Learning & Memory
What are the categories of declarative memory and what do they include?
two categories: semantic memory for facts and general knowledge, and episodic memory for personal experiences and specific events.
Name 2 hormones released in the body during the stress response
Cortisol & norepinephrine
Which two factors are thought to be causes of mental illness?
Combination of genetic predisposition (many of these illnesses run in families) and environmental factors (experiences such as trauma, neglect, chronic stress, etc)
Morphine and fentanyl are examples of what kind of drug?
Opioids
Which type of disorder is bipolar disorder?
Mood disorder
True or False: patient E.P. (AND H.M.) could not learn new skills and had no memory of doing a particular task before.
False: They could learn new skills despite having no memory of doing a particular task before, and their performance improved each time
Which model of emotion argues that sensing a scary sound causes physiological changes and emotional changes completely separately?
Cannon- Bard model
Name 3 types of anxiety disorders.
Generalized anxiety disorder
Social anxiety disorder
Agoraphobia
Panic disorder
Specific phobias
Name the two major reward hotspots (neural regions that produce reward signals) in the brain.
Ventral tegmental area (VTA, in midbrain)
And nucleus accumbens (NAc, basal ganglia)
Hormones released by the posterior pituitary are related to which human emotion/behavior
love/mating/bonding
What are three ways you can modify synapses?
Synapses can be added or removed
Can modify the amount of neurotransmitter released
Neurotransmitter receptors can be added or removed from the postsynaptic membrane
Explain the role of the PFC in aggression
Helps control aggressive impulses by inhibiting amygdala and hypothalamus
How many months of persistent and excessive anxiety and worry must be present for a generalized anxiety disorder diagnosis?
6+ months
Dopamine is an important neurotransmitter for _____ pathways, while endogenous opioids are important for ____ pathways/
Wanting, liking/pleasure
Name 4 SSRIs...
Prozac, Zoloft, Lexapro, Paxil
How does the opening of NMDA receptors lead to LTP?
NMDA Receptors allow calcium ions to enter the dendrite, which activates an enzyme called CaMKII
-> CaMKII makes the synapse stronger: it causes more AMPA receptors to be added
Name and differentiate the two different pituitary glands
Anterior: receives hormones using portal system (by stimulating hormone-releasing cells), releases tropic hormones; part of HPA axis, mainly affect adrenal glands
Posterior: part of hypothalamus, release hormones directly into bloodstream (no portal system)
What symptoms categorize major depression disorder?
ONE OF THESE: prolonged (> 2 weeks) and persistent (every day) lowered mood OR loss of interest or pleasure in activities
AND
FOUR OF THESE: weight/appetite changes, sleep disturbances, agitation, fatigue, worthlessness, executive dysfunction, suicidal ideation
What neurotransmitter does cocaine affect? How does it impact this neurotransmitter?
Cocaine inhibits the dopamine transporters (preventing dopamine reuptake and keeping dopamine at the synaptic cleft for longer)
What does an injection of vasopressin do in monogamous animals?
It would impair bonding and induce polygamous behavior in males
If you removed the hippocampus entirely, would fourty-year old memories be intact or forgotten?
after many years, connections are strong enough that the memory will persist without the help of the hippocampus – removing the hippocampus won’t have an effect on very old memories
Name the 3 regions of the HPA axis stress response system and the hormones each region releases
Hypothalamus- corticotropin releasing hormone (CRH)
Anterior pituitary - adrenocorticotropic hormone
Adrenal gland- cortisol (and norepinephrine)
What impact would a drug that reduces activity in the hippocampus have on a person with an anxiety disorder?
People with anxiety disorders tend to have elevated activity in the amygdala and reduced activity in the hippocampus, so lowering hippocampal activity more could worsen their symptoms
Explain why it is so deadly for alcoholics to stop drinking cold turkey.
Since alcohol causes significant inhibition in the brain, the brain must readjust the balance between natural excitation (glutamate) and inhibition (GABA) (decreasing inhibitory and increasing excitatory activity). When a person stops drinking, this balance will be disturbed.
On your 18th birthday, you and your best friend went skydiving in Santa Barbara. How did this sensory experience becomes a long term memory? When you talk with your friend about it now, you guys remember some details differently. Why might this be?
sensory experience --memory acquisition --> short-term memory ---memory consolidation --> long term memory
altered at reconsolidation and recall