L18: Limbic System

Question 1

What is the limbic system involved in

Answer 1

Emotion

Question 2

What is emotion

Answer 2

A combination of psychological and physiological response to a stimulus, only the individual can feel what their psychological state is

Question 3

What are the 2 types of emotion

Answer 3

Positive

Negative

Question 4

Why do we have emotion

Answer 4

We use expression of emotion for communication

Emotion aids memory e.g episodic memory with an emotional component

Question 5

Are the any discrete regions in the brain for emotion e.g a primary emotion cortex

Answer 5

No

Question 6

Is there a discrete region for each type of emotion e.g a funny primary cortex

Answer 6

No

Question 7

What does the current evidence suggest about where in the brain we have emotion

Answer 7

There is a network of neurones that are connected

Question 8

Which structures in the brain are involved in emotion

Answer 8

Structures around the brainstem that join to the major part of the brain = border region/limbus

Question 9

What are the 2 aspects to emotions

Answer 9

Expression of emotion by activating ANS via hypothalamus

Awareness that involves the neocortex

Question 10

Where is the neocortex located

Answer 10

Pre frontal cortex

Question 11

How is the neocortex (awareness) and hypothalamus (activation of ANS) linked i.e describe the papez circuit

Answer 11

1) Hypothalamus singles to the anterior thalami nuclei
2) Anterior thalamix nuclie passes signal to cingulate gyrus
3) Cingulate gyrus passes into the neocortex
4) Neocortex passes info back to the cingulate gyrus into the hippocampus
5) Hippocampus associates with back to the hypothalamus

Question 12

What is the orbitofrontol cortex part of

Answer 12

Neocortex

Question 13

Which emotion is the orbit to frontal cortex associated with

Answer 13

Pleasure

Question 14

Which elements of the papez circuit are not just involved in emotion

Answer 14

Hippocampus

Question 15

What is hippocampus involved in

Answer 15

Memory

Question 16

Where is the amygdala located

Answer 16

In the temporal lobe adjacent to the hippocampus

Question 17

What are the nuclei in the amygdala

Answer 17

Corticomedial nuclei
Central nucleus
Basolateral nuclei

Question 18

What are the 2 evidences that support that the amygdala is involved in emotion

Answer 18

Urbach wiethe disease

Temporal lobe epilepsy

Question 19

What is the urbach wiethe disease

Answer 19

Degeneration of the amygdala that results in fearless patients this shows that a removal of the amygdala results in loss of fear

Question 20

What is temporal lobe epilepsy

Answer 20

Epilepsy in the temporal lobe that results in a strong feeling of fear before the epilepsy- this shows that a stimulation of the amygdala results in fear

Question 21

Why do we need memory involved in emotion

Answer 21

To allow us to interpret the sensory input and compare with previous sensory inputs

Question 22

Which structure in the Brain is involved in emotional memory

Answer 22

Amygdala that acts as the central processing nucleus

Question 23

What happens when there is a stimulus associated with the memory e.g auditory stimulus

Answer 23

1) stimulus goes to the sensory cortex
2) from the sensory cortex information goes to the amygdala
3) if it’s associated with memory then it can give a response
4) information can pass into the central nucleus to trigger the hypothalmus to give ANS response
5) it can also pass to the central nucleus to triage the periaqueductal grey matter (PAG) to produce a behavioural response
6) information can also pass basolateral nuclei of the amygdala to pass to the neocortex to give an emotional experience

Question 24

What other emotion is the amygdala involved in

Answer 24

Aggression

Question 25

Which side of the hemisphere is important in recognising emotion

Answer 25

Right hemisphere which takes information from the left side of a picture

Question 26

With the evidence of the role of the amygdala in emotion what has this lead to

Answer 26

Changing the papez circuit to involve the amygdala to produce the revised circuit

Question 27

Overall what are theroles of the amygdala

Answer 27

1) emotional memory
2) stimulate hypothalmus for ANS
3) fear and aggression emotion
4) emotional response by stimulating the neocortex
5) behaviour response by stimulating the peri aqueducts gray (PAG)