NEURAL COMMUNICATION HOW DO YOUR NEURONS COMMUNICATE WITHIN

NEURAL COMMUNICATION HOW DO YOUR NEURONS COMMUNICATE WITHIN AND BETWEEN EACH OTHER SHARON STOWE-MYER, Ph. D.

WELCOME TO A DISCUSSION ON HOW YOUR BIOLOGY, CHEMISTRY, AND ELECTRICITY EFFECTS HOW YOU MOVE, FEEL, THINK, AND BEHAVE. PLEASE PAY ATTENTION! THERE WILL BE A SHORT QUIZ AT THE END.

NEURAL COMMUNICATION? THAT SOUNDS COMPLICATED… NEURAL COMMUNICATION REFERS TO THE WAYS YOUR NEURONS, ONE TYPE OF CELL IN YOUR CNS, RECEIVE, PROCESS, AND DISTRIBUTE INFORMATION WITHIN THE CELL AND BETWEEN THE CELLS. IT IS EXTREMELY FAST!

WHY DO WE NEED TO KNOW THIS FOR A PSYCHOLOGY CLASS?

NEURONS AND GLIA CELLS • THE MAIN CELLS IN YOUR CENTRAL NERVOUS SYSTEM. • NEURONS ARE THE INFORMATION PROCESSING STRUCTURES WITHIN YOUR BRAIN AND CNS. • WHAT IS INFORMATION PROCESSING? • GLIA CELLS SUPPORT THE NEURONS IN THEIR EFFORT TO PROCESS, SEND, PROCESS, AND RECEIVE INFORMATION. THEY ARE THE FOUNDATION AND STRUCTURES THAT ALLOW NEURONS TO DO THEIR JOB. • NEURONS RECEIVE INPUT FROM OTHER NEURONS, PROCESS AND MAKE SENSE OF THIS COMMUNICATION, AND SEND OUTPUT TO ANOTHER NEURON(S) BASED ON THE COMMUNICATIONS THEY RECEIVED. • NEURONS CONTROL THE FLOW FOR ALL MOTOR, SENSORY, AND COGNITIVE INFORMATION TO RUN THE UNIQUE BRAIN AND BODY THAT IS YOU. • THIS WHOLE PROCESS IS VERY CHAOTIC! • NOW FOR BACKGROUND INFORMATION….

QUIZ 1 • What are neurons? • What are Glia cells?

THE STRUCTURE OF THE NEURON • THERE ARE OVER 10, 000 TYPES OF NEURONS. • THERE ARE MOTOR NEURONS CONTROLLING MOVEMENTS, SENSORY NEURONS, AND COGNITVE NEURONS. • YOUR NEURONS CONTAIN FOUR PARTS: • A CELL BODY THAT FUNCTIONS AS THE METABOLIC MANAGING CENTER. • PROCESSES THAT ARE CONDUITS TO INFORMATION FLOW: THOUSNDS OF DENDRITES THAT RECEIVE SIGNALS FROM OTHER NEURONS and ONE AXON THAT SENDS AN OUTGOING SIGNAL. • AXON TERMINALS THAT CONTAIN THE NEUROTRANSMITTERS THAT SEND CHEMICAL SIGNALS BETWEEN NEURONS.

QUIZ 2 • What are the four parts of the neuron? • What do each of these four parts do? • Draw a picture of a neuron. Please label each part.

HOW NEURONS SEND SIGNALS TO OTHER NEURONS • INFORMATION BETWEEN NEURONS IS SENT BY CHEMICAL AND ELECTRICAL SIGNALS. • THIS HAPPENS WITHIN EACH NEURON AND BETWEEN NEURONS. • INFORMATION IS SENT ALONG AXONS VERY QUICKLY THROUGH ELECTRICAL SIGNALS KNOWN AS ACTION POTENTIALS. THIS STIMULATES AND MOVES INFORMATION FROM THE CELL BODY TO THE AXON TERMINALS AT THE END THE NEURON. • TO SEND INFORMATION BETWEEN NEURONS THE CELLS USE THE SYNAPSES WHICH ARE THE SPACE BETWEEN THE NEURONS (NEUROTRANSMISSION).

