PSYCH 202 Lecture Notes - Lecture 1: Monoamine Neurotransmitter, Amygdala, Antipsychotic
24 Jun 2018
School
Department
Course
Professor
Biological Psychology I: Genetics, the Nervous System and
Neurotransmitter Processes
Overview of Today’s Lecture
1* Introduction to the role of genetics
2* Structure of the Nervous System
3* Review of elementary Neuronal Structure and Physiology
4* Neurotransmitters and Their Neuronal and Psychological Functions
5* A Few Practical Illustrations/Applications
Some Orienting Concepts on Genetics in Psychology:
6* What is “Genetics”?
●A) Heredity of specific characteristics:
1* e.g. Mendel’s peas: studied peas and the color of peas along with
flowers
●B) Processes involved in turning genes on and off: regulation of gene
that is on or off;
*Epigenetics: DNA does not get changed, but the expression of genomes
is different
●C) polygenic effects: many genes operating simultaneously
7* Chromosomes: composed of spools of dna that are wrapped around
proteins called histones
8* What Genes are: segments of dna that code the production of
particular proteins
9* What Genes do:
10* Gene Expression: process of when a gene comes to be available for
coding and ready to turn on
●For gene to be expressed, the DNA needs to unwind from
the histomine
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11* “Epigenetic” modifications of genes and the impact for human health
(cancer, stress-reactivity, etc): epigenetic modification; when it’s not
expressed, methyl groups attach to the dna and prevents the unwinding of
the dna
○Genes suppressed due to suppressing of DNA methylation
○How to turn it off when the stress is over?
●Glucocorticoid receptors - receive cortisol signal and tells them when to turn it off
Mothers who don’t nurture their babies more leads the babies to
have methyl groups that methylate the glucocorticoid receptor
gene, they have less glucocorticoid receptors in the brain, less
receptors to inhibit stress response, their stress response is going to
stay on and lead to your stress responders staying on
Genes Affect Behavior
12* Behavioral Genetics Methods:
●Twin Studies Compare MZ and DZ Twins (monozygotic and
dizygotic):
●Adoption Studies: studying twins who were adopted and split apart
13* Heritability: not about individuals, it’s about groups
Gene Expression Can Be Modified
14* Darlene Francis wrote “Mother Nature”
15* Manipulating Genes: two groups of mice manipulated to look
different ways; genetically calm mice and genetically anxious mice
●Pick your Mouse (or person?) (calm or anxious mice)
-Cross fostering: give babies from calm mom and give them to the anxious mom,
and take the anxious mom’s babies’ to the calm mom
-Effect of cross fostering: environment prompts genetics; anxious babies
raised by calmed mom grew up to be calm and vice versa
16* Manipulating Environments:
●“Mother Nurture” article:
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find more resources at oneclass.com
●“epigenetics” again, stress-reactivity: Genetically calm baby raised by
anxious mom will lick the child less and it methylation glucocorticoid genetics and the
brain is more stressed and does not turn off the stress receptors
How Are Neural Messages Integrated into Communication Systems?
17* Three systems are coordinated:
●1)The Central Nervous System (CNS): comprised of brain and spinal
cord
●2) The Peripheral Nervous System (PNS): everything that connects to
brain and spinal cord
●3) The Endocrine System
Structure of the Nervous System:
find more resources at oneclass.com
find more resources at oneclass.com
Document Summary
Biological psychology i: genetics, the nervous system and. 6* what is genetics : heredity of specific characteristics: e. g. mendel"s peas: studied peas and the color of peas along with. 1* flowers: processes involved in turning genes on and off: regulation of gene that is on or off; *epigenetics: dna does not get changed, but the expression of genomes is different: polygenic effects: many genes operating simultaneously. Chromosomes: composed of spools of dna that are wrapped around. 8* what genes are: segments of dna that code the production of particular proteins. Gene expression: process of when a gene comes to be available for. For gene to be expressed, the dna needs to unwind from the histomine. Epigenetic modifications of genes and the impact for human health. 11* (cancer, stress-reactivity, etc): epigenetic modification; when it"s not expressed, methyl groups attach to the dna and prevents the unwinding of the dna. Genes suppressed due to suppressing of dna methylation.
