PSC 101 Exam 1 Study Questions
Multiple Choice. On the exam, these will be worth 2.5 points each.
In general, the action potential is first initiated at the
a. synapse
b. dendrites
c. axon hillock.
d. Node of Ranvier
7th ed. Pg. 31, Lec 2 slide 19
Which of the following is not involved in chemical synaptic transmission?
a. Electrical conduction across the synaptic cleft
b. neurotransmitter binding to autoreceptors
c. Influx of calcium at the presynaptic membrane
d. neurotransmitter reuptake
Lec 2 slide 48 & 49
The structures of the limbic system are strongly implicated in
a. emotion and learning.
b. sensation.
c. motor control.
d. sympathetic nervous system control.
Which of the following is not part of the limbic system?
a. Hippocampus
b. Fornix -- important for connecting hippocampus. Extends from the hippocampus to
mammillary body.
c. Striatum imp for dopamine - related stuff
(part of basal ganglia (basal ganglia not part of limbic system)
d. Mammillary bodies
Pg. 45 (texbook 5e)
Inhibitory postsynaptic potentials differ from excitatory postsynaptic potentials most
significantly in their
a. direction of membrane polarization. b. degree of capacitance.
c. ease of elicitation.
d. overall amplitude.
Whether a synapse is excitatory or inhibitory is determined by the
a. number of action potentials arriving at the synaptic bouton.
b. size of the calcium current flowing into the synaptic bouton.
c. type of transmitter released by the presynaptic neuron.
d. refractory period
When a transmitter binds to a metabotropic receptor that is coupled to a G protein, part of the
G protein complex
a. becomes larger.
b. stays the same.
c. binds to a transmitter receptor.
d. migrates away. (Can someone explain why? thxxxx)
The “alpha” part of the G protein migrates away.
Dendrites are
a. a type of glial cell.
b. the input zone of a nerve cell.
c. the output zone of a nerve cell.
d. small cerebellar neurons.
In the mammalian brain, the major inhibitory neurotransmitter is
a. serotonin.
b. acetylcholine.
c. GABA.
d. glutamate. Serotonin is an endogenous ligand for which of the following
a. Serotonin transporter and serotonin receptors [http://health-and-
medicine.wikia.com/wiki/Endogenous_ligand]
b. Brainstem serotonin is released from brain stem so not this one
c. Calcium channels
d. LSD → This is exogenous ligand - drugs and toxins outside of the body
Which of the following is the first stage of neural development?
a. Neurogenesis
b. Cell migration
c. Synaptogenesis
d. Cell death
If you wanted to know whether the size of a particular brain area differed in depressed
individuals, what technique would you use?
a. positron emission tomography (PET) -to determine function of the brain
b. functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) -fMRI is to determine the function of the
brain
c. electroencephalogram (EEG) -this is just to see which part of the brain is activated during
activity right? -- EEG measures brain waves, so action potentials and electrical activity
d. neural prosthetics -I think this is not even a brain scan
Best Answer: fMRI( Little better at getting resolution) - looks at morphology of brain structure
but still no perfect answer. MRI would be the best answer
The rest are more functional
fMRI- better at getting resolution
PET- (unique) detects brain activity // radiolabel anything and it shoots to the brain
Quantifies how much serotonin receptor or dopamine receptor in brain.. Tracking particular
component/molecule. It tells you something about function of the brain. RADIOLABEL it in grain
and wherever the glucose is being used, it shows
MRI- best answer, but not given.
____________________________________________________________________
True or False. (On the exam, these will be worth 2.5 point each) ● An IPSP produces a small local postsynaptic depolarization, pushing the cell closer to
threshold. (False) an IPSP Produces a hyperpolarization event, that pushes the cell
further from threshold
● Inside the neuron at rest there is a high concentration of sodium ions, while outside the
cell there is a high concentration of potassium ions. (FALSE -inside has high
concentration of potassium while outside has high concentration of sodium ion
→ Think of a banana in the sea)
--Ch. 3 pg. 63 (textbook 5e)
● Inhibitory postsynaptic potentials are characterized by hyperpolarization of the
presynaptic membrane. (False -hyperpolarization should be on the postsynaptic
neuron)
● Humans, chimpanzees and rhesus monkeys show distinct neural gene expression
patterns from each other, but identical liver and blood gene expression. (Not 100% true,
so false I guess? Ch.6 p.175 (textbook 5e) Ch6 pg 178( textbook 7e). Yeah I was
thinking the same thing, it is almost similar but not completely similar. BUt in the
book it says “For Blood and liver cells, human and chimps are more similar to each
other than either species is to rhesus monkey”. It is confusing, but the phylogeny tree
does not show the same like what it states.
● A major goal of biological psychology is to improve the health and well-being of humans
and other animals.(True?) (https://7e.biopsychology.com/study01.html?1_7) It’s too
general huh? hahaha
● The three most prevalent psychiatric disorders in the US are anxiety, depression, and
schizophrenia. false, the three most prevalent psychiatric disorders in the US are
severe depression (16m), anxiety(10m), and drug and alcohol abuse (15m).
● The two major cell types that make up the nervous system are neurons and nerves.
(False -Neuron and glia)
● Childhood stress always leads to disadvantageous outcomes. ^ i think it is false also
because it just depends on the individual, some people can handle a ton of stress and
be fine, while some others can’t do the same But in lec 1, she said when you are
inflicted with stress at such a young age it can lead to negative outcomes as an adult.
I’m just not sure about the word “always.” I can ask during her OH today. ● Gene expression is dictated by DNA structure only. (False -i think it dictates by
environment also, but im not so sure) ←-I think so too bc Lec 3 Slide 2 I think she kept
emphasizing that we have individual differences because of not only DNA, but life
experiences and also diff stimulation we are exposed to?
● Pre-synaptic activity includes sodium influx and neurotransmitter release, while post-
synaptic activity includes calcium influx and neurotransmitter receptor binding. (False -
in presynaptic neuron, there is Calcium ion influx at the axon terminal)
● What is the relationship between synaptic pruning and the phrase “cells that fire
together, wire together”?
○ You lose some synaptic connection during this process if they don’t talk well
enough with each other.
○ Neural connecti
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