PSY 111 Lecture Notes - Lecture 4: Cerebrospinal Fluid, Ben Carson, Hemispherectomy
3 Sep 2016
School
Department
Course
Professor
Psychology 9/16/15 9/3/2016 7:06:00 PM
Beta waves – brain is engaged
alpha waves – rest and relaxation
The brain as plastic
Longstanding myth:
No new neurons can grow in the brain
A. raising rats in two environments:
• IV: impoverished versus enriched
o impoverished they don’t have anything
o enriched they have ladders and ropes to climb on etc.
• Sacrifice the rats
o take slices of brain and look at them under the microscope
• DV: more neuronal connections (more dendrites), better learning
B. the case of the child with life-threatening epilepsy (Rasmussen’s syndrome – described as a degenerative brain
disorder can have over 100 seizures per day…brain is losing cells. It’s not going to work.)
• most forms of epilepsy can be treated with medication this one cannot
• if you don’t treat it…the patient will die
• the treatment = take out one entire hemisphere of the child’s brain
o Hemispherectomy
o Johns Hopkins Hospital
o Report from neurology
▪ 86% of 111 children: “seizure free or have non-disabling seizures that do not
require medication
▪ All hemispherectomy patients have partial paralysis on the side of the body opposite
the removed portion (contral lateral)
▪ all children were up and about and most adapt to their handicapped side so well
they play piano. Golf, Ping-Pong and can dance.
• the solution = remove one hemisphere
• cerebral spinal fluid is there essentially to cushion
• Ben Carson neurosurgeon
Plasticity- can changed shape and perform different functions
Hunger, Obesity, and Eating Disorders
The basic biology of hunger;
a. the role of the hypothalamus
• the “start” eating center (you need to eat some food)
find more resources at oneclass.com
find more resources at oneclass.com
• the “satiety” center (you’ve had enough)
o what can go wrong: A tumor in the “satiety” center
o She would eat and eat and eat. Would put on more than 2lbs per day by eating more than
10,000 calories
o would also erupt in anger
o hypothalamus is also responsible for fighting
b. genetic factors (related to how much we weigh)
• correlation of weight
o focused on identical twins
o correlation of (monozygotic) identical twins are more likely to be of similar weight than
(dizygotic) fraternal twins
o monozygotic twins are taken apart - high correlation
o but: effects of socioeconomic status on obesity
Obesity: greater than 20% over desirable weight
Overweight: greater than 10% over desirable weight
• 1. Insurance company tables (no one uses those now)
• 2. Body Mass Index (BMI)
o better predictor of diseases associated with obesity
• Underweight less than 18.5
• Normal weight 18.5-24.9
• overweight 25-30
• obesity greater than 20
~17 (adolescents and children) -18.5 (adults) Cut offs range for suspected cases of anorexia nervosa
~40 and above: Morbidly obese
A closer look:
• It take about 3,500 calories to make one pound of fat
• Basal Metabolic Rate (BMR); the pilot light, the energy expenditure need to keep the body functioning
(to pump blood, breathe etc)
• BMR is lower in women
• BMR decreases with age (his or her 40s or 50s)
• WHY? Evolution has prepared us to eat when food is available
o in fact, we eat more when food is available (supersizing)
Do you know how food portions have changed over the years
• food proportions have gotten bigger and calories have gone up
find more resources at oneclass.com
find more resources at oneclass.com
Document Summary
Beta waves brain is engaged alpha waves rest and relaxation. No new neurons can grow in the brain: raising rats in two environments: Iv: impoverished versus enriched impoverished they don"t have anything enriched they have ladders and ropes to climb on etc. It"s not going to work. : most forms of epilepsy can be treated with medication this one cannot if you don"t treat it the patient will die the treatment = take out one entire hemisphere of the child"s brain, hemispherectomy. 86% of 111 children: seizure free or have non-disabling seizures that do not require medication. All hemispherectomy patients have partial paralysis on the side of the body opposite the removed portion (contral lateral) all children were up and about and most adapt to their handicapped side so well they play piano. Golf, ping-pong and can dance. the solution = remove one hemisphere cerebral spinal fluid is there essentially to cushion. Plasticity- can changed shape and perform different functions.
