Neuroscience Flashcards

8093840075	Neurons	Nerve cells	0
8093840076	Dendrites	Parts of neurons that receive messages and conduct impulses toward the cell body	1
8093840077	Axon	Extension of a neuron through which messages pass to other neurons or to muscles or glands	2
8093840078	Myelin sheath	layer of fatty tissue encasing the fibers of many neurons; speeds up neural impulses	3
8093840081	Synapse	the junction between the axon tip of the sending neuron and the dendrite or cell body of the receiving neuron	4
8093840082	Synaptic Gap	aka cleft; the tiny gap at the junction of a synapse	5
8093840083	Neurotransmitters	chemical messengers that traverse the synaptic gaps between neurons	6
8093840085	Acetylcholine (ACh)	NT that enables muscle action, learning, and memory - undersupply, as ACh-producing neurons deteriorate, marks Alzheimer's disease	7
8093840086	Dopamine	NT that influences movement, learning, attention, and emotion - excess linked to schizophrenia; not enough, the brain produces the tremors and decreased mobility of Parkinson's disease	8
8093840087	Serotonin	NT that affects mood, hunger, sleep, and arousal - undersupply linked to depression; Prozac and some other antidepressant drugs raise it's levels	9
8093840088	Parietal Lobe	portion of the cerebral cortex lying at the top of the head and toward the rear; includes the sensory cortex; important role in integrating info from different senses to build a coherent picture of the world	10
8093840089	Temporal Lobe	portion of the cerebral cortex lying roughly above the ears; includes auditory areas (receives info from opposite ears) and substructures whose functions include perception, face recognition, memory, emotional reactions	11
8093840090	Frontal Lobe	portion of the cerebral cortex lying behind the forehead (front of brain); responsible for planning, making judgments, speaking, muscle movements; "higher" cognitive functions	12
8093840091	Occipital Lobe	portion of the cerebral cortex at the back of the head; visual areas; receives visual information from the opposite side	13
8093840092	Brainstem	oldest part and central core of the brain; begins where the spinal cord enters the skull; responsible for automatic survival functions (breathing, heart rate, blood pressure); includes pons, medulla oblongata , midbrain	14
8093840093	Medulla Oblongata	base of the brainstem; controls heart rate and breathing	15
8093840095	Thalamus	top of the brainstem; brain's sensory switch board; directs messages to the sensory receiving areas in the cortex and transmits replies to the medulla and cerebellum	16
8093840096	Cerebellum	"little brain;" controls voluntary movements and balance; extends from the back of the brainstem	17
8093840097	Amygdala	two almond shaped clusters of the limbic system; linked to emotion (aggression and fear); links areas of cortex that process "higher" cognitive info w/ hypothalamic and brainstem systems that control "lower" metabolic response (touch, pain sensitivity, respiration) - "fight or flight"	18
8093840098	Hypothalamus	Neural structure lying below (hypo) the thalamus; directs maintenance activities (hunger, thirst, body temp); helps govern endocrine system via pituitary gland; linked to emotion; part of limbic system	19
8093840099	Hippocampus	Most closely aligned to memory formation; early storage place for LTM, involved in the transition of LTM to even more permanent memory; also important in spatial navigation; part of limbic system	20
8093840100	Cerebral cortex	intricate fabric of interconnected neural cells that covers the cerebral hemispheres; body's ultimate control and information-processing center	21
8093840101	Motor cortex	area at the rear of the frontal lobes that control voluntary movement; left hemisphere controls right side and vice versa	22
8093840102	Sensory cortex	area at the front of the parietal lobes that registers and processes body sensations; left hemisphere receives information from right side and vice versa	23