PSYCHOPHARM Chapter 2 brain structures

Medulla

Hindbrain

• Autonomic control (heart rate, breathing, vomiting)

• Origin of reticular formation & cranial nerves

Area Postrema

Hindbrain

• Vomiting center

• Reduced blood-brain barrier to detect blood toxins (weak spot makes brain more directly exposed to what’s circulating in the blood!)

Reticular formation

Arousal, sleep, attention, muscle tone, reflexes

Pons

Hindbrain

• Relays info between cerebellum and higher brain areas

Cerebellum

Hindbrain

• Coordinates/smooths movement

• “Middle manager” between senses, movement, thinking

• Timing and precision of movement

Superior colliculus

Midbrain

• Directs eye movement

Inferior colliculus

Midbrain

• Processes hearing

Periaqueductal gray

Midbrain

• Pain regulation

• Opiate painkiller target

Substantia nigra

Midbrain

• Movement

• Degeneration leads to Parkinson’s disease

Thalamus

Forebrain

• Sensory “toolbooth”

• Routes senses to correct cortical lobes

Hypothalamus

Forebrain

• Hunger, thirst, body temperature, controls pituitary & pineal glands

Pituitary gland

Controlled by hypothalamus

• Hormones: stress, growth, reproduction, sleep

Pineal gland

Controlled by hypothalamus

• Releases melatonin

Basal ganglia

Forebrain

• Motor system that smooths voluntary movement

• Initiates movement and regulates AMOUNT of movement

What structures does the basal ganglia work with?

Substantia nigra, pons, cerebellum

Hippocampus

Limbic system

• Memory index, points to where memories are stored

Amygdala

Limbic System

• Adds emotional weight to memories

Nucleus Accumbens

Limbic system

• Reward center

Occipital lobe

Cerebral Cortex

• Vision

Temporal lobe

Cerebral cortex

• Sound; speech/language (left)

Parietal lobe

Cerebral cortex

• Primary sensory “in-box”

• contains central fissure

Frontal lobe

Cerebral cortex

• Executive function

• Personality

• Primary motor “out-box”

Prefrontal cortex

Anterior frontal lobe

• Integrates sensory input, working memory, attention

Corpus callosum

Connects hemispheres, lets left/right communicate

Cerebral aqueduct

Midbrain

• Cerebrospinal fluid channel, surrounded by periaqueductal grey

Ventricles

Throughout brain

• Is the network which CSF flows through

Blood-brain barrier

Protects brain from blood-borne substances