Exam 3 vocabulary - Neural Basis of Behavior, UVA

superior olivary nucleus

receives auditory information from both ears via the cochlear nuclei

trapezoid body

a structure in the brain stem that plays a role in determining the direction of sounds

inferior colliculus

a midbrain nucleus in the auditory pathway

medial geniculate nucleus

auditory info goes from inferior to here (in thalamus) and then to A1

primary auditory cortex

A1 - the region of the superior temporal lobe whose primary input is from the auditory system

posterior parietal cortex

(localize sound) keeps track of the position of the body relative to the world

cross-modality

Integration between senses

echolocation

the process of using reflected sound waves to find objects; used by animals such as bats

frequency modulation (FM)

radio carrier signal modified by variations in wave length/frequency

FM-FM neurons

specialized nerve cells that allow bats to echolocate by processing the time delay between the emitted sonar signal and the perception of the returning signal

somatosensory system

a set of specialized receptors and neural mechanisms responsible for body sensations such as touch and pain

Meissner's corpuscles

touch receptors (type of mechanoreceptor)

Mechanoreceptors

respond to touch, pressure, vibration, stretch, and itch

Pacinian corpuscles

respond to deep pressure and vibration

free nerve endings

respond to pain and temperature

dermatomes

body regions to which spinal nerves transmit impulses

dorsal column-medial lemniscal pathway

an ascending somatic sensory pathway that mediates information about touch, pressure, vibration, and limb proprioception - info to nucleus of thalamus

Somatosensation

the skin sensations: touch/pressure, warmth, cold, and pain

ventral posterior nucleus

(thalamus) most other types of sensory information

primary somatosensory cortex

the region of the anterior parietal lobe whose primary input is from the somatosensory system

spinothalamic pathway

The route from the spinal cord to the brain that carries most of the information about skin temperature and pain. (anterolateral pathway)

odorant molecules

molecules that we can smell

olfactory epithelium

a thin layer of tissue, within the nasal cavity (top), that contains the receptors for smell (mocous membrane)

olfactory bulbs

areas of the brain located just above the sinus cavity and just below the frontal lobes that receive information from the olfactory receptor cells (above olfactory epithelium)

golmeruli

axonal and dendritic processes found in clusters in the olfactory bulbs(humans have 10,000)

piriform cortex

primary olfactory cortex

entorhinal cortex

an area of the medial temporal cortex that is a major source of neural signals to the hippocampus

pheromones

Chemical signals released by an animal that communicate information and affect the behavior of other animals of the same species.

conspecific

belonging to the same species

accessory olfactory system

consists of VNO located in nasal cavity and its neuronal projections to the accessory olfactory bulbs, which then project to the hypothalamus and the amygula

vomeronasal organ (VNO)

a portion of the mammalian olfactory system that is sensitive to pheromones

Bruce effect

disruption of pregnancy caused by the odor of a pheromone in the urine of a male other than the one that impregnated the female; first identified in mice

cortical association areas

locations in cerebral cortex corresponding intervening between sensory input and motor output

(cortical==>cortexical; association-between sense input and motor output)

synesthesia

(unified senses) rare condition in which stimulation of one sense triggers additional, seemingly unrelated perceptual experiences. hearing a voice makes you taste a flavor

L-DOPA

A drug for Parkinson's disease that contains the precursors to dopamine so that once it is in the brain, it will be converted to dopamine.

motor homunculus

(little man) - proportion of motor cortex areas devoted to certain body parts (Penfield's work)

corticospinal tract

axons of specific areas of motor cortex travel to the spinal cortex via this

lateral corticospinal tract

a set of axons from the primary motor cortex, surrounding areas, and midbrain area that is primarily responsible for controlling the peripheral muscles

anterior corticospinal tract

Motor pathway for ipsilateral VOLUNTARY movement. (or ventral cort. tract)

in what layer of the primary cortex do most of the cells of the corticospinal tracts originate

v

betz cells

extremely large pyramidal neurons of the primary motor cortex in v layer

corona radiata

a projection of nerve fibers that connect the cerebral cortex to the brainstem and spinal cord

