Psychology: Neuroscience and Behavior

Flashcards covering core vocabulary on neural communication, neurotransmitters, nervous system divisions, brain anatomy, and neuroimaging methods from Chapter 3 lectures.

Neurons

Cells in the nervous system that communicate with one another to perform information processing tasks.

Cell body (soma)

The largest part of the neuron that coordinates the information processing tasks and keeps the cell alive.

Dendrites

Structures of a neuron that receive information from other neurons and relay it to the cell body.

Axon

The part of a neuron that transmits information to other neurons, muscles, or glands.

Myelin sheath

An insulating layer of fatty material that covers the axons of many neurons.

Glial cells

Support cells found in the nervous system that can digest dead neurons, provide physical and nutritional support, or form more myelin.

Synapse

The junction or region between the axon of one neuron and the dendrites or cell body of another.

Sensory neurons

Neurons that receive information from the external world and convey this information to the brain via the spinal cord.

Motor neurons

Neurons that carry signals from the spinal cord to the muscles to produce movement.

Interneurons

Neurons that connect sensory neurons, motor neurons, or other neurons.

Purkinje cells

A type of interneuron that carries information from the cerebellum to the rest of the brain and spinal cord.

Pyramidal cells

Cells found in the cerebral cortex that have a triangular cell body and a single long dendrite among many smaller dendrites.

Bipolar cells

A type of sensory neuron found in the retinas of the eyes that has a single axon and a single dendrite.

Mirror neurons

Neurons found in the frontal and parietal lobes that are activated when an animal performs a behavior or when it observes another animal performing a behavior.

Conduction

The movement of an electrical signal over relatively long distances within neurons, from the dendrites, to the cell body, and throughout the axon.

Transmission

The movement of chemical signals between neurons over the synapse.

Resting potential

The difference in electrical charge between the inside and outside of a neuron's cell membrane, typically producing a slight negative charge of $-70\,mV$.

Action potential

An all-or-nothing electrical signal conducted along the length of a neuron's axon to the synapse that pushes to a maximum value of $40\,mV$.

Refractory period

The time following an action potential during which a new action potential cannot be initiated.

Nodes of Ranvier

Break points between the segments of an axon covered by myelin.

Saltatory conduction

The flow of electrical information speeding down an axon by jumping from node to node along a myelinated axon.

Terminal buttons

Knoblike structures that branch out from an axon and are filled with vesicles containing neurotransmitters.

Neurotransmitters

Chemicals that transmit information across the synapse to a receiving neuron's dendrites.

Receptors

Parts of the cell membrane that receive neurotransmitters and either initiate or prevent a new electrical signal.

Autoreceptors

Receptors that detect how much of a neurotransmitter has been released into a synapse and signal the neuron to stop releasing neurotransmitters when an excess is present.

Reuptake

The process by which neurotransmitters are reabsorbed by the terminal buttons of the presynaptic neuron's axon.

Enzyme deactivation

The process in which neurotransmitters are destroyed by enzymes in the synapse.

Acetylcholine (ACh)

A neurotransmitter involved in a number of functions including voluntary motor control, attention, learning, and memory.

Glutamate

The major excitatory neurotransmitter involved in information transmission throughout the brain.

GABA

The major inhibitory neurotransmitter in the brain.

Dopamine (DA)

A neurotransmitter that regulates motor behaviour, motivation, pleasure, and emotional arousal.

Norepinephrine (NE)

A neurotransmitter that influences mood and arousal.

Serotonin (5-HT)

A neurotransmitter involved in the regulation of sleep and wakefulness, eating, and aggressive behaviour.

Endorphins

Chemicals that act within the pain pathways and emotion centers of the brain.

Agonists

Drugs that increase the action of a neurotransmitter.

Antagonists

Drugs that block the function of a neurotransmitter.

L-Dopa

A drug developed to treat Parkinson's disease that causes neurons to produce more dopamine by acting as an agonist.

Nervous system

An interacting network of neurons that conveys electrochemical information throughout the body.

Central nervous system (CNS)

The division of the nervous system composed of the brain and spinal cord.

Peripheral nervous system (PNS)

The division of the nervous system that connects the central nervous system to the body's organs and muscles.

Somatic nervous system

A set of nerves that conveys information into and out of the central nervous system.

Autonomic nervous system

A set of nerves that carries involuntary and automatic commands that control blood vessels, body organs, and glands.

Sympathetic nervous system

A subdivision of the autonomic nervous system that prepares the body for action in threatening situations.

