Neuroanatomy and Neurochemistry of Cognition Flashcards
(23 cards)
What is cognition?
The mental action or process of acquiring knowledge and understanding through thought, experience and the senses
What are the functions of the frontal lobe?
Voluntary movement Reasoning Executive function Personality Inhibition Initiative Expressive language
How is the frontal lobe tested?
1) Verbal fluency (as many words beginning with F in 60 seconds)
2) Cognitive estimates
3) Proverb interpretation
4) Perseveration
5) Luria 3 step test (fist,edge, palm)
6) Go-no-go test.
7) Primitive reflexes
What are the main functions of the parietal lobe?
Knowing right from left Reading Writing Body orientation Calculation Two point discrimination Graphaethesia
What can a parietal lobe lesion in the dominant hemisphere cause?
Dysphasia
Dyscalculia
Dyslexia
Apraxia
Agnosia (tactile agnosia) – inability to recognize or discriminate.
Gerstmann syndrome – Characterized by acalculia, agraphia, finger anomia and difficulty in differentiation of right and left.
What can a parietal lobe lesion in the non-dominant hemisphere cause?
Spatial disorientation
Constructional apraxia
Dressing apraxia
Anosognosia
What are the functions of the temporal lobe?
Understanding speech Memory Hearing Emotions Sense of identity Recognising faces
What is the role of the limbic system?
It is believed to have a special role in emotional experience and visceral regulation
What does the primary structure of the limbic system consist of?
Hypothalamus
Amygdala
Hippocampus and Dentate Gyrus
Cingulate Gyrus
What are the functions of the hippocampus?
Forming new memories
Spatial memory and navigation
What makes up the circuit of Papez?
Hippocampus, fornix, mamillary bodies, anterior thalamic nuclei, cingulate gyrus and enterohinal cortex
What are the functions of the Amygdala?
Emotions:
Right sided- negative emotions such as fear and sadness
Left sided- both pleasant and unpleasant emotions plus reward system
What are the 3 stages of memory?
Encoding
Storage
Retrieval
What are the types of LTM?
Explicit Memory:
Declarative memory- episodic and semantic memory
Implicit Memory:
Procedural memory
What does acetylcholine act as?
A modulator (alters way other brain structures process information, rather than a chemical transferring information from point to point)
What is the definition of dementia?
Progressive cognitive decline:
Interfere with the ability to function at work or at usual activities; and
Represent a decline from previous levels of functioning and performing; and
Are not explained by delirium or major psychiatric disorder
The cognitive or behavioural impairment involves a minimum of 2 domains
What does a probable Lewy Body Dementia diagnosis require?
Dementia plus two or more core features, or:
Dementia plus one core feature and one or more suggestive features
What does a possible Lewy Body Dementia diagnosis require?
Dementia plus one core feature, or:
Dementia plus one or more suggestive features
What are the 3 types of fronto-temporal dementia?
1) Behavioural variant frontotemporal dementia
2) Semantic dementia
3) Progressive non fluent aphasia
What is usually preserved in fronto-temporal dementia?
Memory
Perception
Spatial Skills
Praxis
What is the neuropathology of fronto-temporal dementia?
Pick Bodies (tau positive spherical cytoplasmic neuronal inclusions, composed of straight filaments Pick cells (ballooned neurons with dissolution of chromatin)
What is alcohol related dementia causes by?
Long term and excessive consumption of alcohol
What is required to diagnose alcohol related dementia?
Memory impairment plus one of: Apraxia Aphasia Agnosia Disturbance in executive function and functional impairment
