BIOL 469 Study Guide - Midterm Guide: Nernst Equation, Inbreeding, Lipid Bilayer
biol 469 // fall 2017 // exam 1
exam 1
❖major components of the central nervous system (CNS)
➢anterior/posterior
➢dorsal/ventral
■ dorsal is sorta top/back
■ ventral is like bottom front, near jaw
➢rostral/caudal
■ rostral is the area of the actual brain
■ caudal is the spinal cord and butt and stuff
➢spinal cord → controls movements of limbs and receives information from them
➢brain stem → 3 parts. if you hurt this you die
■ medulla oblongata → autonomic function like digestion, breathing, heart
rate
■ pons → transfers movement info from cerebrum to cerebellum
■ midbrain → transfers motor impulses from the cerebral cortex to the
pons/spinal cord. also relays impulses from the spinal cord to the
thalamus
➢cerebellum → controls movement and learning of motor skills
➢diencephalon → has 2 things
■ thalamus → controls information that reaches the cerebral cortex from the
rest of the CNS
■ hypothalamus → hormones, digestion, circadian rhythms
➢cerebral hemispheres
■ cerebral cortex → information processing
■ hippocampus → learning and memory. explicit stuff like facts, answers to
questions
■ amygdala → emotions, endocrine interaction, autonomic fctn.
● emotions and endocrine interaction go hand in hand
■ basal ganglia (i still dont know what this is)
● group of nuclei that control motor skills and thought
● pretty consistent across the animal kingdom
● caudate nucleus, putamen, globus pallidus, and claustrum
➢limbic system
■ hippocampus → learning/memory, explicit information like facts and
answers to questions
■ amygdala → emotions, endocrine interaction, autonomic function
● emotions and endocrine stuff go hand in hand - memories that
stand out usually have some kinda big emotional thing tied to
them
❖complexity of mammalian CNS
➢25k genes/cell, 6b base pairs. there are 1b neurons in the brain, with over 1k diff
types → HUGE genome
■ neurons can be distinguished by the neurotransmitters they produce,
function, and connections they make with other cells
➢the neuron doctrine → written by Ramon y Cajal (1852-1934). he looked at cells
and made numerous drawings. most influential neuroscientist of all time
■ neurons are the fundamental functional and structural building blocks of
the brain
■ processes (neuropil) are structural parts of neurons
■ neurons are discontinuous
● don’t form a giant web from 1 neuron - individual cells. golgi
thought this but was wrong and ramon y cajal and him fought over
it via letter
■ terminals of one neuron communicate with others only at specialized
sites, later called synapses by Sherrington
■ a given neuron will only communicate with specific neurons and not
others
■ neuron signaling is unidirectional, from dendrite → axon
● this allows for one to determine how information flows through a
neural circuit
■ neurons can be classified according to shape
➢heterogeneity → every neuron is unique in all aspects
■ cell shape/processes
■ types of neurotransmitters released
● each NT has its own specific receptor
■ gene expression patterns
● differences in ion channels, receptors, signaling pathways, firing
patterns
● division of types of neuron by this method is increasingly popular
■ connectivity
■ neuronal plasticity → past experience
● cellular forms of learning and memory can differentiate a cell
➢other cool stuff related to the neuron doctrine
■ neurons have unique (from general body cells) abilities to produce signals
● action potentials, voltage gated channels
■ neurons have unique means of communication with each other
● axons/dendrites, chemical synapses, electrical synapses, unique
messengers and receptors
■ patterns of neural connections directly relate to behaviors - if the wrong
connection is made, a task may not be able to be carried out
■ evolution → basic neuronal structures and functions have been
conserved through the years across the animal kingdom - makes things
we wanna study in humans be able to be studied using flies or worms
❖neuronal structure
➢neurons can be subdivided into 4 parts:
Document Summary
Biol 469 // fall 2017 // exam 1 exam 1. Major components of the central nervous system (cns) Ventral is like bottom front, near jaw. Rostral is the area of the actual brain. Caudal is the spinal cord and butt and stuff. Spinal cord controls movements of limbs and receives information from them. Brain stem 3 parts. if you hurt this you die. Medulla oblongata autonomic function like digestion, breathing, heart rate. Pons transfers movement info from cerebrum to cerebellum. Midbrain transfers motor impulses from the cerebral cortex to the pons/spinal cord. also relays impulses from the spinal cord to the thalamus. Cerebellum controls movement and learning of motor skills. Thalamus controls information that reaches the cerebral cortex from the rest of the cns. Hippocampus learning and memory. explicit stuff like facts, answers to questions. Amygdala emotions, endocrine interaction, autonomic fctn. Emotions and endocrine interaction go hand in hand. Basal ganglia (i still dont know what this is)
