Neuroscience and Behavior

• Neuron

Cells in the nervous system that communicate with one another to perform information processing tasks.• Cell Body

The part of a neuron that coordinates information processing tasks and keeps the cell alive.• Dendrites

The part of a neuron that receives information from other neurons and relays it to the cell body.• Axon

The part of a neuron that transmits information to other neurons, muscles or glands.• Myelin Sheath

An insulating layer of fatty material• Glial Cells

Support cells found in the nervous system• Synapse

The junction or region between the axon of one neuron and the dendrites or cell body of another• Sensory Neurons

Neurons that receive information from the external world and convey this information to the brain via the spinal cord.

• Motor Neurons

Neurons that carry signals from the spinal cord and produce movement.

Neuroscience and Behavior (page 2)

• Interneurons

Neurons that connect sensory neurons, motor neurons and other interneurons.• Resting Potential

The difference in electric charge between the inside and outside of a neuron’s cell membrane.• Action Potential

An electric Signal that is conducted along an axon to a synapse.• Refractory Period

The time following an action potential in which new action potential cannot be initiated.• Terminal Buttons

Knoblike structures that branch out from an axon.• Neurotransmitters

Chemicals that transmit information across the synapse to a receiving neuron’s dendrites.• Receptors

Parts of the cell membrane that receive the neurotransmitter and initiate a new electric signal.• Dopamine

A neurotransmitter that regulates motor behavior, motivation, pleasure and emotional arousal.• Glutamate

A major excitatory neurotransmitter involved in information transmission throughout the brain.

Neuroscience and Behavior (page 3)

• GABA (Gamma-Aminobutyric Acid)The primary inhibitory neurotransmitter in the brain.

• NorepinephrineA neurotransmitter that influences mood and arousal.

• Serotonin A neurotransmitter that is involved in the regulation of sleep and wakefulness, eating and aggressive behavior.

• EndorphinsChemicals that act within the pain pathways and emotion centers of the brain.

• AgonistsDrugs that increase the amount of a neurotransmitter.

• AntagonistsDrugs that block the function of a neurotransmitter.

• Nervous SystemAn intersecting network of neurons that conveys electrochemical information throughout the body.

• Central Nervous System (CNS)The part of the nervous system that is composed of the brain and spinal cord.

• Peripheral Nervous System (PNS) The part of the nervous system that connects the CNS to the body’s organs and muscles.

• Somatic nervous SystemA set of nerves that conveys information into and out of the CNS

Neuroscience and Behavior (page 4)

• ThalamusA subcortical structure that relays and filters information from the senses and transmits the information to the cerebral cortex.

• Hypothalamus A subcortical structure that regulates body temperature, hunger, thirst and sexual behavior

• Pituitary GlandThe “master gland”. Secretes stimulating hormones to all but two of the endocrine glands. Without stimulating hormones the rest of the endocrine system could not function.

• Limbic SystemA group of forebrain structures including the hypothalamus, amygdala and hippocampus which are involved in motivation, emotion, learning and memory.

• HippocampusA structure for creating new memories and integrating them into a network of knowledge so that they can be stored indefinitely in other parts of the cerebral cortex.

• AmygdalaA part of the limbic system that plays a central role in many emotional processes, particularly the formation of emotional memories.

• Basal Ganglia A set of subcortical structures that directs intentional movement.

• Corpus CallosumA thick band of nerve fibers that connects larger areas of the cerebral cortex on each side of the brain and supports communication of information across the hemispheres.

Neuroscience and Behavior (page 5)

• Occipital Lobe

A region of the cerebral cortex that processes visual information

• Parietal Lobe

A region of the cerebral cortex whose functions include processing information about touch.

• Temporal Lobe

A region of the cerebral cortex responsible for learning and language

• Frontal Lobe

A region of the cerebral cortex that has specialized areas for movement, abstract thinking, planning, memory and judgment

• Association Area

Areas of the cerebral cortex that are composed of neurons that help provide sense and meaning to information registered in the cortex.

• Gene

The unit of hereditary transmission

• Chromosomes

Strands of DNA wound around each other in a double helix configuration

• Electroencephalogram (EEG)

A device used to record electrical activity in the brain

My Story

Okay, 25 years ago when I was 20 (you can do the math), I was quickly losing my eyesight and had developed problems with peripheral vision. I went to my optometrist and he referred me to an ophthalmologist who tested my visual field acuity and found there was a severe problem on both sides of my periphery. So, several more tests were run, and he thought I was either going blind from the Reyes’ Syndrome I had five years prior, I had a tumor somewhere in my brain.

 

It turned out to be the latter. I had a pituitary adenoma.

 

It seemed like a week later, I was rushed into surgery and had the tumor removed (October 5, 1984). I was in the hospital for three weeks. During this time, I was put on Prednisone of adrenal replacement, DDAVP for antidiuretic hormone replacement (from your hypothalamus), the pill for estrogen and progesterone replacement (which never really worked), and later my endocrinologist added Synthroid because my thyroid was failing.

 

On June 30, 2000, I was admitted to the hospital because I had gone into a myxedema (late stage hypothyroidism) coma. I was in it for five days. I learned my thyroid had completely died. At the age of 27, I went through menopause and can never have children. And recently, I learned I have Thyroid Resistance Syndrome and now take enough Synthroid for an 800 pound man.