medullary pyramids

triangular regions of tissue in the medulla - in caudal section of medulla, aproximatly 80% of fibers cross over to contralateral side of body - contralateral = lateral corticospinal tract (moving distal limbs and digits; ipsilateral = anterior corticospinal tract (muscles of core and midline)

upper motor neurons

motor neurons in the central nervous system that control the lower motor neurons in the peripheral nervous system - axons extending from cell bodies in motor cortex

lower motor neuron

motor neuron in the peripheral nervous system with its nerve fiber extending out to the muscle and only its cell body in the central nervous system - in grey matter of spinal cord (ventral horn)

decussation

The crossing over of nerve fibers of a pathway from one side of the brain to the other.

α motor neurons

in ventral horn of grey matter - axons exit spinal cord via ventral roots as they travel to appropriate finger muscles, allowing you to quickly remove the finger from a sharp surface

afferent information

(dorsal roots) sensory information coming into the CNS

efferent information

(ventral roots) information leaving the CNS

reflexes

specific patterns of motor response that are triggered by specific patterns of sensory stimulation

reflex arc

A relatively direct connection between a sensory neuron and a motor neuron that allows an extremely rapid response to a stimulus, often without conscious brain involvement. - hot coffee pot, touch, afferent pain messages sent to dorsal root of spinal nerve and enter grey matter of spinal cord, info aligned with appropriate efferent neuron, arm muscle stimulated, hand quickly removed from hot surface

cardiac muscles

muscles found only in the walls of your heart - involuntary...obv.

smooth muscles

muscles that act on the lining of the body's passageways and hollow internal organs - involuntary (stomach and such)

skeletal muscle

A muscle that is attached to the bones of the skeleton and provides the force that moves the bones. (striatal) - voluntary movements but also involuntary posture things

biofeedback

a system for electronically recording, amplifying, and feeding back information regarding a subtle physiological state, such as blood pressure or muscle tension - idea that we can control more movement than typical with training

extrafusal fibers

muscle fibers that contract to shorten a muscle - skeletal muscle tissue

intrafusal fibers

muscle cells that detect changes in muscle length- skeletal muscle tissue

motor unit

alpha motor neuron in the ventral horn of the grey matter of the spinal cord, its axon, and the extrafusal muscle fibers it innervates

motor units with fewer innervated muscle fibers by a single axon

characteristic of muscles over which you have more control (reverse is also true)

neoromuscular junction

synapse formed when the axon terminal of a motor neuron positions itself in a section of the extrafusal muscle fiver known as the motor end plate - acetylcholine is neurotransmitter released (block of this results in paralysis and death)

motor end plate

area that is highly excitable and appropriate for the initiation of an action potential.

antagonistic muscles

opposing sets of muscles that are required to move a leg or arm back and forth

proprioception

the ability to sense the position and location and orientation and movement of the body and its parts - sensory receptors

muscle spindle

a sensory receptor located in a muscle that senses its tension - receptor endings extend from y motor neurons in spinal cord that wrap around the intrafusal muscle fibers - if muscle is stretched, this intrafusal sensory organ is also stretched and communicates this status via the afferent spinal root of the nervous system. system receives message and movement can be corrected by stimulation of antagonisht muscle of inhibition of stretch to relieve muscle (detect excessive stretch in muscles so they dont rip)

y motor neurons

wrap around intrafusal muscle fibers

wrong

delete

Golgi tendon organs

receptors that sense movement of the tendons, which connect muscle to bone and sends message back to nervous system to initiate appropriate conpensatory action - prevents muscle from ripping from bone

monosynaptic spinal reflex

sensory neuron with motor neuron - knee jerk test

central pattern generators

neural mechanisms in the spinal cord that generate rhythmic patterns of motor output - explains why you can walk and talk at the same time

supplementary motor complex

consits primarly of SMA and pre-SMA - guides execution of complex behaviors

supplementary motor area (SMA)

