Psychology 1000 Lecture Notes - Lecture 29: Lesion, Melanocyte, Radiography

• School: Western University
• Department: Psychology
• Course: Psychology 1000
• Professor: Dr.Mike

Document Summary

Deliberately making brain lesions /destroying tissues in order to observe changes on animal"s behavior. Brain function studied by destroying parts of brain and then studying resulting changes in behavior. Functions that no longer can be performed are the ones that were performed with that brain area. Wire is inserted into brain to determine the area. Then pass high freq current which heats up and destroys tissue. Can vary current intensity/duration to change size, but destroys everything in the area (cell bodies and axons). You can"t tell if this area was responsible for the behavior that is not responding, or just has an axon passing through: neurochemical lesions much more percise method. Excitotoxic lesions (excitotoxins are chemicals that bind to glutamate receptors and cause influx of calcium that causes so much excitement that kills the neuron/ excites it to death. Destroys cell bodies but doesn"t influence axons passing by. Don"t severe connections like in knife cuts/radiofrequency lesions.