Body

From Things and Stuff Wiki
Revision as of 03:00, 9 August 2023 by Milk (talk | contribs) (→‎Sight)
Jump to navigation Jump to search


Physiology

todo: merging in again from Biology to connect the bodybrain?


See also Action, Food, Drink, Finances#NHS help


  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Physiology - the scientific study of function in living systems. A sub-discipline of biology, its focus is in how organisms, organ systems, organs, cells, and bio-molecules carry out the chemical or physical functions that exist in a living system.


  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Biological_system - a complex network of biologically relevant entities. As biological organization spans several scales, examples of biological systems are populations of organisms, or on the organ- and tissue scale in mammals and other animals, the circulatory system, the respiratory system, the nervous system, etc. On the micro to the nanoscopic scale, examples of biological systems are cells, organelles, macromolecular complexes and regulatory pathways. A biological system is not to be confused with a living system, such as a living organism.

















Neurophysiology




  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neurology - a medical specialty dealing with disorders of the nervous system. To be specific, neurology deals with the diagnosis and treatment of all categories of conditions and disease involving the central and peripheral nervous system; or, the equivalent meaning, the autonomic nervous systems and the somatic nervous systems, including their coverings, blood vessels, and all effector tissue, such as muscle.



Resources

  • Neuroscience Information Framework is a dynamic inventory of Web-based neuroscience resources: data, materials, and tools accessible via any computer connected to the Internet. An initiative of the NIH Blueprint for Neuroscience Research, NIF advances neuroscience research by enabling discovery and access to public research data and tools worldwide through an open source, networked environment.


Researchers injected the viruses into the brainstem of living mice. Each virus infects one cell, so that each neuron receives a unique barcode. Two days later, the researchers dissected the mouse brains. Under a microscope, 995 neurons glowed green, suggesting they had picked up a barcode.

The researchers then dissected the brain into five distinct brain regions and divided these regions into ultra-thin slices. They extracted RNA from each slice and performed automated high-throughput sequencing to determine which barcodes were present. They plotted the progression of individual barcodes through the slices to see where each cell’s axon ended up.

Their findings reveal that neurons in the locus coeruleus area of the brainstem, which is active in the stress response, extend to parts of the cerebral cortex, the brain’s outer layer. These neurons also connect to the olfactory bulb, a region involved in smell. The researchers did not find axons bridging the brainstem and the striatum, which governs motivation and movement.

Nervous system

  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nervous_system - the part of an animal's body that coordinates its voluntary and involuntary actions and transmits signals between different parts of its body. Nervous tissue first arose in wormlike organisms about 550 to 600 million years ago. In most animal species it consists of two main parts, the central nervous system (CNS) and the peripheral nervous system (PNS). The CNS contains the brain and spinal cord. The PNS consists mainly of nerves, which are enclosed bundles of the long fibers or axons, that connect the CNS to every other part of the body. The PNS includes motor neurons, mediating voluntary movement; the autonomic nervous system, comprising the sympathetic nervous system and the parasympathetic nervous system, which regulate involuntary functions, and the enteric nervous system, which functions to control the gastrointestinal system.

At the cellular level, the nervous system is defined by the presence of a special type of cell, called the neuron, also known as a "nerve cell". Neurons have special structures that allow them to send signals rapidly and precisely to other cells. They send these signals in the form of electrochemical waves traveling along thin fibers called axons, which cause chemicals called neurotransmitters to be released at junctions called synapses. A cell that receives a synaptic signal from a neuron may be excited, inhibited, or otherwise modulated. The connections between neurons can form neural circuits and also neural networks that generate an organism's perception of the world and determine its behavior. Along with neurons, the nervous system contains other specialized cells called glial cells (or simply glia), which provide structural and metabolic support.

  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nervous_tissue - the main component of the two parts of the nervous system; the brain and spinal cord of the central nervous system (CNS), and the branching peripheral nerves of the peripheral nervous system (PNS), which regulates and controls bodily functions and activity. It is composed of neurons, or nerve cells, which receive and transmit impulses, and neuroglia, also known as glial cells or more commonly as just glia (from the Greek, meaning glue), which assist the propagation of the nerve impulse as well as providing nutrients to the neuron.

Nervous tissue is made up of different types of nerve cells, all of which have an axon, the long stem-like part of the cell that sends action potential signals to the next cell.

Functions of the nervous system are sensory input, integration, control of muscles and glands, homeostasis, and mental activity.

Neurons

  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neuron - an electrically excitable cell that processes and transmits information through electrical and chemical signals. These signals between neurons occur via synapses, specialized connections with other cells. Neurons can connect to each other to form neural networks.


  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Progenitor_cell - a biological cell that, like a stem cell, has a tendency to differentiate into a specific type of cell, but is already more specific than a stem cell and is pushed to differentiate into its "target" cell.










  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Synaptic_potential - refers to the difference in voltage between the inside and outside of a postsynaptic neuron. In other words, they are the “incoming” signal of a neuron. Synaptic potential comes in two forms: excitatory and inhibitory. Excitatory post-synaptic potentials (EPSP’s) depolarize the membrane and move it closer to the threshold for an action potential. Inhibitory postsynaptic potentials (IPSP’s) hyperpolarize the membrane and move it farther away from the threshold.
  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Postsynaptic_potential - changes in the membrane potential of the postsynaptic terminal of a chemical synapse. Postsynaptic potentials are graded potentials, and should not be confused with action potentials although their function is to initiate or inhibit action potentials.




  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nerve_fiber - a threadlike extension of a nerve cell and consists of an axon and myelin sheath (if present) in the nervous system. There are nerve fibers in the central nervous system and peripheral nervous system. A nerve fiber may be myelinated and/or unmyelinated. In the central nervous system (CNS), myelin is produced by oligodendroglia cells. Schwann cells form myelin in the peripheral nervous system (PNS). Schwann cells can also make a thin covering for an axon which does not consist of myelin (in the PNS). A peripheral nerve fiber consists of an axon, myelin sheath, Schwann cells and its endoneurium. There are no endoneurium and Schwann cells in the central nervous system.


  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nucleus_(neuroanatomy) - a brain structure consisting of a relatively compact cluster of neurons. It is one of the two most common forms of nerve cell organization, the other being layered structures such as the cerebral cortex or cerebellar cortex. In anatomical sections, a nucleus shows up as a region of gray matter, often bordered by white matter. The vertebrate brain contains hundreds of distinguishable nuclei, varying widely in shape and size. A nucleus may itself have a complex internal structure, with multiple types of neurons arranged in clumps (subnuclei) or layers.

