Physio Exam 3

Emotion

A positive or negative reaction to a particular situation, no such thing as a neutral reaction

Behavioral Emotion Response

Muscle movements that accompany emotional states

The Three Components of Emotion Response

Behavioral, Autonomic, Hormonal

Autonomic Emotional Response

Fight or Flight, quick mobilization

Hormonal

Reinforce autonomic response, stress hormones (enepherephrine)

Amygdala

Central station for emotional patterns, integrated components of fear, 12 regions of subdivisions

Lateral Nucleus of Amygdala

Receives input from all regions, sends info to other parts of brain, involved in classical conditioning of an emotional response

Basal Nucleus of Amygdala

Recieves info from Lateral and relays info to prefrontal cortex and gray matter of midbrain, gray matter is involved in species-typical behaviors

Central Nucleus of Amygdala

Recieves info from lateral and basal, projects to regions responsible for expression of emotion, most important part of brain for emotional responses, provides autonomic fear responses to unlearned stimuli, involved in learned emotional response but not extinction

Stimulation of the Central Nucleus

Produce fear and agitation, chronic stimulation produces stress related illness

Damage to the Central Nucleus

Reduces or abolishes many emotional behaviors, no longer show fear to conditions stimuli, blood levels of stress hormones become lower, less likely to develop stress-induced illness, impairs ability to learn emotional responses

Nueroimaging

Looking at threatening words activates the amygdala whereas neutral words do not

Agression

Usually species typical, related to reproduction, or self defence

Hierarchical Neural Control

Muscle movements for species typical behaviors are programed by grey matter (brain stem), influenced by hypothalamus and amygdala, serotonin inhibits risky behavior (including aggression) (selective breeding to make foxes friendly)

Serotonin with Agression

Higher levels of serotonin reduce risky behaviors, look at Rhesus monkeys study where a lot more stayed alive under more serotonin, prozac decreases irriability and agression

Ventromedial Prefrontal Cortex

Regulates emotional responses in anger and sadness, translates judgment into appropriate feelings and behaviors, moral judgments are guided by emotional reactions

vmPFC in Anger

Antisocial behavior related to smaller prefrontal cortex, reading abt situations in which we are angry make us angry and activates the vmPFC, prefrontal lesions result in impulsive behavior and outbursts, less serotonergic input to vmPFC in people with impulsive violence history

Destruction of the vmPFC

Phineas Gage, rod through the vmPFC, notable personality change, outbursts of temper and unable to make or carry out plans

Facial Expression of Emotions

Innate, unlearned responses, seen across cultures, automatic and involuntary

Charles Darwin theory on facial expressions

Facial expressions are innate and unlearned, observed commonalities in emotion expression between cultures, expressions served a function or communicated info to others

Ekman theory of facial expression

Tends to confirm Darwins hypothesis, studied isolated tribes in New Guinea, able to recognize facial expressions without being told what they meant, they were given scenarios and asked how they would react and facial expressions were universal

Neural Basis of Emotion Recognition

Recognition is automatic via vision and auditon, right hemisphere of brain dominate role in emotional comprehension, situations elicit stronger emotional response in the presence of others, better at recognizing when body and facial expresions match

Damage to Right Hemisphere in Emotion

Difficulty producing or describing facial expressions

Amygdala in Emotion Responsnes

Very important in emotional response, NOT involved in facial expressions of emotions, facial expressions are autonomic and hard ot fake

Volitional facial paresis

Damage to face region of primary motor cortex or fibers

connecting to motor nucleus of facial nerve

• Cannot voluntarily move facial muscles

• But can express genuine facial emotion

Emotional facial paresis

Damage to prefrontal cortex, frontal lobe, or thalamus

• Can voluntarily move facial muscles

• But cannot express emotion on

affected side of face

Theories of Emotion: James-Lange Theory

* Emotional stimulus (e.g., situations, people) produce

physiological reactions & behaviors

• Brain receives sensory feedback from physiological

reactions & interprets the feedback as a subjective

emotional state

• Physiological response happens first and subjective feeling

follows

Theories of Emotion: Facial Feedback Theory

Feedback from facial muscles can lead to changes in

autonomic nervous system activity and affect mood

• Different expressions lead to different patterns of

autonomic nervous system change

• Anger - increased heart rate and skin temperature

• Fear - increased heart rate, decreased skin

temperature

• Happiness - decrease heart rate, no effect on skin

temperature

Tumors

Mass of cells growing uncontrollably with no funciton

Two types of Tumors

Benign and Malignant

Benign Tumors

“Harmless”, distinct border between mass of tumor cells and surrounding tissues, cannot metastasize (can’t grow elsewhere)

Malignant Tumors

Cancerous, lacks distinct border, can metastasize (spread)

Tumor Brain Damage

Occurs in two ways, direct or indirect compression and infiltration

Seizure

Period of sudden, excessive activity of cerebral neurons, causes convulsions (muscle spasms)

Seizure Disorder Catagories

Generalized and Partial (Focal) Seizures

Generalized Seizures

Widespread, involves most of the brain, can expand to other places, point of origin may be unknown.

