1. Biological School
It is all about the body!!!!

2. The Nervous System
It starts with an individual nerve cell called a NEURON.

3. Neuroanatomy Synapse Synapse
Neurotransmitters (chemicals held in terminal buttons that travel through synaptic gap)

4. How does a Neuron fire? Resting Potential: slightly negative charge.
Reach the threshold when enough neurotransmitters reach dendrites.
Go into Action Potential.
All-or-none response.
Transfer of ions across axon’s membrane causes electrical charge.

5. Types of Neurotransmitters

6. Acetylcholine (ACH) Deals with learning, memory, & muscle movement
At every junction b/w motor neurons & muscles
When released to our muscles the muscle contracts
When it is blocked muscles are paralyzed & cannot contract
Black widow spider?
Is involved in autonomic nervous system
Lack of has been linked to Alzheimer’s disease & ADD

7. Dopamine
Involved in movement & posture, alertness, & leveling out mood
Cocaine (and other drugs) blocks dopamine reuptake=high
Lack of dopamine has been linked to Parkinson’s disease
Too much has been linked to schizophrenia (overstimulated brain)

8. Serotonin Involved in mood, appetite, arousal
Low levels have been linked to clinical depression, suicide, loss of appetite (anorexia)

9. GABA (gamma amino-butyric acid)
In Central Nervous System
Induces relaxation & sleep
Balances the brain
Too little = insomnia, anxiety, epilepsy

10. Glutamate Involved in memory & learning
Low levels = interferes with memory & learning, sluggish, difficulty concentrating
High levels = must be “reuptook?” or it can destroy neurons

11. Endorphins Natural pain killers
Feeling of euphoria, pleasurable emotions
Opiates (morphine, codeine…) bind to receptors
Many of our most addictive drugs deal with endorphins
Produced during exercise
“gym rats”

12. Drugs can be….. Agonists- make neuron fire
Antagonists- stop neural firing
Reuptake Inhibitors- block reuptake

13. Types of Neurons Efferent (Motor) Neurons Interneurons
Afferent (Sensory) Neurons

14. The Nervous System

15. Central Nervous System
The Brain and spinal cord
CNS

16. Peripheral Nervous System
All nerves that are not encased in bone.
Everything but the brain and spinal cord.
Is divided into two categories….somatic and autonomic.

17. Somatic Nervous System
Controls voluntary muscle movement.
Uses motor (efferent) neurons.

18. Autonomic Nervous System
Controls the automatic functions of the body.
Divided into two categories…the sympathetic and the parasympathetic

19. Sympathetic Nervous System
Fight or Flight Response.
Automatically accelerates heart rate, breathing, dilates pupils, slows down digestion.

20. Parasympathetic Nervous System
Automatically slows the body down after a stressful event.
Heart rate and breathing slow down, pupils constrict and digestion speeds up.

21. Reflexes
Normally, sensory (afferent) neurons take info up through spine to the brain.
Some reactions occur when sensory neurons reach just the spinal cord.
Survival adaptation.

22. The Brain Made up of neurons and glial cells.
Glial cells support neural cells.
My fiance is my glial cell. He takes care of me!!!

23. Ways to study the Brain!!!
Accidents: Phineas Gage.

24. Lesions Cutting into the brain and looking for change.
Brain tumors also lesion brain tissue.

25. Less Invasive ways to study the Brain
Electroencephalogram (EEG)
Computerized Axial Tomography (CAT)
Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI)
Positron Emission Tomography (PET)
Functional MRI

26. Brain Structures Some scientists divide the brain up into three parts.
Hindbrain
Midbrain
Forebrain
Let’s talk first about the brainstem

27. Medulla Oblongata “Central Office”=keeps your whole body working
Located where spinal cord enters the skull
Controls heart rate, breathing & blood pressure