ELECTRICAL CONDUCTION COMMUNICATION WITHIN THE NEURON • NEURONS SEND SIGNALS ELECTRICALLY AND CHEMICALLY. THEY DO THIS THROUGH GENERATING AN ACTION POTENTIAL OR ELECTRICAL SIGNAL. • CHEMICALS MOVE ACROSS THE NEURAL MEMBRANE. THE CHEMICALS HAVE AN ELECTRICAL CHARGE AND ARE REFERRED TO AS IONS. THESE IONS ARE SODIUM, POTASSIUM, CALCIUM, CHLORIDE, AND SOME VARIOUS PROTEIN MOLECULES. • AN ACTION POTENTIAL HAPPENS WHEN THE ELECTRICAL CHARGES WITHIN THESE IONS INTERACT WITH THE NEURON ACROSS THE NEURAL MEMBRANE (THE BOUNDARY AND SELECTIVE BARRIER OF THE NEURON). • ACTION POTENTIALS THEN SEND INFORMATION DOWN THE AXON, AWAY FROM THE CELL BODY (ON AN EEG YOU SEE A SPIKE). THEY MOVE 500 FEET/SECOND. THIS ENDS AT THE AXON TERMINALS BECAUSE THERE IS A GAP BETWEEN THE NEURONS.

QUIZ 3 • What is an action potential? • What are the chemicals called that move across the neural membrane? Name two. • When does an action potential take place in electrical neural communication?

NEUROTRANSMISSION: COMMUNICATION BETWEEN NEURONS • THIS BEGINS WHERE CONDUCTION IS LEFT OFF WHICH IS AT THE AXON TERMINALS. • NEUROTRANSMISSION HAPPENS AT THE SYNAPSES. • THERE ARE TWO TYPES OF TRANSMISSIONS: CHEMICAL SYNAPSES AND ELECTRICAL SYNAPSES. MOST TRANSMISSIONS ARE CHEMICAL.

NEUROTRANSMISSION VIA THE SYNAPSES • NEURONS HAVE NO CONTINUTITY BETWEEN NEURONS MEANING THEY ARE NOT CONNECTED. • A SYNAPSE IS THE GAP BETWEEN EACH NEURON. THIS BOUNDARY IS SELECTIVE WHICH CAN BE BAD OR GOOD. • NEUROTRANSMITTERS FUNCTION AS THE MESSENGER ACROSS THIS GAP. • THEY ARE SPECIALIZED CHEMICALS THAT ALLOW THE NEURONS TO COMMUNICATE WITH EACH OTHER. THEY EITHER EXCITE OR INHIBIT ACTION BETWEEN THE NEURONS. • EXAMPLES ARE SEROTONIN, DOPAMINE, NOREPINEPHRINE, AMINO ACIDS, HISTAMINE, ETC. • THEY TELL YOUR HEART TO BEAT, YOUR STOMACH TO DIGEST, AND AFFECT YOUR MOOD, SLEEP, WEIGHT, ETC.

SYNATIC TRANSMISSION • CONSIDERED THE KEY PROCESS TO UNDERSTANDING HOW THE CNS FUNCTIONS TO COORDINATE AND CONTROL HOW OUR BODIES WORK. • NEUROTRANSMITTERS ARE NEEDED TO COMMUNICATE ACROSS THE CELLS. • AS THE ELECTRICAL SIGNALS STOP AT THE AXON TERMINALS THEY COMMICATE WITH THE SYNATIC VESICLES AT THE END OF THE SENDER NEURON (THE PRESYNAPTIC NEURON). • IN ORDER TO COMMUNICATE TO THE RECEIVER NEURON THE PRESYNATIC NEURON RELEASES NEUROTRANSMITTERS FROM THESE VESICLES INTO THE GAP BETWEEN THE SYNAPSES CALLED THE SYNATPTIC CLEFT. THIS IS A MEMBRANE BETWEEN THE TWO NEURONS. • THE NEUROTRANSMITTERS BIND TO THE RECEPTORS AT THE RECEIVER NEURON CALLED THE POSTSYNAPTIC NEURON. THIS ALLOWS THEM TO START THE CONVERSATION. • AGAIN THIS CONVERSATION IS VERY FAST AND CHAOTIC. • WHEN THE CONVERSATION IS SYNCHRONOUS (NOT CHAOTIC) THIS SOMETIMES SIGNALS A PROBLEM SUCH OCD, PARKINSONS, ETC.

QUIZ 4 • What is a synapse? • Where is it located? • What does a synapse do? • What is a neurotransmitter? Please name two neurotransmitters.