The term "nucleus" is in some cases used rather loosely, to mean simply an identifiably distinct group of neurons, even if they are spread over an extended area. Some of the major anatomical components of the brain are organized as clusters of interconnected nuclei. Notable among these are the thalamus and hypothalamus, each of which contains several dozen distinguishable substructures. The medulla and pons also contain numerous small nuclei with a wide variety of sensory, motor, and regulatory functions. In the peripheral nervous system, a cluster of neurons is referred to instead as a ganglion.


  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sensory_neuron - nerve cells that transmit sensory information (sight, sound, feeling, etc.). They are activated by sensory input, and send projections to other elements of the nervous system, ultimately conveying sensory information to the brain or spinal cord. In complex organisms, when stimulation of a peripheral sensory neuron (a first-order sensory neuron) receptor exceeds a set level of intensity, an electrical impulse travels down the nerve fiber to the central nervous system, where it may activate a motor neuron or another sensory neuron (a second- or third-order neuron), or both. In less complex organisms, such as the hydra, sensory neurons transmit data to motor neurons or ganglia. Different types of receptor respond to different kinds of stimulus.
  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bipolar_neuron - a type of neuron which has two extensions. Bipolar cells are specialized sensory neurons for the transmission of special senses. As such, they are part of the sensory pathways for smell, sight, taste, hearing and vestibular functions.



  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amacrine_cell - interneurons in the retina, inhibitory neurons, projecting their dendritic arbors to the inner plexiform layer (IPL), there interacting with retinal ganglion cells and/or bipolar cells.


  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pyramidal_cell - a type of neuron found in areas of the brain including the cerebral cortex, the hippocampus, and the amygdala. Pyramidal neurons are the primary excitation units of the mammalian prefrontal cortex and the corticospinal tract. Pyramidal neurons were first discovered and studied by Santiago Ramón y Cajal. Since then, studies on pyramidal neurons have focused on topics ranging from neuroplasticity to cognition.


  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Place_cell - a type of pyramidal neuron within the hippocampus that becomes active when the animal enters a particular place in the environment; this place is known as the place field. A given place cell will have only one, or a few, place fields in a typical small laboratory environment, but more in a larger region. There is no apparent topography to the pattern of place fields, unlike other brain areas such as visual cortex - neighboring place cells are as likely to have distant fields as neighboring ones. In a different environment, typically about half the place cells will still have place fields, but these will be in new places unrelated to their former locations.


  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grandmother_cell - a hypothetical neuron that represents a complex but specific concept or object. It activates when a person "sees, hears, or otherwise sensibly discriminates" a specific entity, such as his or her grandmother.



  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Efference_copy - internal copy of an outflowing (efferent), movement-producing signal generated by the motor system. It can be collated with the (reafferent) sensory input that results from the agent's movement, enabling a comparison of actual movement with desired movement, and a shielding of perception from particular self-induced effects on the sensory input to achieve perceptual stability.


Neuroglia

Plasticity

  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Synaptic_plasticity - specialized junctions through which neurons signal to each other and to non-neuronal cells such as those in muscles or glands. Chemical synapses allow neurons to form circuits within the central nervous system. They are crucial to the biological computations that underlie perception and thought. They allow the nervous system to connect to and control other systems of the body. At a chemical synapse, one neuron releases neurotransmitter molecules into a small space (the synaptic cleft) that is adjacent to another neuron.
  • Many Older Brains Have Plasticity, but in a Different Place [8]
  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Synaptic_vesicle - store various neurotransmitters that are released at the synapse. The release is regulated by a voltage-dependent calcium channel. Vesicles are essential for propagating nerve impulses between neurons and are constantly recreated by the cell. The area in the axon that holds groups of vesicles is an axon terminal or "bouton". Up to 130 vesicles can be released per bouton over a ten-minute period of stimulation at 0.2 Hz. In the human brain region V1 synaptic vesicles have an average diameter of 39.5 nanometers with a standard deviation of 5.1 nanometers.
  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hebbian_theory - a theory in neuroscience that proposes an explanation for the adaptation of neurons in the brain during the learning process. It describes a basic mechanism for synaptic plasticity, where an increase in synaptic efficacy arises from the presynaptic cell's repeated and persistent stimulation of the postsynaptic cell. Introduced by Donald Hebb in his 1949 book The Organization of Behavior, the theory is also called Hebb's rule, Hebb's postulate, and cell assembly theory.

Connectome


  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Connectogram - graphical representations of connectomics, the field of study dedicated to mapping and interpreting all of the white matter fiber connections in the human brain. These circular graphs based on Diffusion MRI data utilize graph theory to demonstrate the white matter connections and cortical characteristics for single structures, single subjects, or populations.


  • YouTube: Lecture 8: What is the Connectome? - The "connectome" is a term, coined in the past decade, that has been used to describe more than one phenomenon in neuroscience. Dr. R Clay Reid explains the basics of structural connections at the micro-, meso- and macroscopic scales. This full-length, undergraduate-level lecture is the eighth of a 12-part series entitled Coding & Vision 101, produced by the Allen Institute for Brain Science as an educational resource for the community.




  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ephaptic_coupling - a form of communication within the nervous system and is distinct from direct communication systems like electrical synapses and chemical synapses. It may refer to the coupling of adjacent (touching) nerve fibers caused by the exchange of ions between the cells, or it may refer to coupling of nerve fibers as a result of local electric fields. In either case ephaptic coupling can influence the synchronization and timing of action potential firing in neurons. Myelination is thought to inhibit ephaptic interactions.

Brainwaves



  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Delta_wave - a high amplitude brain wave with a frequency of oscillation between 0–4 hertz, usually associated with the deep stage 3 of NREM sleep, also known as slow-wave sleep (SWS), and aid in characterizing the depth of sleep.


  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Theta_rhythm - The "hippocampal theta rhythm" is a strong oscillation that can be observed in the hippocampus and other brain structures in numerous species of mammals including rodents, rabbits, dogs, cats, bats, and marsupials. "Cortical theta rhythms" are low-frequency components of scalp EEG, usually recorded from humans.


  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alpha_wave - in the frequency range of 7.5-12.5 Hz arising from synchronous and coherent (in phase or constructive) electrical activity of thalamic pacemaker cells in humans. predominantly originate from the occipital lobe during wakeful relaxation with closed eyes. Alpha waves are reduced with open eyes, drowsiness and sleep. Historically, they were thought to represent the activity of the visual cortex in an idle state. More recent papers have argued that they inhibit areas of the cortex not in use, or alternatively that they play an active role in network coordination and communication. Occipital alpha waves during periods of eyes closed are the strongest EEG brain signals.


  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mu_wave - repeat at a frequency of 7.5–12.5 (and primarily 9–11) Hz, and are most prominent when the body is physically at rest.[1] Unlike the alpha wave, which occurs at a similar frequency over the resting visual cortex at the back of the scalp, the mu wave is found over the motor cortex, in a band approximately from ear to ear. A person suppresses mu wave patterns when he or she performs a motor action or, with practice, when he or she visualizes performing a motor action. This suppression is called desynchronization of the wave because EEG wave forms are caused by large numbers of neurons firing in synchrony. The mu wave is even suppressed when one observes another person performing a motor action.


