research methods

Question 1

Animal research methodes vs human research

Answer 1

Animal Research
Imaging
Manipulation
Human Research
Neuroimaging
Neural manipulation
Neuropsychological assessment

Question 2

What is stereotaxic surgery?
What is the reference point?
What is the map?

Answer 2

 Used to position experimental devices
within the brain
 Stereotaxic atlas – provides coordinates for
locating structures within the brain
 Bregma – a point on the top of the skull
often used as a reference point
 Sterotaxic instrument – used to hold head
steady and guide the device to be inserted

Question 3

Electrical Stimulation
What’s it used for?
how does it work?

Answer 3

 Lesioning can be used to remove,
damage, or inactivate a structure.
 Electrical stimulation may be used to
“activate” a structure.
 Stimulation of a structure may have an
effect opposite to that seen when the
structure is lesioned.

Question 4

What are some Invasive Electrophysiological
Recording Methods

Answer 4

 Intracellular unit recording: Membrane potential of a neuron
 Extracellular unit recording:Firing of a neuron
 Multiple-unit recording:Firing of many neurons
 Invasive EEG recording: Surgically implant electrodes into the brain measure electrical activity

Question 5

What are some ways drugs can be administered?

Answer 5

Fed to the stomach
 Injected - described by injection sight:
stomach (intragastric)
peritoneal cavity (intraperitoneal, IP)
large muscle (intramuscular, IM)
tissue under the skin (subcutaneous, sc)
large surface vein (intravenous, IV)
 Cannula – used to administer drug directly
to brain

Question 6

Explain how Selective Chemical
Lesions work

Answer 6

Neural poisons (neurotoxins) selectively
target specific nervous system
components
 Kainic or ibotenic acid – destroy cell
bodies
 6-hydroxydopamine (6-OHDA) –
destroys noradrenergic and
dopaminergic neurons

Question 7

2-Deoxyglucose (2-DG) technique

Answer 7

Inject animal with radioactive 2-DG and allow it to
engage in behavior of interest
Use autoradiography to see where radioactivity
accumulates in brain slices

Question 8

Cerebral dialysis

Answer 8

Cerebral dialysis – measures extracellular concentration of specific chemicals in live animals

inserting a small, semipermeable probe into a specific brain region, allowing the exchange of extracellular fluid with a perfusion solution. This enables researchers to collect and analyze neurochemicals such as dopamine, serotonin, and glutamate while minimizing damage to brain tissue.

Question 9

Locating Neurotransmitters and
Receptors
Immunocytochemistry

Answer 9

Based on the binding of labelled protein-specific antibodies to detect proteins.
Immune response:
Antibodies are produced to bind and neutralize antigens (foreign proteins).
Labels can be fluorescent dyes, enzymes, or radioactive markers.

Question 10

In Situ Hybridization (ISH):

Answer 10

Uses labelled RNA probes to detect neurons with complementary mRNA.
Helps identify gene expression patterns in specific cells or tissues.

Question 11

Human research Non-invasive “Neuroimaging” methods:

Answer 11

Structural imaging
Functional imaging
Neuropsychological

Question 12

Invasive Neural “Manipulation”
Human research

Answer 12

Stimulation
Ablation
 Case Studies

Question 13

Explain how cerebral angiograms work

Answer 13

Opaque dye injected into cerebral arteries
 Used primarily for examining the cerebral vasculature

Question 14

Computed tomography (CT scan)
How does it work?

Answer 14

series of X-rays
 combined to form a 3-D representation

Question 15

MRI
What do the letters stand for??
Better or worse than ct?
How does it work

Answer 15

Magnetic Resonance
Imaging (MRI)
 Better spatial resolution than CT scan
 Hydrogen atoms align under powerful
magnetic field
 Electromagnetic pulses are bounced off the aligned hydrogen atoms

Question 16

Diffusion tensor imaging (wow)

Answer 16

• Makes use of MRI
  technology
• Maps out tracks of white
  matter
  *Clinical applications

Question 17

Functional neuroimaging types

Answer 17

 Functional: fMRI (functional magnetic resonance imaging)
 PET (positron emission tomography)
 EEG (electroencephalography)
MEG (magnetoencephalography)

Question 18

How do fmri’s work?
Whats it good at and bad at?
What does it mesure?