voluntary movement - a region of nonprimary motor cortex that receives input from the basal ganglia and modulates the activity of the primary motor cortex - dorsomedial frontal cortex - activated when imagining that you're preforming a complex motor action

presupplementary motor area (pre-SMA)

voluntary - dorsomedial frontal cortex - activated when needing more executive control such as when supressing a response or switching tasks - early task learning (along with primary motor cortex and DLPFC)

premotor cortex

ventral to the supplementary motor complex, positioned directly in front of the primary motor cortex - activated when actions that are less dependent on self initiation and more external guidance of movement, such as using a template to trace an image

coordination, muscle tone, balance, and precise timing responses are regulated by which two areas in brain

basal ganglia and cerebellum

basal ganglia

a collection of interconnecting nuclei under the cerebral cortex and surrounding the thalamus that help control movement of the body (acquisition of movement such as height and direction of ball thrown), also learning and habit formation, attention, rewarded behaviors, and emotional response

caudate nucleus

One of the basal ganglia; it has a long extension or tail.

putamen

large subcortical structure, part of the basal ganglia

globus pallidus

component of the basal ganglia that connects to the thalamus which relays information to the motor areas and the prefrontal cortex

substantia nigra

An area of the midbrain that is involved in motor control and contains a large concentration of dopamine-producing neurons (arguments about if part of basal, book says no but PROFESSOR says yes)

striatum

caudate and putamen

Parkinson's disease

normally, output from globus pallidum inhibits unwanted movements. here, there is too much output so projections to the cortex become too inhibited therefore have trouble initiating movement - basal ganglia becomes hyperresponsisive to peripheral input making it more difficult to filter salient input to select among cometing motor programs (puting glass in sink and not fridge)

habit formation

striatum and frontal cortex

parts of cerebellum

vermis, cerebellar hemispheres, and flocculonodular lobe (barely need to know)

flocculonodular lobe

support fundamental motor functions such as balance and posture - oldest part of cerebellum (barely need to know)

muscle tone

regulated by vermis and the lateral cerebellar hemispheres

vermis

Connects the two hemispheres of the cerebellum - contain deep nuclei such as detate nucleus (mostly not here but can bleed in depending on how strict lining is) (barely need to know)

lateral cerebellar hemispheres

two hemispheres of cerebellum - contain the deep nuclei such as the dentate neculeus (barely need to know)

dentate nucleus

a deep cerebellar nucleus; involved in the control of rapid, skilled movements by the corticospinal and rubrospinal systems - communicated in a structured, maplike function with the various motor and nonmotor areas of cerebral cortex (barely need to know)

cerebellar peduncles

neural communication transit system to other brain areas such as cerebral cortex, providing opportunities for the cerebellum to play a role in cognitive functions as well (barely need to know)

cerebellar cognitive affective syndrome

lesions of posterior lobe can lead to emotional deficits, bluting, depression, psychosis, dysmetria of thought - linked heavily with disruption to cerebellum and cognitive defects that follow

optimal actions

minimize costs and maximize benefits - ex) in hockey, you have to pay attention to you, puck and players. tune out other things

Bayesian Decision Theory

possible explanation of ow nervous system selects optimal actions for movement in an uncetain world - applying probabilistic reasoning to make inferences based on uncertain circumstances - both past experiences and current likelihoods are factored in - how hard will they hit the puck at me?

automaticity

less corticial input when moving

expert athletes have more functioning in which brain areas regarding that sport

partiental cortex, lateral premotor cortex, and occipital loves

novice?

limbuc areas and basal ganglia

chocking

stepping back to think about individual moves rather than allowing for automaticity will introduce error into the highly trained movement machine

icing a kicker

calling a time out at a critical play in a football game to get in their head and make them think about this aciton

MRI scans indicate that old people who workout have larger what

prefrpntal and temperal love grey matter volumes, therefore exercise coul help to inhibit cognitive decline

BDNF (brain-derived neurotrophic factor)

a neurotrophin similar to nerve growth factor - associated with increased cellular survival in brain - increased with exercise

angiogenesis

formation of new blood vessels - exercise also increases this, especially in cerebellum