  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sensorimotor_rhythm - For most individuals, the frequency of the SMR is in the range of 13 to 15 Hz. The meaning of SMR is not fully understood. Phenomenologically, a person is producing a stronger SMR amplitude when the corresponding sensory-motor areas are idle, e.g. during states of immobility. SMR typically decrease in amplitude when the corresponding sensory or motor areas are activated, e.g. during motor tasks and even during motor imagery.


  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beta_wave - beta rhythm, is the term used to designate the frequency range of human brain activity between 12.5 and 30 Hz (12.5 to 30 transitions or cycles per second). Beta waves are split into three sections: Low Beta Waves (12.5–16 Hz, "Beta 1 power"); Beta Waves (16.5–20 Hz, "Beta 2 power"); and High Beta Waves (20.5–28 Hz, "Beta 3 power"). Beta states are the states associated with normal waking consciousness.


  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gamma_wave - a pattern of neural oscillation in humans with a frequency between 25 and 100 Hz, though 40 Hz is typical. According to a popular theory, gamma waves may be implicated in creating the unity of conscious perception (the binding problem). However, there is no agreement on the theory






  • OpenBCI - OpenBCI stands for open-source brain-computer interface (BCI). We provide anyone with a computer, the tools necessary to sample the electrical activity of their body. Our versatile and affordable biosensing systems can be used to sample electrical brain activity (EEG), muscle activity (EMG), heart rate (ECG), body movement, and much more. Our 3D-printable EEG headsets can be used to get research-grade EEG recordings.


Event-related potential

  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Event-related_potential - the measured brain response that is the direct result of a specific sensory, cognitive, or motor event. More formally, it is any stereotyped electrophysiological response to a stimulus. The study of the brain in this way provides a noninvasive means of evaluating brain functioning in patients with cognitive diseases. ERPs are measured by means of electroencephalography (EEG). The magnetoencephalography (MEG) equivalent of ERP is the ERF, or event-related field.[2]


  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/P50_(neuroscience) - an event related potential occurring approximately 50 ms after the presentation of a stimulus, usually an auditory click.[1] The P50 response is used to measure sensory gating, or the reduced neurophysiological response to redundant stimuli.

Research has found an abnormal P50 suppression in people with schizophrenia, making it an example of a biological marker for the disorder. Besides schizophrenia, abnormal P50 suppression has been found in patients with traumatic brain injury, recreational drug use, and post-traumatic stress disorder

  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/P200 - or P2 component, is so named because it is a positive going electrical potential that peaks at about 200 milliseconds (varying between about 150 and 275 ms) after the onset of some external stimulus . The distribution of this component in the brain, as measured by electrodes placed across the scalp, is located around the centro-frontal and the parieto-occipital region. It is generally found to be maximal around the vertex (frontal region) of the scalp, however there have been some topographical differences noted in ERP studies of the P2 in different experimental conditions. Research on the visual P2 is at an early stage compared to other more established ERP components and there is much that we still do not know about it. In general, the P2 may be a part of cognitive matching system that compares sensory inputs with stored memory.
  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/P3a - a component of time-locked (EEG) signals known as event-related potentials (ERP). The P3a is a positive-going scalp-recorded brain potential that has a maximum amplitude over frontal/central electrode sites with a peak latency falling in the range of 250–280 ms. The P3a has been associated with brain activity related to the engagement of attention (especially orienting and involuntary shifts to changes in the environment) and the processing of novelty.
  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/P3b - a positive-going amplitude (usually relative to a reference behind the ear or the average of two such references) peaking at around 300 ms, though the peak will vary in latency (delay between stimulus and response) from 250–500 ms or later depending upon the task. Amplitudes are typically highest on the scalp over parietal brain areas. The P3b has been a prominent tool used to study cognitive processes for several decades. More specifically, this ERP component has played a key role in cognitive psychology research on information processing. Generally speaking, improbable events will elicit a P3b, and the less probable the event, the larger the P3b. However, in order to elicit a P3b, the improbable event must be related to the task at hand in some way (for example, the improbable event could be an infrequent target letter in a stream of letters, to which a subject might respond with a button press). The P3b can also be used to measure how demanding a task is on cognitive workload.
  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/P600_(neuroscience) - syntactic positive shift (SPS), thought to be elicited by hearing or reading grammatical errors and other syntactic anomalies. Therefore, it is a common topic of study in neurolinguistic experiments investigating sentence processing in the human brain. The P600 can be elicited in both visual (reading) and auditory (listening) experiments,[1] and is characterized as a positive-going deflection with an onset around 500 milliseconds after the stimulus that elicits it; it often reaches its peak around 600 milliseconds after presentation of the stimulus (hence its name), and lasts several hundred milliseconds.


  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bereitschaftspotential - or BP (from German, "readiness potential"), also called the pre-motor potential or readiness potential (RP), is a measure of activity in the motor cortex and supplementary motor area of the brain leading up to voluntary muscle movement. The BP is a manifestation of cortical contribution to the pre-motor planning of volitional movement. It was first recorded and reported in 1964 by Hans Helmut Kornhuber and Lüder Deecke at the University of Freiburg in Germany. In 1965 the full publication appeared after many control experiments.
  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/N2pc - an ERP component linked to selective attention. The N2pc appears over visual cortex contralateral to the location in space to which subjects are attending; if subjects pay attention to the left side of the visual field, the N2pc appears in the right hemisphere of the brain, and vice versa. This characteristic makes it a useful tool for directly measuring the general direction of a person's attention (either left or right) with fine-grained temporal resolution.
  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/N200_(neuroscience) - a negative-going wave that peaks 200-350ms post-stimulus and is found primarily over anterior scalp sites. Past research focused on the N200 as a mismatch detector, but it has also been found to reflect executive cognitive control functions, and has recently been used in the study of language


  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lateralized_readiness_potential - thought to reflect the preparation of motor activity on a certain side of the body; in other words, it is a spike in the electrical activity of the brain that happens when a person gets ready to move one arm, leg, or foot. It is a special form of bereitschaftspotential (a general pre-motor potential). LRPs are recorded using electroencephalography (EEG) and have numerous applications in cognitive neuroscience.

Neurotransmission

  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neuromodulation - the physiological process by which a given neuron uses one or more neurotransmitters to regulate diverse populations of neurons. This is in contrast to classical synaptic transmission, in which one presynaptic neuron directly influences a single postsynaptic partner. Neuromodulators secreted by a small group of neurons diffuse through large areas of the nervous system, affecting multiple neurons. Major neuromodulators in the central nervous system include dopamine, serotonin, acetylcholine, histamine, and norepinephrine.



