PS267 Lecture Notes - Lecture 9: Paraplegia, Red Nucleus, Reticular Formation
Document Summary
Visual experts will claim around 30-40% of brain is devoted to vision, however motor control expert will argue that almost 50% is devoted to motor control. What can go wrong in our motor systems: Leads to disruption of posture, inability to initiate voluntary movements and involuntary facial expressions. About 1% of all adults over the age of 60 will succumb to parkinson"s. It"s the dopaminergic cells in substantiate nigra don"t produce enough dopamine and project to basal ganglia which coordinates movement. Dopaminergic cells are critical for relay circuitry. 4 patients took mptp drug that selectively attacks motor neurons revolutionized research of parkinson"s on animal models. Muscle contractions = basis of all movements (crayfish or human, any species with muscles needs to contract these muscles for generation of any kind of movement). Alpha motor neurons in spinal cord activity in these neurons causes muscles to contract.
