Psych 1000: Chapter 3

STRUCTURE OF THE NERVOUS SYSTEM

•THE NERVOUS SYSTEM

•THE NEURON

• Structure & Function

■ Dr. Laura Fazakas-DeHoog lfazakas@uwo.ca

SAMPLE EXAM QUESTION

1. The portion of the nervous system that

prepares the body for immediate action
(i.e. fight or flight) is the:

A. afferent pathways
B. somatic nervous system
C. spinal cord
D. sympathetic nervous system
E. parasympathetic nervous system
SAMPLE EXAM QUESTION

2. The portion of the neuron that receives

information from other neurons is the:

A. axons
B. dendrites
C. soma
D. synaptic cleft
E. synaptic vesicles
NEURAL IMPULSE: THE ACTION POTENTIAL

Action Potential Animation

• Stimulation causes cell membrane to open briefly.

• Positively charged sodium ions flow in.
• Shift in electrical charge travels along the neuron.
• The ACTION POTENTIAL results
PROCESS OF NEURAL TRANSMISSION
NEUROTRANSMITTERS - chemical messengers
that diffuse across synapses & may potentially
activate receptor sites on dendrites of adjacent cells.
EXCITATORY
• cause depolarization (less negative inside)
• cause inflow of sodium
or other (+ ions).
• “yes” votes
INHIBITORY
• cause hyperpolarization (more negative inside)
• (+ ions) flow out &
• (- ions )flow in.
• “no” votes.
NEURAL TRANSMISSION

Excitatory
Terminals

Inhibitory
Terminals
 Action
-55
Potential
Membrane Potential (mV)

Threshold

Excitatory = depolarization
Resting
-70
Potential
Inhibitory = hyperpolarization
 SUMMATION OF PSPs
PSPs (post synaptic potential)
can add together or cancel one another out

Temporal
Summation:
Adding it up
over a period of
time
Spatial Summation
Adding up signals over
space
SUMMATION

Excitatory
Terminals

Inhibitory
Terminals
 SUMMATIO Action Potential
-55
N Threshold
d
Membrane Potential (mV)

EPSPs
Excitatory post synaptic potential

c
b
a

-70
THE NEURAL IMPULSE

After an impulse
passes any
point on the
axon, the
membrane isn’t
excitable & can’t
fire an action
potential.
REFRACTORY
PERIOD
1/1000 second
HOW NEURONS COMMUNICATE

SYNAPTIC TRANSMISSION

Action Potential travels

down axon to terminal
• Stimulates release of
neurotransmitter
molecules
• Molecules travel across

synapse to bind with

receptor sites on
dendrites of post
-synaptic neuron.
 NEUROTRANSMITTERS

Serotonin Dopamine

LOCK & KEY NATURE OF NEUROTRANSMITTERS

 NEUROTRANSMITTERS
A) MONOAMINES - share similar chemical building blocks
• Important for regulating cognitive function, emotion, learning, &
movement.

i) DOPAMINE - prominently in
• Frontal Cortex, Hypothalamus
& Limbic System (learning,
memory, regulating emotion)
• & Basal Ganglia (regulates movement)
• can be excitatory or inhibitory
• Schizophrenia (over supply of dopamine)
• Parkinson’s Disease (under supply) (treated with
artificial dopamine)
 NEUROTRANSMITTERS
A) MONOAMINES
i) NOREPINEPHRINE - derived from
epinephrine (adrenaline).
• excitatory or inhibitory throughout brain & spinal cord
• Higher in Cortex, & Limbic System.
• Eating, sleeping, arousal, emotion
• Depression

iii) SEROTONIN
• High in brain stem & thalamus.
• Inhibitory at most sites
• Arousal-related activities & (sleep)
• Emotion control, pleasure and pain
• Depression
 NEUROMUSCULAR & INHIBITORY
TRANSMITTERS

B) ACETYLCHOLINE
• Excitatory at brain &
neuromuscular junctions involved
in muscle movement, learning,
& memory
• undersupply related to Alzheimer’s Disease
• Snake bit paralysis (blocks receptor sites of
acetylcholine)
 NEUROMUSCULAR & INHIBITORY
TRANSMITTERS
C) GLUTAMATE (Glutamic acid)
• Excitatory transmitter
• Control of behaviors
• Learning and memory

D) GABA (Gamma-Aminobutyric Acid)

• Inhibitory transmitter.
• Throughout brain & spinal cord.
• Emotion, anxiety & arousal
• Motor control
Alcohol – decreases glutamate and increases GABA
(minimizing activity in nervous system)
de
 OTHER NEUROTRANSMITTERS

E) ENDORPHINS
• Inhibitory transmitter
• Modulate pain & pleasure.
• Regulate eating & drinking.
• Produced naturally by brain during periods
of stress and anxiety
“Runner’s
high”
• OPIATES
(e.g. heroin) fit into & stimulate body’s
endorphin neurotransmitter sites.
 NEURAL CODING OF INFORMATION
How does the brain integrate this information?

Neurons provide specific information in a number of

ways and the cortex integrates this information.

1. TYPE OF INFORMATION
• Each neuron has a highly specialized function:
E.g. some neurons in the sensory cortex will only
“fire” if exposed to heat, others to cold, others to
touch, etc.
 NEURAL CODING OF INFORMATION

2. STRENGTH - of the stimulus is coded by the frequency of

the firing of the neuron

EXAMPLE: coding the intensity og temperature applied to

skin surface.

Action potentials /second

Hand over a hot burner.

Hand over candle flame.

* As the refractory period lasts 1/1000 sec. the maximum

 PUTTING IT ALL TOGETHER…
■ Neurons communicate with each other through neural
impulses.
– Graded impulses
– Action potentials
– Excitatory & inhibitory (both spatial and temporal summation)
■ These inter neural messages are transmitted by
neurotransmitters including:
– Dopamine
– Norepinephrine
– Serotonin
– Acetylcholine
– GABA
– Endorphins
■ The brain integrates all of this information:
– Specific neuron function (heat, cold, vision, etc.)
– Intensity of neuron function
 NEXT LECTURE

■ The Brain
■ Structure & Function

Reading: Chapter 3