28. Pons Connects hindbrain, midbrain & forebrain together
Involved in facial expressions

29. SPINAL CORD (the nerves) interneurons that carry signals
protected by vertebrae & spinal fluid (cushions the nerves)

30. Cerebellum means “little brain” located in the back of our head
Coordinates muscle movements & emotions

31. Thalamus Located in Forebrain “Brain’s Sensory Switchboard”
2 egg shaped structures
receives information from all the senses (except smell) & routes it to the brain regions that deal with vision, hearing, taste & touch
it’s the main traffic hub en route to other destinations

32. Reticular Formation (reticular activating system)
Located between your ears
Finger-shaped network of neurons that relays info to other areas of the brain
controls arousal & ability to focus attention

33. Limbic System EMOTIONAL CONTROL CENTER of the brain
Linked to emotions (fear, anger…) & basic motives (food, sex…)
The 4 “F”s
Feeding
Fighting
Fear
F (sex)
Made up of Hypothalamus, Amygdala, Hippocampus & Cingulate Gyrus

34. Hypothalamus “the brain’s thermostat”
perform specific bodily maintenance duties (eating, drinking, body temperature, sex drive…), takes orders from the other parts of the brain
Orchestrates the sympathetic nervous & endocrine systems
interplay b/w endocrine & nervous systems, both influence each other
EX: thinking about sex can trigger your body to secrete hormones

35. Hippocampus and Amygdala
Hippocampus is involved in memory processing (creating new memories)
Think lost on campus as a freshmen on first day
Shaped like a seahorse
Damage to this area will prevent you from forming new memories
Amygdala is vital for our basic emotions
Expressions of Fear & Aggression/Frustration

36. Cingulate Gyrus Latin for “belt” Helps regulate emotion & pain
Monitors and guides behavior
Helps predict negative consequences

37. Cerebral Cortex The wrinkled outer layer of our brain
Laid out it would be about the size of a large pizza (yum!)
YOUR BODY’S ULTIMATE CONTROL & INFO PROCESSING CENTER
Thinking, perceiving, speaking
This part of our brain separates us from all other animals

38. Areas of the Cerebral Cortex
Divided into eight lobes, four in each hemisphere (frontal, parietal, occipital and temporal)
Any area not dealing with our senses or muscle movements are called association areas
Deal with higher mental functions like learning, remembering, thinking & speaking

39. Frontal Lobe Deals with higher level thought & reasoning
Making plans, forming judgments, performing movements
Motor Cortex: controls voluntary movements
Prefrontal Cortex: problem solving & emotion
Broca’s Area: left hemisphere in frontal lobe, controls ability to speak (muscles)
Broca’s Aphasia: damage to Broca’s area will impair speaking

40. Parietal Lobes Located at the top of our head
Receives sensory info about temperature, pressure, texture, & pain
Somato-sensory cortex: registers and processes touch and movement sensations

41. Temporal Lobes Located above the ears Process sound sensed by ears
Wernicke’s area: processes the words we hear spoken
Wernicke’s Aphasia: impairs your ability to understand words
Angular Gyrus: responsible for understanding written language

42. Occipital Lobes Located in the back of our head
Handles visual input from eyes
Right half of each retina goes to left occipital lobe and vice versa (seriously!!!)

43. Corpus Callosum & Basil Ganglia
Corpus Callosum: a large band of neural fibers that connect the 2 hemispheres of the brain (we’ll talk about what happens when you cut this this soon)
Basil Ganglia: group of neurons that learns, remembers, & coordinates voluntary movement (Williams in Zumba!!!!)

44. Hemispheres Divided into a left and right hemisphere.
Contralateral controlled- left controls right side of body and vice versa.
Brain Lateralization.
Lefties are better at spatial and creative tasks.
Righties are better at logic.

45. Split-Brain Patients
Corpus Collosum attaches the two hemispheres of cerebral cortex.
When removed you have a split-brain patient.

46. Brain Plasticity
The ability for our brains to form new connections after the neurons are damaged.
The younger you are, the more plastic your brain is.

47. Endocrine System System of glands that secrete hormones.
Controlled by the hypothalamus.
Ovaries and Testes.
Adrenal Gland