It is immediately posterior to Wernicke's area.

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planum temporale

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larger in the left hemisphere of the brain, crucial heart of Wernicke's area in the Sylvian fissure.

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prosody/aprosody

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the rhythm, stress, and intonation of speech/lack thereof

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skill learning

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for mentally ill patients, tasks like mirror reading (that help understand whether procedural memory has been damaged, like in HM or other patients with Alzheimer's, etc.)

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habit memory

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in unconscious knowledge through the BG, things that don't require a higher cortical impulse form declarative memory.

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parallel circuits

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relates to BG circuits

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caudate

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part of the striatum in the cognitive BG loop (input from association cortices)

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putamen

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part of the striatum in the motor BG loop

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nucleus accumbens (ventral striatum)

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in the affective BG loop

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subthalamic nucleus

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BG indirect pathway, inhibits the GPI and SNr, allowing the thalamus to fire.

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Parkinson's Disease

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death of dopamine creator cells in SNc, movement pathway goes first, followed by cognition, dementia, and depression

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Huntington's Disease

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genetic disorder in which the striatum and nucleus accumbens die due to extreme glutamate exposure, among other things. results in too many inappropriate things getting through to the thalamus (indirect pathway dies first, then direct.

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dopamine D1 and D2 receptors

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D1 direct pathway, D2 indirect pathway.

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ventral tegmental area

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more dopamine-making cells

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amnesia

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anterograde (no new memories) and retrograde (no old memories)

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confabulation

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fabricated/confused memories

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dementia

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extreme loss of cognitive ability beyond the normal aging. language, memory, attention, and problem solving are affected.

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apolipoprotein E (ApoE)

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risk factor for late-onset Alzheimer's

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beta-amyloid plaques and neurofibrillary tangles

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sign of Alzheimer's disease

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immunization experimental treatments

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purpose: to attack beta-amyolid (plaques) and prevent their formation to stop Alzheimer's

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extinction

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when operant behavior that was previously enforced by memory or past experience is no longer enforced.

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orbital prefrontal cortex

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involved in the cognitive process of decision making.

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ventromedial PFC

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guides thought and decision making through the reward pathway (representations of affective information, evaluations of pleasure and pain)

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dorsolateral PFC

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guides thought and decision making through representations of sensory information

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frontal pole

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frontal lobe, anterior end of the brain

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SSRI (selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor)

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classes of compounds used as anti-depressants

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ketamine

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it's an NMDA receptor antagonist that works in the brain to interfere with transmission from PFC to the spinal chord

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amygdala

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processing memory and emotional/visceral reactions, like stress responses.

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PTSD

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debilitating disorder caused by exposure to traumatic events.

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central nucleus of the amygdala

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serves as the major output nucleus of the amygdala and participates in receiving and processing pain information

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basolateral nuclei of the amygdala

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projects to the nucleus accumbens.

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stria terminalis

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major output pathway of the amygdala to brain stem

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Propranolol

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beta blocker/ antagonist

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Prazosin

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alpha 1 blocker/ antagonist

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Guanfacine

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alpha 2 stimulator/ agonist

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medial-temporal lobe

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new long term memory and motion

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hippocampus

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short term memory into long term memory

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CA1

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with CA3, works to do stuff in the hippocampus

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dentate gyrus

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in the hipppocampus, new episodic memory creation

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subiculum

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output for hippocampus

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fornix

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pathway from hippocampus to hypothalamus

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perforant path

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pathway from entorhinal cortex to hippocampus

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entorhinal cortex and perirhinal cortex

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memory and transmitting signals from upper cortices to hippocampus

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parahippocampal gyrus

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surrounds the hippocampus, plays a role in memory recording and retrevial

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associative learning

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learning about a connection between two stimuli

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Long term potantiation

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Occurs when there is high frequency stimulation.
This increases the number of AMPA glutamate receptors on the membrane.
This means an influx of Ca+, which causes a strong experience to be able to be remembered more vividly.
enhances signal transmission btw two neurons that results from activating them simultaneously.

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Long term depression

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The number of AMPA glutamate receptors goes down, there is no Ca+ influx, and the synapse becomes “silent” because no signal is firing.
This means poor recollection of an event and possibly cell death/degeneration.

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Korsakoff's amnesia

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Due to a thymine defficiency, patients with this disease develop amnesia and ALzeheimer's - like symptoms.

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NMDA and AMPA receptors

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allow Na+ and Ca+2 ions into a cell

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working memory

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is the system that actively holds multiple pieces of transitory information in the mind, where they can be manipulated

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executive function

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an umbrella term for the management (regulation, control) of cognitive processes including working memory, reasoning, task flexibility, and problem solving as well as planning and execution.

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memory fields/mental representation

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what it sounds like - our imagination

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spatial tuning

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GABA blockade of prefrontal cortical neurons (pyramidal cells) Eegaged by working memory in order to add specificity and clarity to the memory being created

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blobs

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color processing centers

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occular dominance

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tells us about depth/depth perception using information from both eyes

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visual agnosia

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an impairment in recognition of visually presented objects

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persistent activity

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the ability of neurons to generate persistent activity in the absence of stimulation in order to facilitate the creation of memory

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blind sight

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when you chuck a ball at a blind person but they can still catch it.