Neurotransmitters can be classified as one of four different types, shown below with examples:

  • Amino acids: glutamate, aspartate, glysine, GABA.
  • Monoamines: dopamine, serotonin, histamine, noradrenaline.
  • Peptides: substance p, odioid peptides.
  • Others: acetylcholine, adenosine, nitric oxide.


  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neuroendocrinology - the study of the interaction between the nervous system and the endocrine system, including the biological features of the cells involved, and how they communicate. The nervous and endocrine systems often act together in a process called neuroendocrine integration, to regulate the physiological processes of the human body. Neuroendocrinology arose from the recognition that the brain, especially the hypothalamus, controls secretion of pituitary gland hormones, and has subsequently expanded to investigate numerous interconnections of the endocrine and nervous systems. The neuroendocrine system is the mechanism by which the hypothalamus maintains homeostasis, regulating reproduction, metabolism, eating and drinking behaviour, energy utilization, osmolarity and blood pressure.







Precursors


Amino acids
  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Glutamic_acid - one of the 20-23 proteinogenic amino acids, and its codons are GAA and GAG. It is a non-essential amino acid. The carboxylate anions and salts of glutamic acid are known as glutamates. In neuroscience, glutamate is an important neurotransmitter that plays the principal role in neural activation. Glutamate is the most abundant excitatory neurotransmitter in the vertebrate nervous system. At chemical synapses, glutamate is stored in vesicles. Nerve impulses trigger release of glutamate from the pre-synaptic cell. Glutamate acts on ionotropic and metabotropic (G-protein coupled) receptors. In the opposing post-synaptic cell, glutamate receptors, such as the NMDA receptor or the AMPA receptor, bind glutamate and are activated. Because of its role in synaptic plasticity, glutamate is involved in cognitive functions like learning and memory in the brain. The form of plasticity known as long-term potentiation takes place at glutamatergic synapses in the hippocampus, neocortex, and other parts of the brain. Glutamate works not only as a point-to-point transmitter but also through spill-over synaptic crosstalk between synapses in which summation of glutamate released from a neighboring synapse creates extrasynaptic signaling/volume transmission. In addition, glutamate plays important roles in the regulation of growth cones and synaptogenesis during brain development as originally described by Mark Mattson.
  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Glutamate_receptor - are synaptic receptors located primarily on the membranes of neuronal cells. Glutamate (the conjugate base of glutamic acid) is abundant in the human body, but particularly in the nervous system and especially prominent in the human brain where it is the body's most prominent neurotransmitter, the brain's main excitatory neurotransmitter, and also the precursor for GABA, the brain's main inhibitory neurotransmitter.[1] Glutamate receptors are responsible for the glutamate-mediated postsynaptic excitation of neural cells, and are important for neural communication, memory formation, learning, and regulation.


  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gamma-Aminobutyric_acid - or GABA /ˈɡæbə/) is the chief inhibitory neurotransmitter in the mammalian central nervous system. It plays the principal role in reducing neuronal excitability throughout the nervous system. In humans, GABA is also directly responsible for the regulation of muscle tone. Although in chemical terms it is an amino acid, GABA is rarely referred to as such in the scientific or medical communities, because the term "amino acid," used without a qualifier, by convention refers to the alpha amino acids, which GABA is not, nor is it considered to be incorporated into proteins.




Monoamine
  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monoamine_releasing_agent - or simply monoamine releaser, is a drug that induces the release of a monoamine neurotransmitter from the presynaptic neuron into the synapse, leading to an increase in the extracellular concentrations of the neurotransmitter. Many drugs induce their effects in the body and/or brain via the release of monoamine neurotransmitters, namely the amphetamines and related compounds.


  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vesicular_monoamine_transporter - a transport protein integrated into the membrane of synaptic vesicles of presynaptic neurons. It acts to transport monoamine neurotransmitters – such as dopamine, serotonin, norepinephrine, epinephrine, and histamine – into the vesicles, which release the neurotransmitters into synapses as chemical messages to postsynaptic neurons. VMATs utilize a proton gradient generated by V-ATPases in vesicle membranes to power monoamine import.

Pharmaceutical drugs that target VMATs have possible applications for many conditions, leading to a plethora of biological research. These applications include drug addiction, psychiatric disorders, Parkinson's disease, and other neurological disorders. Many drugs that target VMAT act as inhibitors and alter the kinetics of the protein. Much research regarding the effects of altered VMATs on biological systems is still ongoing.


Catechol is a chemical, but a catechol may also be used as the name of a substituent, where it represents a 1,2-dihydroxybenzene group. Catecholamines are derived from the amino acid tyrosine. Catecholamines are water-soluble and are 50%-bound to plasma proteins in circulation. Included among catecholamines are: epinephrine (adrenaline), norepinephrine (noradrenaline) and dopamine; all of which are produced from phenylalanine and tyrosine. Release of the hormones epinephrine and norepinephrine from the adrenal medulla of the adrenal glands is part of the fight-or-flight response.

Tyrosine is created from phenylalanine by hydroxylation by the enzyme phenylalanine hydroxylase. Tyrosine is also ingested directly from dietary protein. Catecholamine-secreting cells use several reactions to convert tyrosine serially to L-DOPA and then to dopamine. Depending on the cell type, dopamine may be further converted to norepinephrine or even further converted to epinephrine. Various stimulant drugs are catecholamine analogues.




The researchers took readings of the ultra-quick dopamine pulses as conscious patients played an investment game. They expected to see dopamine responses in direct relation to expected rewards and actual outcomes. They didn’t. “We analyzed the dataset of about a thousand pulses of dopamine, and it was flat,” said Montague, who is also a professor of physics in Virginia Tech’s College of Science and director of the Computational Psychiatry Unit of the Virginia Tech Carilion Research Institute. “The signals did not distinguish between a positive reaction and a negative one.”

The scientists used fast-scan cyclic voltammetry to measure the pulses of dopamine in the patients’ brains. This electrochemical technique allows for near-continuous measurements of chemical activity in the brain. In this case, it was used to measure the dopamine signaling 10 times each second, for several minutes, while patients made financially risky decisions.

We found that dopamine tracks two factors – what happened and what could have happened,” Montague said. “Our dopamine neurons appear to track whether something could have been better or worse, and this information is encoded by the rapid changes in dopamine release. “Dopamine encodes what are called reward-prediction errors – the ongoing difference between reward expectations and the actual rewards experienced,” Montague said. “From just dopamine signals, we can see when a person expects a reward and whether the person receives the reward. But in our most recent study, we found this earlier model of reward-prediction error to be incomplete. Rather, dopamine pulses appear to combine information about what might have happened with information about what actually happened. This is an entirely new way of viewing the role of dopamine signaling in the human brain.” [17]




  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Serotonin - a monoamine neurotransmitter. Biochemically derived from tryptophan, approximately 90% of the human body's total serotonin is located in the enterochromaffin cells in the GI tract, where it is used to regulate intestinal movements. The remainder is synthesized in serotonergic neurons of the CNS, where it has various functions. These include the regulation of mood, appetite, and sleep. Serotonin also has some cognitive functions, including memory and learning. Modulation of serotonin at synapses is thought to be a major action of several classes of pharmacological antidepressants.




