Brain Stuff
Describe tumors
Describe 2 types :)
Tumors are a mass of cells whose growth is uncontrolled and that serve no useful function
Malignant: cancerous, lacks distinct border, may metastasize
Benign: noncancerous tumor, has distinct borders, cannot metastasize
Name as many aphasias as you can!
Wernicke's
Pure word deafness
Broca's
Conduction aphasia
Transcortical sensory aphasia
What is adult neurogenesis? Describe the process
The formation of new neurons in adults
Stem cells in the subgranular zone of the hippocampus divide, give rise to granule cells, which migrate into the dentate gyrus. New neurons in the dentate gyrus participate in learning!
Describe LTP
Long Term Potentiation is an increase in excitability of a neuron to a particular synaptic input caused by repeated high-frequency activity of that input
Describe possible treatments for major affective disorders
Tricyclic antidepressants (clomipramine, imipramine, nortriptyline)
SSRIs (Prozac, Celexa, Paxil, Zoloft)
SNRIs (Cymbalta, Effexor)
TMS
ECT
DBS
Lithium
What are some assessments of executive functioning?
WCST, COWAT, Tower Test, DSB, Trail Making Test, DKEFS (Stroop, Design Fluency, 20 questions)
Describe Broca's area and Broca's aphasia
Broca's area controls speech production
Broca's aphasia is impairment in 3 areas: articulation, agrammatism, anomia
AWARE
What is the arcuate fasciculus?
Bundle of axons connecting Wernicke's area with Broca's area
Describe instrumental learning (operant conditioning)
A learning procedure whereby effects of a particular behavior in a particular situation increase (reinforce) or decrease (punish) the probability of the behavior occurring
Describe tardive dyskinesia
Movement disorder - involuntary (unable to stop or control) movements of the face/neck caused by prolonged treatment with antipsychotic medications
Describe the two types of strokes
Hemorrhagic: CVA caused by rupture of cerebral blood vessel
Ischemic: CVA caused by occlusion of blood vessel
Describe Wernicke's area and Wernicke's aphasia
Wernicke's area supports speech comprehension
Wernicke's aphasia is impairment in 3 areas - spoken word information, comprehension of word meaning, ability to convert thoughts into words
Fluent but nonsensical speech
UNAWARE
What's that saying about what fires together wires together? Please describe what this means (and what is this rule?)
Hebb rule: strengthening of a synapse that is repeatedly active when the postsynaptic neuron fires (perceptual learning strengthens the weaker synapse)
Describe the anatomical structures involved in anterograde amnesia
Perirhinal cortex, parahippocampal cortex
Regions of limbic cortex adjacent to hippocampal formation that relay info between entorhinal cortex and other regions of the brain. Entorhinal is most important - receives inputs from amygdala, limbic cortex, association cortex.
Describe a hypothesis for symptoms of schizophrenia
DA hypothesis: antagonist eliminates positive sxs, agonist produces some schizophrenia-like sxs
Mesolimbic pathway - DA system: VTA to NA and amygdala = positive sxs (reinforcement mechanism occurs at inappropriate times to create delusional thoughts)
Describe general brain differences associated with the experience of schizophrenia symptoms
Increased ventricle size, decreased grey matter volume
Name some assessments for language
BNT, BDAE, Verbal Fluency, WRAT Reading
Describe the hippocampal formation
Forebrain structure of temporal lobe, constituting an important part of the limbic system, including hippocampus, dentate gyrus, and subiculum
Name some assessments for learning and memory
CVLT-II
Rey Complex Figure
WMS-IV logical memory
Brief Visuospatial Memory Test - Revised
Describe a partial agonist
A drug with a high affinity for a particular receptor which activates the receptor less than its ligan counterpart.
Describe a communication deficit commonly seen in Alzheimer's disease
Anomic aphasia: "pure" word-finding problems with intact production and comprehension
Bonus: Why do you see anomic aphasia in ALZ?
Answer: Noun storage is primarily located in the temporal lobe. ALZ disease is a degeneration in the medial temporal lobe.
Bonus - what is circumlocution?
Describe communication abilities associated with the left hemisphere. Describe a communication feature that is associated with the right hemisphere.
L: speech production, language comprehension/expression
R: the more melodic components of speech - called prosody
Describe the dendritic spike that occurs in Associative LTP
Action potential occurring in dendrites of some types of pyramidal cells, including those in CA 1 (which is ... in the hippocampus [perforant pathway])
What is the role of NMDA receptors in LTP?
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Describe Alzheimer's disease, risks, and protective factors
Neurodegenerative disorder of unknown origin that results in progressive memory and cognitive deficits
Risk: TBI, hypertension, high cholesterol, obesity, diabetes
Protective factors: good health, cognitive activities, learning
Bonus: what are other dementias?