Answer 18

 Measures changes in oxygen utilization
BOLD response (blood oxygen level
dependent)
 Good spatial resolution
 Relatively poor temporal resolution

Question 19

Explain PET scans

Answer 19

Radioactive 2-DG
 Injected into carotid artery
 Shows glucose metabolism
 Poor spatial resolution
 Relatively poor temporal resolution

Question 20

EEG

Answer 20

Measures electrical activity on the
surface of the cortex
 Often used for diagnosis of epilepsy
 Poor spatial resolution
 Great temporal resolution

Question 21

Good bad and goals of Neuropsychological
Testing

Answer 21

 Assists in diagnosing neural disorders.
 Time-consuming - only conducted on a small portion of those with brain damage
 Serves as a basis for counseling/caring
 Provides information on baseline function

Question 22

Neuropsychological
Testing
 Single-test – Early approach

Answer 22

Used to differentiate brain damage from
functional (psychological) causes

Question 23

Standardized-test-battery

Answer 23

Same goal as single-test approach
Halstead-Reitan, Luria-Nebraska

Question 24

Customized-Test-Battery or
Flexible Battery Approach

Answer 24

 Goal is to characterize the nature of the deficits seen in the brain-damaged
patient
 Begin with a general test and then follow with tests designed to explore the nature of the observed problems

Question 25

Common Components of the Initial Common Test Battery

Answer 25

Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale  WAIS, an IQ test  Often fails to detect memory deficits  Token test  Can detect language-related deficits  Language lateralization – used to identify language-dominant hemisphere  Sodium amytal – anesthetize one hemisphere  Dichotic listening – ear contralateral to dominant hemisphere shows superior hearing ability

Question 26

Ablation and stimulants in human neurological testing

Answer 26

aspiration, radio-frequency, surgical removal, cryogenic  Interpretation of lesion effects Stimulation  TMS (transcranial magnetic stimulation)  Electrical stimulation  Pharmacological

Question 27

TMS

Answer 27

 Not extremely invasive, but more invasive than MRI  Strong magnetic field is focused in order to temporarily disrupt neuronal functioning  Essentially a temporary ablation

Question 28

Deep Brain Stimulation How it is used What's it used for

Answer 28

An electrode is surgically place in the brain  Controlled with a pacemaker-like device that sends electrical impulses Used to treat various disorders including: Parkinson’s disease Tourette syndrome Major Depressive Disorder

Question 29

Cognitive Neuroscience Assumptions

Answer 29

 Each complex cognitive process results from the combined activity of simple cognitive processes (constituent cognitive processes)  Each complex cognitive process is mediated by neural activity in a particular area of the brain

Question 30

Describe the forms of structural and functional neuroimaging discussed in class. Be sure to note the important key aspects of each technique.

Answer 30

Structural Neuroimaging: ◦ Angiogram: This involves injecting an opaque dye into cerebral arteries to examine cerebral vasculature. ◦ CT Scan (Computed Tomography): This method uses a series of X-rays combined to form a 3-D representation of the brain. ◦ MRI (Magnetic Resonance Imaging): MRI has better spatial resolution than CT scans. It uses a powerful magnetic field to align hydrogen atoms and bounces electromagnetic pulses off these atoms. ◦ DTI (Diffusion Tensor Imaging): DTI uses MRI technology to map out the tracks of white matter in the brain. It also has clinical applications. Functional Neuroimaging: ◦ fMRI (Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging): fMRI measures changes in oxygen utilization, known as the BOLD (blood oxygen level dependent) response. It has good spatial resolution but relatively poor temporal resolution. ◦ PET (Positron Emission Tomography): PET involves injecting radioactive 2-DG into the carotid artery to show glucose metabolism. It has poor spatial and temporal resolution. ◦ EEG (Electroencephalography): EEG measures electrical activity on the surface of the cortex and is often used for diagnosing epilepsy. It has poor spatial resolution but great temporal resolution. ◦ MEG (Magnetoencephalography): MEG is primarily used for research purposes and has good spatial and great temporal resolution. However, it is expensive.