PSYCH101 Lecture : Neuropsychology This is the lecture outline, as provided by Dr. Ennis, with my own annotations.

• School: University of Waterloo
• Department: Psychology
• Course: PSYCH101
• Professor: Richard Ennis

Document Summary

Three parts: soma, dendrites, axon: soma cell body (or head of the neuron, contains nucleus, dendrites extend from soma, axons - long tail extending from the soma, covered with myelin sheath, separated by nodes of ranvier. The electrical component: soma reaches a firing threshold , it fires an impulse down the axon (sodium-potassium pumps are activated, which change the charge of the axon) and goes to the terminal endings. After transmission: then, one of three things can happen, some chemical messengers are broken down by proteins, reuptake axon endings can reuptake neurotransmitters (chemical messengers) Examples of neurotransmitters: some chemical messengers include, epinepherine (adrenalin) Fight or flight: norepinepherine (noradrenalin, acetylcholine. Involved in memory: both in recollection and in memorization. In alzheimer"s disease it is decomposed prematurely by proteins. Cns has a mid-range level in which chemical messengers are: dopamine present. If dopamine levels get too high, psychotic symptoms are observed, similar to schizophrenia (psychotic state)