  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Epinephrine - a hormone and a neurotransmitter. Epinephrine and norepinephrine are two separate but related hormones secreted by the medulla of the adrenal glands. They are also produced at the ends of sympathetic nerve fibres, where they serve as chemical mediators for conveying the nerve impulses to effector organs. The investigation of the pharmacology of epinephrine made a major contribution to the understanding of the autonomic system and the function of the sympathetic system.

Epinephrine remains a useful medicine for several emergency indications. This is despite its non-specific action on adrenoceptors and the subsequent development of multiple selective medicines that target subtypes of the adrenoceptors. The word adrenaline is used in common parlance to denote increased activation of the sympathetic system associated with the energy and excitement of the fight-or-flight response. The influence of adrenaline is mainly limited to a metabolic effect and bronchodilation effect on organs devoid of direct sympathetic innervation.

In chemical terms, epinephrine is one of a group of monoamines called the catecholamines. It is produced in some neurons of the central nervous system, and in the chromaffin cells of the adrenal medulla from the amino acids phenylalanine and tyrosine.

Epinephrine is synthesized in the medulla of the adrenal gland in an enzymatic pathway that converts the amino acid tyrosine into a series of intermediates and, ultimately, epinephrine. Tyrosine is first oxidized to L-DOPA, which is subsequently decarboxylated to give dopamine. Oxidation gives norepinephrine. The final step in epinephrine biosynthesis is the methylation of the primary amine of noradrenaline. This reaction is catalyzed by the enzyme phenylethanolamine N-methyltransferase (PNMT) which utilizes S-adenosylmethionine (SAMe) as the methyl donor. While PNMT is found primarily in the cytosol of the endocrine cells of the adrenal medulla (also known as chromaffin cells), it has been detected at low levels in both the heart and brain.

  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Norepinephrine - Norepinephrine (INN) (abbreviated norepi or NE), also called noradrenaline (BAN) (abbreviated NA, NAd, or norad), or 4,5-β-trihydroxy phenethylamine is a catecholamine with multiple roles including those as a hormone and a neurotransmitter.




  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Methylenedioxypyrovalerone - a psychoactive recreational drug with stimulant properties which acts as a norepinephrine-dopamine reuptake inhibitor (NDRI). It was first developed in the 1960s by a team at Boehringer Ingelheim. MDPV remained an obscure stimulant until around 2004 when it was reportedly sold as a designer drug. Products labeled as bath salts containing MDPV were previously sold as recreational drugs in gas stations and convenience stores in the United States, similar to the marketing for Spice and K2 as incense.



  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/3-Fluoroamphetamine - a stimulant drug from the amphetamine family which acts as a monoamine releaser with similar potency to methamphetamine but more selectivity for dopamine and noradrenaline release over serotonin.
Endocannabinoids



Neuropeptide

  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neuropeptide - small protein-like molecules (peptides) used by neurons to communicate with each other. They are neuronal signaling molecules that influence the activity of the brain in specific ways. Different neuropeptides are involved in a wide range of brain functions, including analgesia, reward, food intake, metabolism, reproduction, social behaviors, learning and memory.

Neuropeptides are related to peptide hormones, and in some cases peptides that function in the periphery as hormones also have neuronal functions as neuropeptides. The distinction between neuropeptide and peptide hormone has to do with the cell types that release and respond to the molecule; neuropeptides are secreted from neuronal cells (primarily neurons but also glia for some peptides) and signal to neighboring cells (primarily neurons). In contrast, peptide hormones are secreted from neuroendocrine cells and travel through the blood to distant tissues where they evoke a response.




  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Endorphins - contracted from "endogenous morphine") are endogenous opioid neuropeptides in humans and other animals. They are produced by the central nervous system and the pituitary gland. The term implies a pharmacological activity (analogous to the activity of the corticosteroid category of biochemicals) as opposed to a specific chemical formulation. It consists of two parts: endo- and -orphin; these are short forms of the words endogenous and morphine, intended to mean "a morphine-like substance originating from within the body". The class of endorphin compounds includes α-endorphin, β-endorphin, γ-endorphin, σ-endorphin, α-neo-endorphin, and β-neo-endorphin. The principal function of endorphins is to inhibit the transmission of pain signals; they may also produce a feeling of euphoria very similar to that produced by other opioids.

Neurotrophin

  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neurotrophin - a family of proteins that induce the survival, development, and function of neurons. They belong to a class of growth factors, secreted proteins that are capable of signaling particular cells to survive, differentiate, or grow. Growth factors such as neurotrophins that promote the survival of neurons are known as neurotrophic factors. Neurotrophic factors are secreted by target tissue and act by preventing the associated neuron from initiating programmed cell death - thus allowing the neurons to survive. Neurotrophins also induce differentiation of progenitor cells, to form neurons. Although the vast majority of neurons in the mammalian brain are formed prenatally, parts of the adult brain (for example, the hippocampus) retain the ability to grow new neurons from neural stem cells, a process known as neurogenesis. Neurotrophins are chemicals that help to stimulate and control neurogenesis.
  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nerve_growth_factor - a neuropeptide primarily involved in the regulation of growth, maintenance, proliferation, and survival of certain target neurons. It is perhaps the prototypical growth factor, in that it is one of the first to be described. Since it was first isolated by Nobel Laureate Rita Levi-Montalcini in 1956, numerous biological processes involving NGF have been identified, two of them being the survival of pancreatic beta cells and the regulation of the immune system.
  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brain-derived_neurotrophic_factor - also known as BDNF, is a protein that, in humans, is encoded by the BDNF gene. BDNF is a member of the neurotrophin family of growth factors, which are related to the canonical Nerve Growth Factor. Neurotrophic factors are found in the brain and the periphery.



Other
  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Acetylcholine - an organic chemical that functions in the brain and body of many types of people and animals as a neurotransmitter—a chemical released by nerve cells to send signals to other cells. Its name derives from its chemical structure: it is an ester of acetic acid and choline. Parts in the body that use or are affected by acetylcholine are referred to as cholinergic.

Acetylcholine is the neurotransmitter used at the neuromuscular junction—in other words, it is the chemical that motor neurons of the nervous system release in order to activate muscles. This property means that drugs that affect cholinergic systems can have very dangerous effects ranging from paralysis to convulsions. Acetylcholine is also used as a neurotransmitter in the autonomic nervous system, both as an internal transmitter for the sympathetic nervous system and as the final product released by the parasympathetic nervous system.

