Neurobiology Exam 1 Study Guide

STUDY GUIDE: EXAM 1, NEUROBIOLOGY, Fall 2013

PROPERTIES OF NEURONS

1. What types of cells make up the human brain? (read glial cell pdf called “the hidden brain”)

a. what are their separate functions?

i. glial cells- how do they aid with both electrical and chemical signaling of neurons?

1. what is the function/location of oligodendrocytes, Schwann cells, astrocytes, microglia?

2. which contribute to myelination, blood brain barrier, extracellular ionic regulation, scavengers in response to brain injury?

3. how does glial cell malfunction contribute to psychiatric illness?

a. consider the examples of glial malfunction in Alzheimer’s disease, obsessive-compulsive disorder, schizophrenia, depression and epilepsy

ii. neurons- describe Ramon y Cajal’s major contributions (neuron doctrine, law of dynamic polarization)

4. what experimental technique led to Cajal’s ideas? what more modern evidence supports his ideas (NYT slideshow)?

5. different types of synapses- why are more axosomatic connections inhibitory?

2. What are the differences between passive and active electrical signals?

b. differentiate action potentials, postsynaptic potentials, receptor potentials

iii. how are they graded responses to the stimulus strength?

iv. concept of threshold- why do we consider membrane depolarization as making neurons more excitable?

v. differentiate afferent versus efferent fibers, spatial versus temporal summation of receptor potentials

3. Neurons are diverse in structure and function

c. what roles does the cytoskeleton play?

d. how do properties of the plasma membrane contribute to neuronal signaling?

vi. explain the function of a capacitor

vii. why are membrane proteins required?

viii. why can’t ions passively pass through the plasma membrane? (2 reasons)

e....