Partial (Focal) Seizures

Have a definite source, begins in specific area of brain, typically due to injury or developmental abnormality

How Tumors Develop

Meningioma and Gliomas

Meningioma

Benign, consists of cells from the meninges, can press against neural tissue

Gliomas

Very malignant, fast growing, originates in glial cells, resistant to radiation and chemotherapy, survival rate varies

Types of General Seizures

Tonic-clonic , absence, atonic (loss of muscle tone, temp paralysis)

Types of Partial Seizures

Simple (no major change in consciousness) and Complex (loss of consciousness)

Tonic Clonic Seizure

Most severe type of seizure, includes convulsions, often preceded by an aura, two phases

Phases of Tonic Clonic

Tonic Stage: All skeletal muscles contract, unconscious
Clonic Stage: Muscles start jerking, eyes roll face is contorted, intense autonomic nervous system activity

Absence Seizure

Most common with children, stops activity, unfocuses vision, blink frequently, unresponsive, can occur several hundred times per day

Atonic Seizure

Loss of muscle tone, temp paralysis, less than 15 seconds, concerned with injury related to falling

Causes of Seizures

Most commonly scarring (injury, stroke, developmental abnormality, or tumor), high fever, genetic factors

Treatment for Seizures

Anticonvulsant Drugs (increases effectiveness of inhibitory synapses, most respond well)
Neurosurgery (Remove the neural tissue surrounding the focal point of seizure, following treatment, neurocognitive performance improves)

Neural Activity with Seizures

During seizures neural activity increases, inbetween seizures inhibition increases, neurosurgery removes the inbetween which allows for normal function.

Strokes

Two major types, Hemorrhagic strokes and ischemic strokes

Hemorrhagic Strokes

Rupture of a cerebral blood vessel

Causes bleeding in brain

Puts pressure on the surrounding tissue

Results in damage

Ischemic strokes

Blockage of a blood vessel

Interrupts the blood flow

Two Types of Reasons: Thrombus (bloodclot) or Embolus (mass breaks off in vascular system)

Strokes Damage

Little to permanent damage, depends on size of affected blood vessel

Cause of Neuronal Death

Excessive glutamate (comparable to excitotoxic lesion)

Treatment of Hemorrhagic Strokes

Decrease blood pressure, seal the leaky blood vessels

Treatment of Ischemic Strokes

Thrombolytics aka Clot-Buster Drug, Antibiotics, or remove it

Strokes Warning Signs

• B — Balance: Sudden loss of balance, dizziness, or trouble walking.

• E — Eyes: Sudden vision changes, double vision, or loss of vision.

• F — Face: One side of the face is drooping or the smile is uneven.

• A — Arms: One arm is weak, numb, or drifts downward when raised.

• S — Speech: Slurred speech, trouble speaking, or difficulty repeating a simple sentence.

• T — Time: Call 911 immediately if you notice any of these signs

Strokes Prevention

Risk factors include: hypertension, smoking, poor diet,

lack of exercise, diabetes, & high cholestero

Atherosclerosisinings

Linings of arteries develop layer of

plaque, clots form around this

Non-penetrating TBI

Caused by external force strong enough to move brain w/in skull

– Ex: falls, car accident, sports injuries, blast injuries

Penetrating TBI

Object or skull bone fragments pierces through the skull

– Brain damage is usually localized

– The vasculature can also be damaged

■ Resulting in stroke(s)

Treatment for TBI

Mild TBI (Concussion)

– Rest

– Pain management

– Monitor Symptoms

Moderate to Severe TBI

– Immediate Emergency Care

– Medications to limit secondary brain damage

– Surgery

Parkinson’s Disease

Degeneration of the substantia nigra that communicates with the basal

ganglia

Parkinson’s Disease Primary symptoms:

-Muscular rigidity

– Slowed movement

– Resting tremor

– Postural instability

Post-mortem analysis Parkinsons

Dopaminergic neurons connecting substantia nigra & striatum

nearly all gone

– Any surviving neurons show Lewy bodies

■ Dense protein core located in the cytoplasm

Parkinson’s Disease: Treatment

Standard is L-DOPA

Therapy: PT, OT, Speech, CBT

■ Surgery

– Deep brain stimulation

■ most common

Alzheimer’s Disease

Most common type of dementia, severe deterioration of hippocampus and neocortex, develops amyloid plaques, neurofibrillary tangles

amyloid plaques

Abnormal clumps of protein fragments called beta-amyloid that build up in the spaces between nerve cells (neurons) in the brain

