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Psychology 304: Brain and Behaviour

Lecture 16

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Exam Preparation Tips

• The upcoming midterm exam will include questions unique to the textbook content (~10-15%), questions unique to the lecture content (~20-25%), and questions that reflect overlap between the two sources of information. You are encouraged to study both sources of information thoroughly.

Identify the primary points of each section with key words or phrases and use these to test yourself.

• With respect to the textbook content:

Familiarize yourself with all terms that are bolded or italicized.

Create questions with the title and subtitles of each section. Use the content of each section to answer the questions that you have generated.

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Study figures and tables.

• With respect to the lecture content:

Use the learning objectives to guide your studying.

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• The goal of the exam is to assess your mastery of the course content and “jargon” of behavioural neuroscience.

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• In order to demonstrate your mastery of the course content on the definitions and extended response questions, you should provide thorough and detailed responses to the questions asked. The instructions for the definitions and extended response questions will read as follows:

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Definitions: Please provide a definition of each of the following terms or concepts. Your responses should be thorough and detailed. Where appropriate, provide a functional description in your definition—that is, a description of the processes associated with the term or concept. If necessary, you may write on the back side of the page. You may use diagrams to supplement your written responses.

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Extended response: “Please respond to each of the questions below. Note that point form answers are acceptable. Your responses should be thorough and detailed. If necessary, you may write on the back side of the page. You may use diagrams to supplement your written responses.”

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• You should familiarize yourself with the functions of brain structures and the cranial nerves.

• With respect to the functions of distinct hormones, you are only responsible for the functions of those hormones discussed in class.

• You will not be asked to label diagrams.

• You will not be asked to distinguish between the functions of distinct receptor subtypes.

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• The exam questions will assess your ability to recall, synthesize, and apply course content. Examples:

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Recall:

The cranial nerve that controls the movement of the tongue muscles is the:

(a) vagus nerve.(b) abducens nerve. (c) trigeminal nerve. (d) hypoglossal nerve.(e) trochlear nerve.

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Synthesize:

Research has demonstrated that epilepsy is associated with excessive neuronal excitation. Accordingly, epilepsy may be treated by inhibiting the excitation or “firing” of neurons. Which of the following would be most effective in reducing neuronal firing among individuals with epilepsy?

(a) A calcium (Ca2+) agonist.(b) A calcium (Ca2+) antagonist. (c) A glutamate agonist.(d) A GABA antagonist.

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Apply:

You are a biological psychologist who has discovered a new brain structure. The structure contains a small cluster of nuclei and is situated beneath the hypothalamus. You are interested in determining the function(s) of this structure. Identify two techniques that you would use to determine the function(s) of this structure. Limit your response to techniques for determining function discussed in class or in the textbook. In your response, describe the procedure associated with each technique.

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• In order to correctly respond to questions that require synthesis and application, recall of information is

necessary. The correlation between recall questions and synthesis/application questions typically exceeds .70.

1. Due to unforeseen circumstances, I must change my office hour this week. I will also hold additional office hours to assist with exam preparation. My office hours this week will be (Kenny 2517):

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Thursday, October 18, 3:30-4:30PM

Reminders

Friday, October 19, 3:00-4:30PM

Wednesday, October 17, 4:30-5:30PM

2. Due to a conference presentation, Patrick must change his office hour this week. He will also hold an

additional office hour to assist with exam preparation. His office hours this week will be (Kenny 3506):

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Friday, October 19, 3:00-4:00PM

Thursday, October 18, 3:00-4:00PM

Announcement

The meetings for the Peer Learning Community (PLC) for Psychology 304 will be held on:

Mondays, 3:00-4:00PM (West Mall Swing Space, 222)Thursdays, 4:00-5:00PM (Kenny Building, room 1909)

The first meeting will be today, after class. Please see the e-mail circulated to PLC members on October 12th.

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From last class ….

• Agonists and antagonists may influence synaptic transmission in a number of ways:

19Mechanisms of Agonist and Antagonist Drug Effects

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The Endocrine System

1. What is the endocrine system?

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By the end of today’s class, you should be able to:

1. distinguish between neural transmission and hormonal transmission.

2. identify the major glands of the endocrine system.

3. describe the functional features of the posterior pituitary gland and the anterior pituitary gland.

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What is the endocrine system?

• Composed of a series of glands that allow for relatively diffuse chemical communication throughout the body.

• Involves the release of chemical transmitters referred to as hormones into the bloodstream.

• Like neurotransmitters, hormones bind to receptors of target cells.

23Major Endocrine Glands

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• The pituitary gland is referred to as the master gland because most of its hormones are tropic hormones (i.e., hormones that influence the release of hormones from other glands).

25The Pituitary Gland

Anterior pituitary

Posterior pituitary

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• The pituitary is controlled by the hypothalamus.

Posterior pituitary: Hormones synthesized in hypothalamic cells are transported down axons to terminals in the posterior pituitary. These hormones are released into the bloodstream upon the arrival of an action potential.

Two hormones are released from the posterior pituitary: Oxytocin and vasopressin

27The Pituitary Gland

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Anterior pituitary: Releasing hormones from the hypothalamus stimulate the release of tropic hormones from the anterior pituitary. These hormones are released into the bloodstream, where they are able to regulate the activity of other endocrine organs.

29Control of the Pituitary Gland by the Hypothalamus

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Among the hormones that are released from the anterior pituitary: adrenocorticotropic hormone, thyroid-stimulating hormone, follicle-stimulating hormone, luteinizing hormone, prolactin, growth hormone.

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Releasing vs. Tropic Hormones

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The Endocrine System

1. What is the endocrine system?