Thalamocortical Physiology Flashcards
(46 cards)
When do the corticothalamic slow waves stop?
when the animal wakes up
Thalamic relay (TR) neurons are cells that receive an input from a sensory system and relay that info to the cortex via excitatory glutamatergic synapses onto ______ with soma in layer 4 of the cortex.
pyramidal cortical neurons
Serotonergic neurons from the ______ release serotonin in the thalamus.
raphe nuclei
When the Thalamic relay (TR) cells are depolarized, the neurons _____.
fire a series of APs at high frequency
What kind of channel is inactivated by depolarization?
T-type Ca++ channels
Slow wave EEG typical of absence seizures resembles ______.
the slow waves of stage IV sleep
Oscillations in neuronal activity in the _____ circuit play an important role in normal physiological activities such as sleep.
thalamocortical
Slow wave EEG typical of ______ resembles the slow waves of stage IV sleep.
absence seizures
The thalamic relay (TR) cell elicits firing of the ______ at a delta frequency.
cortical pyramidal cell
When an animal is asleep, stimulation of cholinergic neurons in the reticular activating system results in awakening of the animal and interruption of slow waves in the EEG.
cholinergic neurons
When do slow Ca++ spikes fire?
when the thalamic relay neuron is hyperpolarized
Absence epilepsy is a type of epilepsy prevalent in children, where the child _____.
has sudden staring spells
Name 2 anticonvulsants for absence epilepsy.
- ethosuximide
- valporic acid
When an animal is asleep, stimulation of cholinergic neurons in the reticular activating system results in ________.
awakening of the animal and interruption of slow waves in the EEG
What do the slow EEG waves recorded in absence epilepsy stem from?
thalamocortical oscillatory activity
Serotonergic neurons from the raphe nuclei release ______ in the _______.
serotonin; thalamus
When an animal is asleep, stimulation of cholinergic neurons in the _______ results in awakening of the animal and interruption of slow waves in the EEG.
reticular activating system
Noradrenergic neurons from the locus coeruleus release _____ in the _______.
noradrenaline; thalamus
The ____ affects activity of cortical neurons through axonal connectivity btw it and the cortex.
thalamus
______ from the raphe nuclei release serotonin in the thalamus.
Serotonergic neurons
____ is a type of epilepsy prevalent in children, where the child has sudden staring spells.
Absence epilepsy
Noradrenergic neurons from the ______ release noradrenaline in the thalamus.
locus coeruleus
What are ethosuximide and valporic acid? How do they work?
txs for absence epilepsy; inhibit T-type Ca++ channels
What does the EEG pattern in absence epilepsy look like?
- similar to that of slow wave sleep
- delta waves of about 3 Hz