Parasympathetic nervous system

A subdivision of the autonomic nervous system that helps the body return to a normal resting state.

Spinal reflexes

Simple pathways in the nervous system that rapidly generate muscle contractions.

Hindbrain

An area of the brain continuous with the spinal cord that coordinates information coming into and out of the spinal cord, controlling respiration, alertness, and motor skills.

Medulla

An extension of the spinal cord into the skull that coordinates heart rate, circulation, and respiration.

Reticular formation

A structure inside the medulla that regulates sleep, wakefulness, and arousal.

Pons

A hindbrain structure that relays information from the cerebellum to the rest of the brain.

Cerebellum

A large structure of the hindbrain that controls fine motor skills.

Tectum

A midbrain structure that orients an organism in the environment by receiving stimulus from the eyes, ears, and skin.

Tegmentum

A midbrain structure involved in movement and arousal.

Cerebral cortex

The outermost layer of the brain, roughly the size of a newspaper page, responsible for perception, emotion, movement, and thought.

Thalamus

A subcortical structure that relays and filters information from all major senses except smell and transmits it to the cerebral cortex.

Hypothalamus

A subcortical structure that regulates body temperature, thirst, hunger, and sexual behaviour.

Hippocampus

A subcortical structure critical for creating new memories and integrating them so that they can be stored indefinitely in other parts of the cerebral cortex.

Amygdala

A structure that plays a central role in many emotional processes, particularly the formation of emotional memories.

Basal ganglia

A set of subcortical structures that directs intentional movements.

Pituitary gland

The master gland of the body's hormone-producing system, releasing hormones that direct the functions of many other glands.

Corpus callosum

A thick band of nerve fibers that connects areas of the cerebral cortex on each side of the brain and supports communication across hemispheres.

Occipital lobe

A lobe of the cerebral cortex located at the back that processes visual information.

Parietal lobe

A lobe of the cerebral cortex that processes information about touch and contains the somatosensory cortex.

Temporal lobe

A lobe located on the lower side of each hemisphere responsible for hearing and language.

Frontal lobe

A lobe of the cerebral cortex with specialized areas for movement, abstract thinking, planning, memory, and judgement.

Brain plasticity

The ability of the brain to adapt to changes in sensory input.

Wada test

The intracarotid sodium amobarbital procedure (ISAP) used to establish cerebral language representation for each hemisphere prior to surgery.

Structural brain imaging

Techniques that provide information about the basic structure of the brain and allow clinicians or researchers to see structural abnormalities.

Functional brain imaging

Techniques that provide information about the activity of the brain when people perform various kinds of cognitive or motor tasks.

Computerized axial tomography (CT) scan

A structural imaging technique using a series of x-ray photos from different angles to show different densities of brain tissue and locate tumors.

Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI)

A technique using brief magnetic pulses to measure absorption through the brain, yielding better resolution of soft tissue than a CT scan.

Diffusion tensor imaging (DTI)

A type of MRI used to measure white matter pathways and map the connectivity of the human brain.

Electroencephalograph (EEG)

A device used to record electrical activity in the brain, including action potentials and electrical activity in synapses.

Positron emission tomography (PET)

A functional imaging technique where a radioactive substance is injected into the bloodstream and traced by radiation detectors to map active brain areas.

Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI)

An imaging technique that detects oxygenated hemoglobin in the blood to provide an image of the level of activation in each brain area.

Transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS)

A technique that delivers a magnetic pulse through the skull to briefly deactivate neurons in the cerebral cortex, establishing causality in the brain.

gene

-              unit of hereditary transmission; sections on strands of DNA organized into chromosomes

chromosome

-              strands of DNA wound around each other in a double helix configuration. 23 pairs

how much of their genes do dizygotic twins share?

50%

how much of their genes do monozygotic twins share?

100%

Epigenetics

study of environmental influences that determine whether genes are expressed. Or the degree to which they are expressed, without altering the basic. DNA sequences of genes.

Epigenetic marks

chemical modifications to DNA

2 common types of epigenetic marks

DNA methylation

histone modification

DNA methylation

adding a methyl group (special enzymes) to DNA. Turns off expression of that gene

Histone modification

adding chemical modifications to proteins called histones that help in packaging DNA. can turn genes on or off

Heritability

– a measure of the variability of behavioural traits among individuals that can be accounted for by genetic factors is.

Heritability 0.00

genes don’t contribute

heritability 1.00

genes are the only reason for individual differences.