SYNAPTIC TRANSMISSION • CHEMICAL TRANSMISSION OF INFORMATION ALLOWS THE NEURONS MORE CONTROL OVER THE COMMUNICATION. • THE FOLLOWING PROCESS OCCURS: • THE ACTION POTENTIAL ARRIVES AT THE AXON TERMINAL (THE END OF THE AXON). • ION CHANNELS OPEN FOR COMMUNICATION TO OCCUR. THE IONS ENTER THE PRESYNAPTIC NEURON. • THE IONS BIND WITH OTHER CHEMICALS. THIS ALLOWS THE VESICLES TO MERGE WITH THE PRESYNAPTIC MEMBRANE. THIS MERGE ALLOWS THE NEUROTRANSMITTERS TO BE RELEASED IN THE SYNPTIC CLEFT.

• AS THE NEUROTRANSMITTERS RELEASE INTO THE SYNAPTIC CLEFT, THEY DIFFUSE THROUGH THE MEMBRANE (THE MEMBRANE IS SEMI PERMEABLE). • NOW THE NEUROTRANSMITTER BINDS WITH THE MEMBRANES AT THE ENDS OF BOTH CELLS (THE SENDER CELL WHICH IS PRESYNAPTIC AND THE RECEIVER CELL THE POST SYNAPTIC). THIS IS EITHER DIRECT (JUST HAPPENS) OR INDIRECT (CAUSES THE RELEASE OF A SECONDARY MESSENGER). • THIS CAN CAUSE TWO RESPONSES FROM THE RECEIVER CELL (POST SYNAPTIC). THE RESPONSE IS EITHER AN EXCITATORY OR INHIBITORY.

QUIZ 5 • Please explain chemical neural communication.

WHAT? I AM CONFUSED OR ASLEEP…. . • ADD A PICTURE

EXCITATORY RESPONSES FORM GOOD AND BAD HABITS • THE INSIDE OF THE CELL BECOMES MORE POSITIVELY CHARGED. • THIS MEANS THE ACTION POTENTIAL FROM THE PRESYNAPTIC NEURON INCREASES THE LIKLIHOOD THAT AN ACTION POTENTIAL WILL BE GENERATED IN THE POSTSYNAPTIC NEURON. • THIS CAUSES THE FIRING OF NERVE IMPULSES. • NEURONS THAT FIRE TOGETHER ARE LIKLEY TO WIRE TOGETHER. • WHEN THEY WIRE TOGETHER THEY FORM NEURAL MAPS. THIS IS WHAT MAKES SOME PARTS OF YOUR BODY AND BRAIN EASIER TO USE. THIS ALSO MAKES THINGS EASIER TO REMEMBER OF FOR YOU TO FORM A HABIT THAT IS UNCONSCIOUS.

INHIBITORY RESPONSES CAN FORM GOOD AND BAD HABITS TOO • WHETHER THE POSTSYNAPTIC NEURON GENERATES AN ACTION POTENTIAL OR NOT DEPENDS UPON THE RECEIVER NEURON’S RECEPTOR SITE AND THE TYPES OF IONS THAT ARE PRESENT. • INHIBITORY RESPONSES INHIBIT THE GENERATION OF AN ACTION POTENTIAL. • INHIBITION SERVES AS A STABILIZING INFLUENCE. • FOR EXAMPLE PREVENTING NEURONS FROM EXCITING EACH OTHER PREVENTS A CONVULSIVE SEIZURE OF FIRING (THE LATTER OCCURS IN EPILEPSY). • INHIBITORY OR EXCITORY ARE NEITHER GOOD OR BAD. THEY JUST INDICATE THE DIRECTION OF COMMUNICATION BETWEEN THE NEURONS. • THIS DETERMINES HOW YOU THINK, BEHAVE, FEEL, MOVE, ETC.

QUIZ 6 • What are excitatory responses? • What are inhibitory responses?

REVIEW QUESTIONS AND HOW CAN I UNDERSTAND REMEMBER ALL OF THIS?

WHAT ARE WAYS YOU REMEMBER COMPLICATED INFORMATION? • MAKE UP A SONG ABOUT SOMETHING. • TEACH SOMEONE ELSE THE MATERIAL. • MAKE UP RHYMES. • USE FLASHCARDS AND REPEAT THE INFORMATION LOUDLY. • USE FIRST LETTER MNEMONICS. • REHEARSE THE INFORMATION OVER AND OVER. • CREATE VISUAL ASSOCIATIONS WITH DRAWINGS AND PICTURES. • FIND AN ANIMATION ON YOUTUBE. • WHAT ELSE?

QUESTIONS? THANK YOU VERY MUCH!