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Lecture Notes Cognitive Neuroscience (6463COGNEY)
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Lecture notes of 67 pages for the course Cognitive Neuroscience at UL
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Cognitive neuroscience – lecturenotes
Week 1: Anatomy
Overview of the nervous system:
The nervous system contains two subdivisions of systems:
1. The central nervous system – containing the brain and spinal cord.
2. The peripheral nervous system – containing the nerves outside of the brain and
spinal cord.
The central nervous system is seen as the command-and-control part of the nervous system.
While the peripheral nervous system is seen more as a carrier system, because it delivers
sensory information to the central nervous system and carries motor commands from the
central nervous system to the muscles.
The peripheral nervous system:
The peripheral nervous system also has 2 subdivisions:
1. The somatic motor nervous system – controls voluntary muscles.
2. The autonomic motor nervous system – controls automated visceral functions, which
consists of:
a. The sympathetic branches.
b. The parasympathetic branches.
The autonomic motor system:
The autonomic motor system consists of the sympathetic and parasympathetic branches.
There is also an Enteric part, which is seen as the ‘second brain’ and is a completely separate
nervous system around the guts (only thing you need to know for this course). The
sympathetic branch is the fight-or-flight system of the body; the parasympathetic branch is the
rest-and-digest system of the body. The two systems of the autonomic nervous system
frequently operate antagonistically, which means they have an opposite effect on the body.
The sympathetic system uses the
neurotransmitter norepinephrine. It is
the activating, fight-or-flight, system
of the nervous system. Activation of
the sympathetic branch of the
autonomic nervous system leads to:
o Dilating of pupils
o Stimulating of tear glands
o Inhibiting of salivation;
increasing sweating
o Acceleration of heartrate
o Dilating of bronchi (faster
breathing)
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, o Decreasing of digestive functions of stomach and pancreas
o Secreting of adrenaline
o Decreasing of digestive functions of intestine
o Inhibiting of bladder contraction
o Inhibiting of blood flow to the genitals
The parasympathetic system uses the neurotransmitter acetylcholine. Is the relaxing, rest-and-
digest, system of the nervous system. Activation of the parasympathetic branch of the
autonomic nervous system leads to:
o Constricting of pupils
o Inhibiting of tear glands
o Increasing of salivation
o Slowing heartrate
o Constricting bronchi (slower breathing)
o Increasing of digestive functions of stomach and pancreas
o Increasing of digesting functions of intestine
o Stimulating of bladder contraction
o Stimulating of blood flow to the genital organs (erection)
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,The central nervous system:
The central nervous system contains of the brain and spinal cord. It is the command-and-
control system. Here, a schematic overview is shown which helps to understand how the
central nervous system, including brain structures, are composed:
Navigating the brain:
To describe locations in the brain, multiple terms are used:
o Anterior = in front; towards the face.
o Posterior = behind; towards the back.
o Superior = above; towards the head.
o Inferior = below; towards the feet.
o Medial = towards the middle.
o Lateral = towards the edge.
o Dorsal = towards the top of the brain or the back of the spinal cord.
o Ventral = towards the bottom of the brain or the front of the spinal cord.
o Rostral = towards the front of the brain or the top of the spinal cord.
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, o Caudal = towards the back of the brain or the bottom of the spinal cord.
To describe sections of the brain, other terms are used:
o Sagittal sections: sections made from the front to the back of the brain. Different kind
of sagittal sections are:
Midsagittal sections: sagittal sections made in the middle of the brain, where
the two hemispheres are connected. Basically, the two hemispheres are divided
from each other.
Lateral sagittal sections: sagittal sections made of a lateral side of the brain.
Basically, the section is made within one hemisphere.
o Coronal sections: sections made from the top to the bottom of the brain. Coronal
sections can be recognized because when a coronal section of the brain is made, the
brain kind of looks like a crown.
o Axial, transverse, or horizontal sections: horizontally
sections made from the front to the back of the brain.
Basically, the brain is divided but the hemispheres are
still connected.
When sections of the brain are made, they can be either real or
virtual. Real sections of the brain are often post-mortem, for
example after an Alzheimer’s patient died, to see what really
happened in the brain. When virtual sections are made, the
organism is often alive, and this is done by for example using a
fMRI.
Overview of the central nervous system:
Meninges and ventricles:
The CNS is covered with meninges. The function of meninges
is to protect the vulnerable structures of the CNS. The
meninges are:
o Dura mater – outer layer.
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