Neuroscience Exam 3

What are the major patterns of broad communication in the nervous system?

What are the functions of the hypothalamus?

humoral response, visceromotor response, somatic motor response

What is the humoral response?

stimulating or inhibiting the release of hormones

What is the visceromotor response?

adjusting behavior of sympathetic & parasympathetic division of autonomic nervous system

What is the somatic nervous system?

incites appropriate motor behavior response

What parts of the hypothalamus are involved in the humoral and visceromotor responses?

periventricular zone

What functions does the posterior pituitary regulate?

storing and releasing oxytocin and vasopressin (ADH)

What functions does the anterior pituitary regulate?

releasing hormones for many functions: ovulation sperm production, cortisol secretion, growth, protein synthesis, milk secretion

What does the adrenal gland release?

cortisol, adrenaline/noradrenaline, aldosterone, androgens

What functions are controlled by the sympathetic nervous system?

fight, flight, fright, f… (sex); short-term good

What functions are controlled by the parasympathetic nervous system?

“rest & digest”; long-term good

What is the primary neurotransmitter for the sympathetic nervous system?

norepinephrine

What is the primary neurotransmitter for the parasympathetic system?

acetylcholine (ACh)

How are motor neurons in the autonomic nervous system different from somatic motor neurons?

• autonomic: have cell bodies outside CNS in autonomic ganglia; they innervate tissure/organs

• somatic: cell bodies in CNS (ventral horn, brainstem); innervate skeletal muscle

What is the enteric division?

autonomic subsystem involved in the transport & digestion of food; located in esophageal lining, stomach, intestines, pancreas, gall bladder

true or false: there are at least as many neurons in the enteric system as the spinal system

true

What are the main modulatory systems of the CNS?

noradrenergic, serotonergic, dopaminergic, cholinergic

What are the functions of the noradrenergic system?

attention, arousal, waking, learning, metabolism, anxiety, pain, mood

What is the source of the neurotransmitter for each modulatory system?

noradrenergic: locus coeruleus
serotonergic: raphe nuclei
dopaminergic: substantia nigra & ventral tegmental area (VTA)
cholinergic: basal forebrain & pons, midbrain

What are the functions of the serotonergic system?

arousal, waking, pain, mood

What are the functions of the dopaminergic system?

movement initiation, reward processing

What are the functions of the cholinergic system?

attention, learning, sensory processing

What is leptin?

regulator of body weight, appetite, and energy expenditure by signaling hypothalamus to reduce hunger and increase energy usage when fat stores are sufficient

Where are leptin receptors that affect feeding behavior located?

arcuate nucleus of the hypothalamus

What happens when leptin levels are high?

decrease appetite

What happens when leptin levels are low?

increase appetite

What are orexigenic peptides?

stimulate increase in hunger

What are anorectic peptides?

stimulate suppression of appetite

What receptors do orexigenic and anorectic peptides act on?

both interact with same MC4 receptor with opposing effects

Who was Phineas Gage?

was injured in 1848 by a tamping iron which resulted in extensive damage to his limbic system and parts of frontal cortex

What did we learn from Phineas Gage?

frontal lobe controls personality, impulse regulation, and social behavior

What was Phineas Gage’s post-accident life like?

immediately after: couldn’t plan, no self-control, foul-mouthed, poor money management
long term: less known, evidence that he became more “normal” (able to hold a job transporting people reliably)

What are the different theories of emotions?

James-Lange theory, Cannon-bard theory, basic emotions, dimensional emotions

What is the James-Lange theory of emotion and what are its strengths and weaknesses?

we experience emotion in response to physiological changes in body (e.g. feel bad because we cry); provided a framework for explaining physical aspects of emotion, but claimed we have to have physical responses to feel emotions (false, we can be sad without crying)

What is the Cannon-Bard theory of emotion and what are its strengths and weaknesses?

emotional experience can occur independently of emotional expression; strength: emotional without response; weakness: fails to recognize that physical sensations can change emotions, too much emphasis on thalamus while other regions (amygdala) are more critical for emotions

What is the theory of emotion and what are its strengths and weaknesses?