Neurofibrillary tangles

Abnormal, twisted thread-like masses of hyperphosphorylated tau protein that accumulate inside brain neurons

Eustress

positive, motivating “good stress”

Stressor

events or situations that trigger a stress response

Stress response:

physiological response caused by stressor

Psychoneuroimmunology

study of the interactions between the immune

system & behavior, mediated by the nervous system

Fight-or-Flight Response

Species-typical response preparatory to fighting or fleeing

Responsible for some of the deleterious effects of stressful situations on health

Sympathetic Nervous System

Functions that accompany

arousal & energy expenditure

“Fight, Flight, or Freeze”

Parasympathetic Nervous System

Involved in increasing the

body’s supply of stored

energy “Rest and Digest”

Sympathetic Adrenal-Medullary (SAM) System

Releases catecholamines norepinephrine and epinephrine

fraction of a second to transform your body into a high-performance engine, priming you to handle whatever sudden challenge is right in front of you.

Hypothalamic Pituitary Adrenal (HPA) axis

Cortisol, converts protein to glucose for energy, every cell has a receptor for it

Allostasis

psychobiological process that achieves stability (homeostasis) through

change in response to stress

Allostatic load:

cumulative “wear & tear” on the body resulting from allostatic

responses to stress

Stress on Immune System

Stress increases secretion of glucocorticoids which suppresses immune response

Stress on Brain in Short Term

Disrupts immediate brain functioning. Example: Exposing rats to a cat acutely reduces their ability to learn and perform spatial tasks

Stress on Brain in Long Term

Associated with permanent or structural brain damage. Example (Uno et al., 1989): Lower-ranking primates on the social ladder exhibited severe neurotoxic damage and cell loss in the hippocampus due to prolonged glucocorticoid exposure

Stress: Health Implications

Effects on wound healing slows, immune system decreases

Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Symptoms

• Intrusive Recurrences: Recurring memories, dreams, or flashbacks causing distress.

• Avoidance: Avoiding stimuli linked to the trauma.

• Cognitive/Mood Shifts: Memory loss, negative emotions (fear, anger, guilt), and social withdrawal.

• Hyperarousal & Reactivity: Increased heart rate/breathing, hypervigilance, exaggerated startle response, irritability, and insomnia.(Note: Likelihood increases if the event involved danger or violence.

PTSD Treatment and Heritability

Genetic factors: make individuals more susceptible to stress. PTSD risk is positively associated with the number of traumatic events experienced.

Treatments: Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), group therapy, and antidepressants.

Anxiety Disorders

Extreme fear & anxiety

Several subtypes and associated symptoms

Panic Disorder

episodic attacks of acute anxiety

• Many physical symptoms (e.g., shortness of breath, dizziness, feelings of unreality,

clammy sweat, faintness)

Anticipatory anxiety

fear of having another panic attack

Agoraphobia

Symptoms: intense fear or anxiety about leaving home, being in open spaces, or being in enclosed spaces or in lines or crowds

• Anticipatory anxiety

Generalized Anxiety Disorder

* Excessive anxiety & worry

• Difficulty controlling symptoms

• Clinically significant signs of distress and life disruption

Social Anxiety Disorder (aka Social Phobia)

* Excessive fear of being exposed to the scrutiny of other people

• Avoidance of social situations that involve speaking/performing in public

• Intense anxiety & distress when in those situations

Anxiety Disorders Heritability

Plays component in panic disorder, generalized anxiety disorder, & social anxiety disorder, BDNF protein synthesis

Anxiety Brain Changes

Amygdala (+), and cingulate (-), prefrontal (-), and insular (+) cortexes

Anxiety Treatment

Benzodiazepines which decreases amygdala activation, SSRIs, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy

Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder

* Obsessions – persistent and involuntary thoughts

• Compulsions – behaviors that they cannot keep from performing

Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder Heritability

* Some evidence for genetic component (via twin studies)

• Or brain damage later in life, particularly to the basal ganglia, cingulate gyrus,

and prefrontal cortex

Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder Brain Changes

Caudate nucleus and orbitofrontal cortex (+)

Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder Treatment

* Drugs - Serotonin agonists (e.g., SSRIs, clomipramine, fluoxetine, & fluvoxamine)

• CBT

Operant Condtioning

Stimulus response learning, reinforce or punish the probability of behavior