Neuroscience!
This neurotransmitter, often associated with pleasure, plays a critical role in motivation and reward pathways.
Answer: What is dopamine?
What is the macronutrient that is considered the primary source of energy for the brain?
What are carbohydrates!
Vaccines work by introducing a small amount of this into the body to help it recognize and fight disease.
What is an antigen?
What percentage of students do you estimate will experience some kind of mental health problem while in university?
What is 77%! A representative survey of 54 thousand undergraduate students has confirmed that students are at a higher risk of having mental health problems than the average population.
Question: What is the neurological process that contributes to both learning and addiction?
Answer: What is synaptic plasticity! It is the ability of synapses to strengthen or weaken over time in response to increased or decreased activity. In learning, this enables memory formation; in addiction, maladaptive plasticity can reinforce addictive behaviors.
What is the hormone that is known to regulate sleep cycles and what else does it do?
What is melatonin! Melatonin regulates sleep-wake cycles; poor sleep quality, due to disrupted melatonin production, negatively impacts immune function, cognitive performance, and mood stability.
What genetic process has been shown to affect both psychological and physical health? (e.g. Schizophrenia and/or Cancer)
What are DNA Mutations! DNA mutations can alter gene function. In physical health, mutations may lead to cancer by disrupting cell cycle control, while in cognitive health, mutations can affect neural pathways and increase susceptibility to schizophrenia.
This type of therapy focuses on changing thought patterns to improve mental health and is commonly used for anxiety and depression.
What is cognitive-behavioral therapy!
Question: What is the neurotransmitter that has been implicated in mental health conditions such as anxiety disorders.
Answer:What is GABA, the primary inhibitory neurotransmitter in the brain that reduces neuronal excitability. Low GABA levels are associated with increased anxiety due to reduced inhibitory control.
What condition has been associated with chronic inflammation of the body and brain, affecting mood, energy, and and motivation?
What is depression, also known as major depressive disorder, or MDD!
What mass-health tool applied by governments and health agencies that is known to induce an immunological response and the release of cytokines?
What is vaccination! Cytokines released by the immune system can cross the blood-brain barrier and affect mood and energy levels temporarily, causing mild symptoms like fatigue or mood shifts.
Which is an under-researched mental impairment that has emerged from the coronavirus pandemic? Describe your knowledge of this disorder.
What is Long Covid! Chronic inflammation from long COVID may disrupt neurotransmitter balance and neuroplasticity, leading to cognitive symptoms and mood disturbances.
Question: How does chronic stress impact the structure and function of the prefrontal cortex, and what are the implications for decision-making and impulse control?
Answer: Chronic stress can cause atrophy (a reduction in brain volume) impairing decision-making and impulse control, as the region loses some ability to regulate emotional responses effectively.
What helps with Vitamin D production?
What is sunlight! Sunlight boosts vitamin D production, essential for mood regulation, and helps maintain circadian rhythms, which are important for sleep and mental health.
Which neurotransmitter is produced to 80% in the gut?
What is serotonin!
With the help of which molecules might regular physical activity counteract the mental health effects of social isolation?
What are endorphins, serotonin, or neurotrophic factors! These substances have been shown to help alleviate stress and improve mood, partially offsetting the negative impacts of social isolation on mental health.
Question: Which neuroendocrine system is activated in response to stress, and what are the two main hormones released during this process?
What is the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis; the two main hormones released are cortisol and adrenaline.
What is a prominent autonomic nervous system nerve in the gut is known to directly affect affect stress resilience and overall mental health?
What is the vagus nerve! It helps control inflammation through the "cholinergic anti-inflammatory pathway." By modulating inflammation, it enhances stress resilience and can reduce risk for conditions like depression.
Depression and the development of a depressive symptomology as an adaptive response to life stressors has been likened to which bodily immune response?
What is fever! Fever as one of the body's primary tools to combat the spread and reproduction of pathogens has been compared to e.g. depressive rumination or psychomotor retardation as means to conserve energy and to find solutions to problems.
Which very impactful type of life event is thought to affect neuroplasticity, potentially leading to lasting changes in brain structure and function.
What is trauma! Highly stressful and traumatizing events can affect regions like the hippocampus and prefrontal cortex, which affects memory and emotional regulation and induce people to continuously recall their stressor and associated feelings of panic, anxiety, or despair.