Inside the brain acetylcholine functions as a neuromodulator—a chemical that alters the way other brain structures process information rather than a chemical used to transmit information from point to point. The brain contains a number of cholinergic areas, each with distinct functions. They play an important role in arousal, attention, and motivation. The addictive qualities of nicotine derive from its effects on nicotinic acetylcholine receptors in the brain.


In cardiac tissue acetylcholine neurotransmission has an inhibitory effect, which lowers heart rate. However, acetylcholine also behaves as an excitatory neurotransmitter at neuromuscular junctions in skeletal muscle.



Heart


Hormones



  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peptide_hormone - hormones whose molecules are peptides or proteins, respectively. The latter have longer amino acid chain lengths than the former. These hormones have an effect on the endocrine system of animals, including humans. All hormones can be classified as either amino acid–based hormones (amine, peptide, or protein) or steroid hormones. The former are water-soluble and act on the surface of target cells via second messengers; the latter, being lipid-soluble, move through the plasma membranes of target cells (both cytoplasmic and nuclear) to act within their nuclei.


  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neurohormone - any hormone produced and released by neuroendocrine cells (also called neurosecretory cells) into the blood. By definition of being hormones, they are secreted into the circulation for systemic effect, but they can also have a role of neurotransmitter or other roles such as autocrine (self) or paracrine (local) messenger.
  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neurosecretion - the storage, synthesis and release of hormones from neurons. These neurohormones, produced by neurosecretory cells, are normally secreted from nerve cells in the brain that then circulate into the blood. These neurohormones are similar to nonneural endocrine cells and glands in that they also regulate both endocrine and nonendocrine cells. Neurosecretion cells also release their product farther than normal neurons, which only secrete short distances, into the extracellular space some distance from the target cell.


Steroid hormones

  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steroid_hormone - a steroid that acts as a hormone. Steroid hormones can be grouped into five groups by the receptors to which they bind: glucocorticoids, mineralocorticoids, androgens, estrogens, and progestogens. Vitamin D derivatives are a sixth closely related hormone system with homologous receptors. They have some of the characteristics of true steroids as receptor ligands.

Steroid hormones help control metabolism, inflammation, immune functions, salt and water balance, development of sexual characteristics, and the ability to withstand illness and injury. The term steroid describes both hormones produced by the body and artificially produced medications that duplicate the action for the naturally occurring steroids.

The natural steroid hormones are generally synthesized from cholesterol in the gonads and adrenal glands. These forms of hormones are lipids. They can pass through the cell membrane as they are fat-soluble, and then bind to steroid hormone receptors (which may be nuclear or cytosolic depending on the steroid hormone) to bring about changes within the cell. Steroid hormones are generally carried in the blood, bound to specific carrier proteins such as sex hormone-binding globulin or corticosteroid-binding globulin. Further conversions and catabolism occurs in the liver, in other "peripheral" tissues, and in the target tissues.


Corticosteroid
  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Corticosteroid - a class of steroid hormones that are produced in the adrenal cortex of vertebrates, as well as the synthetic analogues of these hormones. Two main classes of corticosteroids, glucocorticoids and mineralocorticoids, are involved in a wide range of physiologic processes, including stress response, immune response, and regulation of inflammation, carbohydrate metabolism, protein catabolism, blood electrolyte levels, and behavior. Some common natural hormones are corticosterone and aldosterone.


  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mineralocorticoid - a class of corticosteroids, which are a class of steroid hormones. Mineralocorticoids are corticosteroids that influence salt and water balances (electrolyte balance and fluid balance). The primary mineralocorticoid is aldosterone, notable for an aldehyde group at the 18 position.
  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aldosterone - a steroid hormone, "the main mineralocorticoid hormone",:50 produced by the outer section (zona glomerulosa) of the adrenal cortex in the adrenal gland. It plays a central role in the regulation of the plasma sodium (Na+), the extracellular potassium (K+) and arterial blood pressure. It does so mainly by acting on the distal tubules and collecting ducts of the nephron, increasing reabsorption and excretion of ions out of and into the tubular fluids of the kidney, to cause the conservation of sodium, secretion of potassium, and thereby indirectly influencing water retention or loss, and influencing blood pressure and blood volume. When dysregulated, aldosterone is pathogenic and contributes to the development and progression of cardiovascular and renal disease. Aldosterone has exactly the opposite function of the atrial natriuretic hormone secreted by the heart.


  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Glucocorticoid - a class of corticosteroids, which are a class of steroid hormones. Glucocorticoids are corticosteroids that bind to the glucocorticoid receptor (GR), that is present in almost every vertebrate animal cell. The name glucocorticoid (glucose + cortex + steroid) is composed from its role in regulation of glucose metabolism, synthesis in the adrenal cortex, and its steroidal structure (see structure to the right). A less common synonym is glucocorticosteroid.

GCs are part of the feedback mechanism in the immune system which reduces certain aspects of immune function, such as reduction of inflammation. They are therefore used in medicine to treat diseases caused by an overactive immune system, such as allergies, asthma, autoimmune diseases, and sepsis. GCs have many diverse (pleiotropic) effects, including potentially harmful side effects, and as a result are rarely sold over the counter. They also interfere with some of the abnormal mechanisms in cancer cells, so they are used in high doses to treat cancer. This includes: inhibitory effects on lymphocyte proliferation as in the treatment of lymphomas and leukemias; and the mitigation of side effects of anticancer drugs.


  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cortisol - steroid hormone, in the glucocorticoid class of hormones. When used as a medication, it is known as hydrocortisone. It is produced in humans by the zona fasciculata of the adrenal cortex within the adrenal gland. It is released in response to stress and low blood-glucose concentration. It functions to increase blood sugar through gluconeogenesis, to suppress the immune system, and to aid in the metabolism of fat, protein, and carbohydrates. It also decreases bone formation.


Sex hormone

  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sex_steroid - also known as gonadal steroids, are steroid hormones that interact with vertebrate androgen or estrogen receptors.[1] Their effects are mediated by slow genomic mechanisms through nuclear receptors as well as by fast nongenomic mechanisms through membrane-associated receptors and signaling cascades. The term sex hormone is nearly always synonymous with sex steroid. The non-steroid hormones luteinizing hormone, follicle-stimulating hormone and gonadotropin-releasing hormone are usually not regarded as sex hormones, although they play major sex-related roles.


to sort

  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neurohypophysial_hormone - a family of structurally and functionally related peptide hormones. Their main representatives are oxytocin and vasopressin. They are named for being secreted by the neurohypophysis, i.e. the posterior pituitary gland (hypophysis refers to the pituitary gland), itself a neuronal projection from the hypothalamus.



