Summary
whole summary of biological psychology
- Course
- Institution
whole summary of biological psychology
[Show more]
Seller
Follow
jill3
Reviews received
Content preview
Lecture 1 Structure and function of nerve cellsThe course: learning goals
- Basics of neurophysiology and organization of the central and peripheral nervous system
(nerve conduction, neurotransmission, anatomy)
- Insight in biological mechanisms of perception, motor control, emotion and higher order
cognitive functions (memory, speech, reading, sleep-awareness etc.)
- Insight in the biological basis of behavioral disorders (sleep disorders, emotion disorders,
addiction, psychoses, but also neurological syndromes like Parkinson, Alzheimer, Broca’s
aphasia, etc).
- Insight in the techniques used in neuropsychology and neurophysiology
Overview
- From chemical elements to cell membrane
- Nerve cell structure
- Bioelectricity: made by nerve cells
From chemical elements to cell membrane
Bonding elements
- Bonding elements: to create molecules
- Ionic bond (electrostatic force)
o Plus attracts minus
o Creates salts
- Covalent bond (sharing of electrons forms molecules)
o Hydrogen spheres: can contain different levels of electrons
▪ Likes to have the spheres filled
▪ Different atoms have different number of spheres
• Number of electrons correlates with
number of neutrons
▪ Will make bonds to fully fill the spheres
o Orientation of the molecule is determined by the electrons
Carbon chains
- Glucose (sugar) C6H12O6
- Amino acid
o Extra Nitrogen atom = carboxylgroup
o Backbones will couple to each other
- Protein
o Peptides are short protein ch ains
- Lipids (fat)
o Long carbon chains
,...and phospholipids
- Carbon chains connected by an extra phosphate (P)
group
- Phosphate has a static negative charge and is
consequently hydrophilic
o Heads are hydrophilic: phosphate head loves
water
- Lipids (fats) are hydrophobic
o Fatty acids: do not have any charge:
hydrophobic
Cell membrane
- Formed by a double layer of phospholipids
- Heads are pointed towards water
- Tails are pointed away from water
- Tails will turn to each other
Nerve cell
global function neurons
- Neurons will have more than one dendrite but just one axon coming from the soma: can split
in into branches to activate other neurons
- Dendrites: receive signals
- Soma: integrate signals
- Axon: send signals (action potential)
- Terminal buttons: use neurotransmitter to
activate other cells
- Myelin sheath: used to speed up transmission
though the axon
o Multiple sclerosis: myelin sheath
problems, signal conduction problems
Axoplasmic transport
- Kinesin: anterograde transport from the cell body (soma) to terminal buttons
- Dynein: retrograde transport from terminal buttons to soma
global structure neurons
1. Cell nucleus with pores for mRNA transport
o to the cell body to create proteins
o contains DNA and chromosomes
2. Endoplasmatic reticulum (production, storage
and transport proteins):
3. Golgi apparatus: post office for packing
(neurotransmitter in vesicles)
4. Mitochondria: power plant (ATP: Adenosine
Tri-Phosphate)
5. Lysosomes: waste processing
6. Microtubuli: road system for transportation neurotransmitter through axon
,Cell nucleus and protein production
- Nucleus contains chromosomes with genes
- Transcription: genes are read from the DNA and converted
to messenger RNA (mRNA)
- mRNA leaves the nucleus through the pores to the cell
body, and is read out by ribosomes (complex of proteins), to
form a new protein
Glial cells (support cells)
- Glial cells: Used to be seen as just glue cells: nowadays considered to be more important
- Microglia:
o Little glia with housekeeping functions
o immunologic defence
o removal dead cells
- Macroglia: Larger glia cells
o Oligodendrocytes: form the myelin sheath
around axons in CNS
▪ Wraps extensions around axons to help
with conduction
▪ One oligodendrocyte can make multiple sheaths
o Schwann cells: myelin sheath in PNS
▪ Wraps itself around an axon
▪ Creates one layer of myelin
▪ So single Schwann cell forms a
single layer of myelin
o Astrocytes
▪ structure and solidity (glia = glue)
▪ isolate synaptic clefts: opening where
neurons contact each other
• wrap around the contact sites to
improve contact efficiency
▪ Star shaped cells
▪ Feeding neurons with glucose
• Takes out and stores important
blood components to give the brain cells
▪ Helps with keeping toxic blood components from entering the brain
▪ Neurons working very hard: can be fed by astrocytes
• Will also give adenosine: tells the cells to stop firing
• Limited energy source limits brain capacity and firing rate limits
Bioelectricity: membrane potential
- Giant axon of a squid: can be used to determine voltage difference
o Negative charge relative to outside
o the cell is like a small battery: charged cell
- Inside of cell is negatively charged relative to the outside (-65 mV): resting membrane
potential
o Varies is organisms and in different neurons within organisms
, Membrane potential origin
- The membrane potential is caused by a balance between two forces
- Diffusion:
o Due to random motion, particles will move from regions with high concentration to
regions with low concentration
- Electrostatics:
o Positively charged particles repel each other
o Negatively charged particles repel each other repulsion attraction
o Oppositely charged particles (+,-) attract each other
The membrane
- contains ion specific channels (Na+, K+, Cl-, etc)
- Channel contains: different protein subunits which creates a pore
Passing the membrane
- Outside cell:
o many Na+ en Cl-, want to move in (diffusion)
▪ sea water: salty water
o Cl- is retained by the electrostatic force
o Na+ driven inward by both diffusion and electrostatic forces
▪ (does leak in, but transported to the outside by Na+-K+ pump): if the
negative charge
inside the cell is
balanced: battery
power would be
gone
- Inside cell: many K+ en A- (negatively charged proteins), that want to go out (diffusion)
o A-: large negatively charged proteins that stay inside the cell: cannot get through: so
cell is permanently negatively charged
o K+ retained by electrostatic force
▪ lot of K+ in the cells: diffusion: should go to lower concentration outside the
cell, however negative in the cell so K will stay inside the cell
▪ too negative inside the cell: K+ will not leave: creates standard negative
potential of the cell -65mv
Sodium-Potassium pump
- maintains membrane potential
- Higher Na+ concentration outside cell due to Na+-K+ pomp
- (3 Na+ ions outward for 2 K+ ions inward): net effect: more positive taken out so negative
potential of the cell can be restored
- Active 24/7: always active for taking out sodium out of the neurons
- Highly energy consuming (ATP)!!
The benefits of buying summaries with Stuvia:
Guaranteed quality through customer reviews
Stuvia customers have reviewed more than 700,000 summaries. This how you know that you are buying the best documents.
Quick and easy check-out
You can quickly pay through credit card or Stuvia-credit for the summaries. There is no membership needed.
Focus on what matters
Your fellow students write the study notes themselves, which is why the documents are always reliable and up-to-date. This ensures you quickly get to the core!
Frequently asked questions
What do I get when I buy this document?
You get a PDF, available immediately after your purchase. The purchased document is accessible anytime, anywhere and indefinitely through your profile.
Satisfaction guarantee: how does it work?
Our satisfaction guarantee ensures that you always find a study document that suits you well. You fill out a form, and our customer service team takes care of the rest.
Who am I buying these notes from?
Stuvia is a marketplace, so you are not buying this document from us, but from seller jill3. Stuvia facilitates payment to the seller.
Will I be stuck with a subscription?
No, you only buy these notes for $6.08. You're not tied to anything after your purchase.
Can Stuvia be trusted?
4.6 stars on Google & Trustpilot (+1000 reviews)
82215 documents were sold in the last 30 days
Founded in 2010, the go-to place to buy study notes for 14 years now