Axon

because of the compensatory mechanisms i:e the brain having to work harder – and less efficiently – in managing cognitive demand. This may be via the use of redundant neural pathways, or axonal sprouting that can compensate for the destruction of axon and through the mediating role of cholinergic system (Parry et al., 2003, Cader, Palace & Matthews.,…

1. Introduction Alzheimer’s disease can be characterized as a neurodegenerative disease where an individual suffers from progressive loss of memory and basic mental functions. Because researchers cannot pinpoint a specific factor that causes Alzheimer’s disease, many theories exist regarding its causation. One such theory, the dysfunction mitochondria within an individual’s brain cells, the organelle’s DNA mutation, and the implications these two variables have on the causation of Alzheimer’s…

Despite recent media attention, public awareness campaigns, and mandatory trainings in public school systems, concussions remain a conundrum. Concussions are complex medical events potentially resulting in a sequelae of issues. Ramifications range in scope and severity across medical, emotional, social, and academic domains. The definition of a concussion differs across medical disciplines and the general public (3). Although the definition varies across different medical subspecialties,…

Introduction Neural circuits which are involved in fear/threat learning and emotional memory have been studied in various ways including human subjects and laboratory animals. We will first discuss the basic circuits involved in fear conditioning and emotional memory learning. After that, two specific systems – norepinephrine (NE) projections from locus coeruleus (LC) and serotonin (5-HT) projections from dorsal raphe nuclei (DR) – and its effects on threat learning and fear conditioning will…

Relapsing-Remitting MS (RRMS). Around 10% have Primary-Progressive MS (PPMS), there is also Secondary-Progressive MS (SPMS), and Progressive-Relapsing MS (PRMS). The least common type is PRMS. In MS your immune system mistakenly attacks the myelinated axons of a nerve fiber in the central nerves system, over time this leads to scarring and hardening of nervous tissue in the brain, spinal cord and eyes. Every hour of every day someone in the United States is diagnosed with MS. Most people do not…

For the general assessment I brushed my teeth with my left hand for a whole month. At first it was very awkward and almost felt wrong when I began to brush my teeth. However by the third week it felt more natural and I noticed that my left hand was starting to get better with some other activities that usually felt very strange doing. By the end of the month and even after I was so used to brushing with my left hand that I do it still at times. I have even noticed that I can open door a lot…

Short-term plasticity at the ORN  PN synapse could result in PN responses that are strongest during the rising phase of the ORN response since the ORN  PN synapses display short-term depression that causes ORN spikes that arrive later to produce smaller postsynaptic potentials than the ones produced by earlier spikes. In depressing synapses, successive action potentials result in smaller and smaller postsynaptic responses. The reduction in postsynaptic responses could be due to smaller amount…

All five of our different senses are important to have for a variety of reasons. They allow us to see, to feel, to hear, to smell, and to taste. There are also a lot of different parts of the body that allow us to experience these senses. If I had to choose which sense to lose though, I would choose to lose my sense of taste. One of our five senses is taste. The primary function of taste is to have us evaluate what we are eating. There are a few different areas that give us the ability to…

Arthur Kleinman defines illness as “to conjure up the innately human experience of symptoms and suffering” (A. Kleinman, 1988, p.3). This suffering can take many different forms, ranging anywhere from the common cold to cancer. For the past 21 years, my father has been battling his own form of illness. A rare nerve disorder known as Reflex Sympathetic Dystrophy (RSD) now called Complex Regional Pain Syndrome (CRPS-II). In my father’s case, RSD was caused by an on the job crash injury to his left…

The central nervous system is crucial to human function; it consists of the brain, spinal cord and a network of nerves moving to the rest of our body. It controls everything in the body e.g. emotions, senses, responses, reactions, body balance like temperature and heartbeat as well as movement of our muscles and glands. The CNS (Central nervous system) covers the brain and spinal cord where the PNS (Peripheral nervous system) is made up of the nerve fibre’s that branch off from the spinal cord…