  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Endocrine_system - refers to the collection of glands of an organism that secrete hormones directly into the circulatory system to be carried towards distant target organs. The major endocrine glands include the pineal gland, pituitary gland, pancreas, ovaries, testes, thyroid gland, parathyroid gland, hypothalamus, gastrointestinal tract and adrenal glands. The endocrine system is in contrast to the exocrine system, which secretes its hormones to the outside of the body using ducts. The endocrine system is an information signal system like the nervous system, yet its effects and mechanism are classifiably different. The endocrine system's effects are slow to initiate, and prolonged in their response, lasting from a few hours up to weeks. The nervous system sends information very quickly, and responses are generally short lived. In vertebrates, the hypothalamus is the neural control center for all endocrine systems. The field of study dealing with the endocrine system and its disorders is endocrinology, a branch of internal medicine.[1] Special features of endocrine glands are, in general, their ductless nature, their vascularity, and commonly the presence of intracellular vacuoles or granules that store their hormones. In contrast, exocrine glands, such as salivary glands, sweat glands, and glands within the gastrointestinal tract, tend to be much less vascular and have ducts or a hollow lumen.





  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Membrane_steroid_receptor - also called extranuclear steroid receptors, are a class of receptors that bind and are activated by endogenous steroids and mediate rapid, non-genomic signaling via modulation of intracellular signaling cascades.They are another means besides classical nuclear steroid hormone receptors by which steroids mediate their biological effects.


  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Exocrine_gland - produce and secrete substances onto an epithelial surface by way of a duct. Examples of exocrine glands include sweat, salivary, mammary, ceruminous, lacrimal, sebaceous, and mucous. Exocrine glands are one of two types of glands in the human body, the other being endocrine glands, which secrete their products directly into the bloodstream. The liver and pancreas are both exocrine and endocrine glands; they are exocrine glands because they secrete products—bile and pancreatic juice—into the gastrointestinal tract through a series of ducts, and endocrine because they secrete other substances directly into the bloodstream.



  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neuromorphology - the study of nervous system form, shape, and structure. The study involves looking at a particular part of the nervous system from a molecular and cellular level and connecting it to a physiological and anatomical point of view. The field also explores the communications and interactions within and between each specialized section of the nervous system.





  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cytoarchitecture - also known as cytoarchitectonics, is the study of the cellular composition of the body's tissues under the microscope. Applied particularly to the study of the central nervous system, cytoarchitectonics is one of the ways to parse the brain, by obtaining sections of the brain and staining them with chemical agents that reveal how neurons are "stacked" into layers.







  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Receptive_field - The receptive field of an individual sensory neuron is the particular part of the body surface in which a stimulus will trigger the firing of that neuron. This surface can be a hair in the cochlea or a piece of skin, retina, tongue or other part of an animal's body. Additionally, it can be the space surrounding an animal, such as an area of auditory space that is fixed in a reference system based on the ears but that moves with the animal as it moves (the space inside the ears), or in a fixed location in space that is largely independent of the animal's location (place cells). Receptive fields have been identified for neurons of the auditory system, the somatosensory system, and the visual system.

The concept of receptive fields can be extended further up to the neural system; if many sensory receptors all form synapses with a single cell further up, they collectively form the receptive field of that cell. For example, the receptive field of a ganglion cell in the retina of the eye is composed of input from all of the photoreceptors which synapse with it, and a group of ganglion cells in turn forms the receptive field for a cell in the brain. This process is called convergence.

Central nervous system


  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grey_matter - a major component of the central nervous system, consisting of neuronal cell bodies, neuropil (dendrites and myelinated as well as unmyelinated axons), glial cells (astroglia and oligodendrocytes) and capillaries.
  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/White_matter - consists mostly of glial cells and myelinated axons that transmit signals from one region of the cerebrum to another and between the cerebrum and lower brain centers. White matter, long thought to be passive tissue, actively affects how the brain learns and functions. While grey matter is primarily associated with processing and cognition, white matter modulates the distribution of action potentials, acting as a relay and coordinating communication between different brain regions.


These act to detect the changes in pH of nearby cerebral spinal fluid (CSF) that are indicative of altered oxygen or carbon dioxide concentrations available to brain tissues. An increase in carbon dioxide causes tension of the arteries, often resulting from increased CO2 intake (hypercapnia), indirectly causes the blood to become more acidic; the cerebral spinal fluid pH is closely comparable to plasma, as carbon dioxide easily diffuses across the blood/brain barrier.

  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cerebrospinal_fluid - a clear, colorless body fluid found in the brain and spine. It is produced in the choroid plexuses of the ventricles of the brain. It acts as a cushion or buffer for the brain's cortex, providing basic mechanical and immunological protection to the brain inside the skull. The CSF also serves a vital function in cerebral autoregulation of cerebral blood flow.

The CSF occupies the subarachnoid space (between the arachnoid mater and the pia mater) and the ventricular system around and inside the brain and spinal cord. It constitutes the content of the ventricles, cisterns, and sulci of the brain, as well as the central canal of the spinal cord. There is also a connection from the subarachnoid space to the bony labyrinth of the inner ear via the perilymphatic duct where the perilymph is continuous with the cerebrospinal fluid


  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Glymphatic_system - a functional waste clearance pathway for the vertebrate central nervous system (CNS). The pathway consists of a para-arterial influx route for cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) to enter the brain parenchyma, coupled to a clearance mechanism for the removal of interstitial fluid (ISF) and extracellular solutes from the interstitial compartments of the brain and spinal cord. Exchange of solutes between the CSF and the ISF is driven by arterial pulsation and regulated during sleep by the expansion and contraction of brain extracellular space. Clearance of soluble proteins, waste products, and excess extracellular fluid is accomplished through convective bulk flow of the ISF, facilitated by/ astrocytic aquaporin 4 (AQP4) water channels. The name "glymphatic system" was coined by the Danish neuroscientist Maiken Nedergaard in recognition of its dependence upon glial cells and the similarity of its functions to those of the peripheral lymphatic system.

Brain

total biiig mess currently



  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Striatum - also known as the neostriatum or striate nucleus, is a subcortical part of the forebrain. It receives input from the cerebral cortex and is the primary input to the basal ganglia system. Functionally, the striatum helps coordinate motivation with body movement. It facilitates and balances motivation with both higher-level and lower-level functions, such as inhibiting one's behavior in a complex social interaction and fine-motor functions of inhibiting small voluntary movement.


