Brain Structures and Neurotransmitters

Cerebrum

The largest part of the brain, responsible for higher brain functions such as thought, action, and emotion.

Cerebellum

A brain structure that regulates coordination, balance, and fine motor skills.

Brainstem

The part of the brain that connects to the spinal cord and controls basic life functions such as breathing and heart rate.

Thalamus

A structure that acts as a relay station for sensory information, directing it to the appropriate areas of the brain.

Hypothalamus

A small region of the brain that regulates vital functions, including temperature, hunger, and the sleep-wake cycle.

Amygdala

An almond-shaped structure involved in processing emotions, particularly fear and pleasure.

Hippocampus

A critical structure for memory formation and spatial navigation.

Corpus Callosum

A bundle of nerve fibers that connects the left and right hemispheres of the brain, facilitating communication between them.

Limbic System

A complex system of structures that supports emotions, behavior, motivation, long-term memory, and olfaction.

Dopamine

A neurotransmitter associated with pleasure, reward, and motor control.

Serotonin

A neurotransmitter that regulates mood, appetite, and sleep.

Acetylcholine

A neurotransmitter involved in muscle activation and memory.

Norepinephrine

A neurotransmitter that affects attention, response actions, and mood.

GABA

An inhibitory neurotransmitter that reduces neuronal excitability throughout the nervous system.

Glutamate

The most abundant excitatory neurotransmitter in the brain, important for synaptic plasticity.

Endorphins

Neurotransmitters that act as natural painkillers and are linked to feelings of pleasure.

Oxytocin

A hormone and neurotransmitter that plays a role in social bonding and reproductive behaviors.

Wernickes Area

a brain area involved in language comprehension and expression; usually in the left temporal lobe

Broca's area

Controls language expression - an area of the frontal lobe, usually in the left hemisphere, that directs the muscle movements involved in speech.

Agonist

A chemical that mimics the action of a neurotransmitter.

antagonist

a molecule that inhibits or blocks a neurotransmitter's action

temporal lobe

A region of the cerebral cortex responsible for hearing and language.

occipital lobe

A region of the cerebral cortex that processes visual information

apashia

impairment of language, usually caused by left hemisphere damage either to Broca's area (impairing speaking) or to Wernicke's area (impairing understanding).

Wernicke's aphasia

condition resulting from damage to Wernicke's area, causing the affected person to be unable to understand or produce meaningful language

Broca's aphasia

condition resulting from damage to Broca's area, causing the affected person to be unable to speak fluently, to mispronounce words, and to speak haltingly

homunculus

a maplike representation of regions of the body in the brain

sensory cortex

area at the front of the parietal lobes that registers and processes body touch and movement sensations

parietal lobe

receives sensory input for touch and body position

motor cortex

an area at the rear of the frontal lobes that controls voluntary movements

frontal lobe

A region of the cerebral cortex that has specialized areas for movement, abstract thinking, planning, memory, and judgement

cerebral cortex

outer region of the cerebrum, containing sheets of nerve cells; gray matter of the brain

SSRI

selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor

axon terminal

The endpoint of a neuron where neurotransmitters are stored

synapse

Gap between neurons

dendrite

Branchlike parts of a neuron that are specialized to receive information.

Hippocampus

A neural center located in the limbic system that helps process explicit memories for storage.

pituitary gland

The endocrine system's most influential gland. Under the influence of the hypothalamus, the pituitary regulates growth and controls other endocrine glands.

Hypothalamus

A neural structure lying below the thalamus; it directs several maintenance activities (eating, drinking, body temperature), helps govern the endocrine system via the pituitary gland, and is linked to emotion and reward.

Thalamus

the brain's sensory control center, located on top of the brainstem; it directs messages to the sensory receiving areas in the cortex and transmits replies to the cerebellum and medulla

Amygdala

A limbic system structure involved in memory and emotion, particularly fear and aggression.

medulla oblongata

Part of the brainstem that controls vital life-sustaining functions such as heartbeat, breathing, blood pressure, and digestion.

Pons

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

Cerebellum

the "little brain" at the rear of the brainstem; functions include processing sensory input and coordinating movement output and balance

reticular formation

a nerve network in the brainstem that plays an important role in controlling arousal

hallucinogens

Drugs that alter moods, thoughts, and sense perceptions including vision, hearing, smell, and touch

opiods

A class of drugs that act on opioid receptors to produce morphine-like effects, including pain relief and feelings of euphoria.

Depressants

drugs that reduce neural activity and slow body functions

stimulants

drugs that excite neural activity and speed up body functions

reuptake inhibitors

Drugs that interfere with the reuptake of neurotransmitters in the synapse so that a greater amount remains in the synapse

blood-brain barrier

a protective barrier that regulates which substances can enter the brain from the bloodstream

neuroactive substances

a wide variety of chemicals that communicate information to the brain from other cells in the body or from the environment.

Psychoactive substances

chemicals that affect consciousness, perception, mood, and behavior

myasthenia gravis

a chronic autoimmune disease that affects the neuromuscular junction and produces serious weakness of voluntary muscles

multiple sclerosis

A chronic disease of the central nervous system marked by damage to the myelin sheath. Plaques occur in the brain and spinal cord causing tremor, weakness, incoordination, paresthesia, and disturbances in vision and speech

action potential

a neural impulse; a brief electrical charge that travels down an axon

all or nothing principle

The principle that once the electrical impulse reaches a certain level of intensity (its threshold), it fires and moves all the way down the axon without losing any intensity.

glial cells

cells in the nervous system that support, nourish, and protect neurons

refractory period

a period of inactivity after a neuron has fired

Depolarization

positive ions flip the charge by rushing into axon

resting potential

the state of the neuron when not firing a neural impulse

mirror neurons

neurons in the brain that are activated when one observes another individual engage in an action and when one performs a similar action

sensory neurons

transmit sensory information into the CNS

motor neurons

control muscle movement

Interneurons

transmit pulses between neurons

myelin sheath

fatty tissue that insulates axon

dizygotic

fraternal twins

monozygotic

identical twins

Epigenetics

using modern technology to visualize gene expression

shared human genome

about 99.9% of our genes are identical, 0.1% is our hair and eye color

genetic mutations

Changes in the genetic material of cells that passes from one generation to another.

dmitry belyaev

Russian geneticist who, through artificial selection, bred tame foxes

eugenics

a social movement aimed to control the population by controlling reproduction to preserve "desirable traits"

natural selection

A process in which individuals that have certain inherited traits tend to survive and reproduce at higher rates than other individuals because of those traits.

sympathetic nervous system

the division of the autonomic nervous system that arouses the body, mobilizing its energy in stressful situations

parasympathetic nervous system

the division of the autonomic nervous system that calms the body, conserving its energy

Reflex

a simple, automatic response to a sensory stimulus

autonomic nervous system

the part of the peripheral nervous system that controls the glands and the muscles of the internal organs

peripheral nervous system

the sensory and motor neurons that connect the central nervous system to the rest of the body

somatic nervous system

the division of the peripheral nervous system that controls the body's skeletal muscles

central nervous system

brain and spinal cord