Brain Anatomy Flashcards by oisin mcelwain

How is the nervous system divided into 2?

CNS, PNS

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How is the CNS divided (4)

Cerebrum, cerebellum, Brainstem, Spinal cord

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How is the PNS divided? (3)

Cranial nerves
Spinal nerves
Visceromotor system

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How is the CNS different to the PNS

CNS is encased in bones (skull and spine)

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Name the four parts of the spinal cord from rostral to caudal

Cervical cord
Thoracic cord
Lumbar cord
Sacral cord

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What name is given to the tract of the descending motor pathway and the ascending sensory pathway

Motor= Corticospinal/ pyramidal tract
Sensory= Spinothalamic tract (synapse in thalamus before sensory cortex)

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Apart from bone, what else is the CNS enveloped by

The meninges

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What does the meninges consist of? (3)

Three membranes that envelop the brain and spinal cord
•Dura mater
•Arachnoid membrane
•Pia mater

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What exists between the arachnoid mater and Pia mater?

Cerebrospinal fluid in the subarachnoid space between arachnoid mater and pia mater (Brain floats in CSF)

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What is the function of the meninges?

Protection

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Name a specialised tissue in the ventricles and the function that it serves

Choroid plexus – specialized tissue in ventricles that secretes CSF

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Describe the pathway of the canals to where it ‘finishes’

Cerebrum > brain stem core > subarachnoid space(or spinal cord) > special structures called arachnoid villi absorb CSF

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Apart from protection, what other important role does CSF carry out?

Metabolic waste products diffuse rapidly into CSF > removed in bloodstream

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Where do the cranial nerves originate and mostly innervate? Also how many?

12 nerves from the brain that mostly innervate the head and neck

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Are the cranial nerves sensory or motor?

Can be one one or the other or mixed

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Name two completely sensory cranial nerves

olfactory (I) and optic nerve (II) related to Telencephalon and diencephalon (purely sensory)

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Which nerves are related to the brain stem?

Cranial nerves III – XII related to the brainstem(more comparable with spinal nerves)

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Which cranial nerve forms part of the parasympathetic system?

Vagus(X) forms part of the parasympathetic system

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What do the spinal nerves innervate?

Innervate skin, joints, muscles

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What do the dorsal root ganglia contain?

contain cell bodies of peripheral sensory neurons

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Give another name for the visceral system and describe how it is divided

Visceromotor system; Sympathetic and parasympathetic division

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What does the visceral system innervate?

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Innervates smooth muscle of internal organs, blood vessels, glands

Where does the sympathetic and parasympathetic system emanate their axons from?

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Sympathetic (mid-spinal cord)
Parasympathetic (brainstem (Vagus nerve) and end of spinal cord)

See diagram in notes

Name some effects of the sympathetic system when activated

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‘Fight or flight’

Pupil dilation
Bronchodilation
Cardiac acceleration
Inhibition of digestion
Piloerection (erection or bristling of hairs)
Stimulation of glucose release
Systematic vasoconstriction

Name some effects of the parasympathetic system when activated

'rest or digest' ``` Pupil constriction Bronchoconstriction Cardiac deceleration Stimulation of digestion Salivation, lacrimation Intestinal vasodilation ```

What neurotransmitters are released by the sympathetic division?

Acetylcholine from spinal cord, norepinephrine later

What neurotransmitters are released by the parasympathetic division?

Acetylcholine from spinal cord, Acetylcholine later

Apart from movement selection, what other function does the basal ganglia carry out?

How much force or strength you put behind a movement

Where does the basal ganglia get information from and where does it project to?

Gets info from the whole cortex, only projects to motor cortex

What disorders (2) and neurotransmitter is highly related to the basal ganglia?

Dopamine; Parkinson's and Huntington's

Describe the lecturerer's reasoning as to the location on the thalamus, basal ganglia, hypothalamus

Well the basal ganglia goes near the front because it gets information from the whole cortex but only projects to near the front (motor cortex). Behind that would go the thalamus because that's around the centre and it has inputs and outputs all over the brain/ cortex. Below that would go the hypothalamus because it has a lot of causal connections (i.e the sympathetic and parasympathetic systems) and to the pituitary gland.

The further you go rostral with a coronal cross section, the ______ the basal ganglia become and the ________ the thalamus becomes

smaller the basal ganglia become and the larger Initially only the basal ganglia is seen

Where has neurulation and differentiation been covered before?

Chpt 7, do the cards it covers most of this lecture "structure of the nervous system"

What are the three primary brain vesicles called?

Prosencephalon (forebrain) Mesencephalon (Midbrain) Rhombencephalon (hindbrain)

What neuromodulater is synthesised in the telencephalon vesicle?

Acetylcholine

What neuromodulater is synthesised in the Diencephalon vesicle?

Histamine

What neuromodulater is synthesised in the Diencephalon vesicle?

Dopamine

What neuromodulater is synthesised in the Metencephalon vesicle? (pons and cerebellum)

Noradrenalin

What neuromodulater is synthesised in the Myelencephalon vesicle? (Medulla)

Serotonin (Raphe)

How can the cortex be subdivided?

Neocortex/ Isocortex- 6 layers Mesocortex- Less layers (+4) Allocortex- 1 layer of projection cells

What is the oldest type of cortex? Name two types of this cortex

Allocortex; piriform (olfactory) cortex and hippocampus

Which cortex makes up 90% of the human cortex?

Neocortex

Where is the mesocortex situated? Name two mesocortices

Between Neo and allocortex, Limbic cortex (incl cingulate and entorhinal), insula

Why did the brain not just stay smooth and let us have big heads?

We wouldn't fit through the birth canal- think of you poor mother

How is the NS axis different in rats and humans

Humans NS axis is curved

How is the SC different in mice, rates and humans

Easily seen from dorsal view in mice, quite covered in rates and completely buried in humans

What is seen as 'the edge of the cortical plate'?

The limbic cortex- cingulate gyrus and parahippocampal gyrus

How would you describe the location of the hippocampus in any mammal?

The curled up edge of the cortical plate

Is the dentate gyrus in the hippocampus a part of the cortical plate?

Yes but it gets fetched during development

Name two parts of the hippocampus

dentate gyrus; part of the cortical plate but it gets fetched during development Cornu Ammonis (Ammon's horn) See doc for diagram

How is the hippocampus shaped differently in rats and why?

Reaches a lot more dorsal (and caudal) because of the straight axis

Dorsal Hippocampus in rats = ______ hippocampus in humans | Ventral hippocampus in rats = ______ hippocampus in humans

posterior; anterior

At what tip of the hippocampus does the amygdala sit?

Ventral tip in rats, anterior tip in humans

Brain Anatomy Flashcards

(53 cards)