  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Basal_ganglia - The basal ganglia (or basal nuclei) comprises multiple subcortical nuclei, of varied origin, in the brains of vertebrates, which are situated at the base of the forebrain. Basal ganglia are strongly interconnected with the cerebral cortex, thalamus, and brainstem, as well as several other brain areas. The basal ganglia is associated with a variety of functions including: control of voluntary motor movements, procedural learning, routine behaviors or "habits" such as bruxism, eye movements, cognition and emotion. Currently popular theories implicate the basal ganglia primarily in action selection; that is, it helps determine the decision of which of several possible behaviors to execute at any given time. In more specific terms, the basal ganglia's primary function is likely to control and regulate activities of the motor and premotor cortical areas so that voluntary movements can be performed smoothly



Frontal lobe




Parietal lobe
  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Parietal_lobe - integrates sensory information among various modalities, including spatial sense and navigation (proprioception), the main sensory receptive area for the sense of touch (mechanoreception) in the somatosensory cortex which is just posterior to the central sulcus in the postcentral gyrus, and the dorsal stream of the visual system. The major sensory inputs from the skin (touch, temperature, and pain receptors), relay through the thalamus to the parietal lobe. Several areas of the parietal lobe are important in language processing. The somatosensory cortex can be illustrated as a distorted figure – the homunculus (Latin: "little man"), in which the body parts are rendered according to how much of the somatosensory cortex is devoted to them. The superior parietal lobule and inferior parietal lobule are the primary areas of body or spacial awareness. A lesion commonly in the right superior or inferior parietal lobule leads to hemineglect.


  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Posterior_parietal_cortex - plays an important role in planned movements, spatial reasoning, and attention. Damage to the posterior parietal cortex can produce a variety of sensorimotor deficits, including deficits in the perception and memory of spatial relationships, inaccurate reaching and grasping, in the control of eye movement, and inattention. The two most striking consequences of PPC damage are apraxia and hemispatial neglect.


Temporal lobe


  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inferior_temporal_gyrus - This region is one of the higher levels of the ventral stream (V5) of visual processing, associated with the representation of complex object features, such as global shape. It may also be involved in face perception, and in the recognition of numbers.
    • object schemata, figure/ground, numerosity





  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dorsolateral_prefrontal_cortex - an area in the prefrontal cortex of the brain of humans and primates. It is one of the most recently evolved parts of the human brain, that undergoes an extremely prolonged period of maturation that lasts until adulthood. DLPFC is not an anatomical structure, but rather a functional one.

DLPFC is connected to the orbitofrontal cortex, and to a variety of brain areas, which include the thalamus, parts of the basal ganglia (specifically, the dorsal caudate nucleus), the hippocampus, and primary and secondary association areas of neocortex, including posterior temporal, parietal, and occipital areas. Also, DLPFC is the end point for the dorsal pathway (stream) that tells the brain how to interact with the stimuli. On the other hand, the ventrolateral prefrontal cortex (located more inferior/ventral to DLPFC) is the end point of the ventral pathway (stream) that brings information about the stimuli’s characteristics.

An important function of the DLPFC is the executive functions, such as working memory, cognitive flexibility, planning, inhibition, and abstract reasoning. However, DLPFC is not exclusively responsible for the executive functions. All complex mental activity requires the additional cortical and subcortical circuits with which the DLPFC is connected. The DLPFC is also the highest cortical area that is involved in motor planning, organization and regulation.

  • attentional selection
  • scanning of schemata
  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ventromedial_prefrontal_cortex - vmPFC) is a part of the prefrontal cortex in the mammalian brain. The ventral medial prefrontal is located in the frontal lobe at the bottom of the cerebral hemispheres and is implicated in the processing of risk and fear. It also plays a role in the inhibition of emotional responses, and in the process of decision making.

Can override stress response in




  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thalamus - situated between the cerebral cortex and the midbrain, relaying of sensory and motor signals to the cerebral cortex, and the regulation of consciousness, sleep, and alertness.


  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hypothalamic–pituitary–adrenal_axis - a complex set of direct influences and feedback interactions among three endocrine glands: the hypothalamus, the pituitary gland (a pea-shaped structure located below the hypothalamus), and the adrenal (also called "suprarenal") glands (small, conical organs on top of the kidneys). The interactions among these organs constitute the HPA axis, a major part of the neuroendocrine system that controls reactions to stress and regulates many body processes, including digestion, the immune system, mood and emotions, sexuality and energy storage and expenditure. It is the common mechanism for interactions among glands, hormones, and parts of the midbrain that mediate the general adaptation syndrome (GAS). While steroids are produced only by vertebrates, the physiological role of the HPA axis and corticosteroids in stress response is so fundamental that analogous systems can be found in invertebrates and monocellular organisms as well.
Cerebral cortex



  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Insular_cortex - often called insula, insulary cortex or insular lobe, is a portion of the cerebral cortex folded deep within the lateral sulcus (the fissure separating the temporal lobe from the parietal and frontal lobes). The insulae are believed to be involved in consciousness and play a role in diverse functions usually linked to emotion or the regulation of the body's homeostasis. These functions include perception, motor control, self-awareness, cognitive functioning, and interpersonal experience. In relation to these, it is involved in psychopathology. The insular cortex is divided into two parts: the larger anterior insula and the smaller posterior insula in which more than a dozen field areas have been identified. The cortical area overlying the insula toward the lateral surface of the brain is the operculum (meaning lid). The opercula are formed from parts of the enclosing frontal, temporal, and parietal lobes.


  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neocortex - also called the neopallium and isocortex, is the part of the mammalian brain involved in higher-order brain functions such as sensory perception, cognition, generation of motor commands, spatial reasoning and language. It is the most developed of the cerebral tissues. The neocortex is further subdivided into the true isocortex and the proisocortex. The neocortex consists of the grey matter, or neuronal cell bodies and unmyelinated fibers, surrounding the deeper white matter (myelinated axons) in the cerebrum. There are two types of cortex in the neocortex, the proisocortex and the true isocortex. The pro-isocortex is a transitional area between the true isocortex, and the periallocortex (part of the allocortex). It is found in the cingulate cortex (part of the limbic system), in Brodmann's areas 24, 25, 30 and 32, the insula and the parahippocampal gyrus.




  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anterior_cingulate_cortex - he frontal part of the cingulate cortex that resembles a "collar" surrounding the frontal part of the corpus callosum. It consists of Brodmann areas 24, 32, and 33. It appears to play a role in a wide variety of autonomic functions, such as regulating blood pressure and heart rate. It is also involved in rational cognitive functions, such as reward anticipation, decision-making, empathy, impulse control, and emotion.


  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paralimbic_cortex - an area of three-layered cortex that includes the following regions: the piriform cortex, entorhinal cortex, the parahippocampal cortex on the medial surface of the temporal lobe, and the cingulate cortex just above the corpus callosum. The paralimbic cortex lies close to, and is directly connected with, the structures of the limbic system.[1](The prefix para meaning beside or adjacent to). The paralimbic cortex, also referred to as the mesocortex, or juxtallocortex, is interposed between the neocortex and the allocortex.The paralimbic cortex provides a gradual transition from primary limbic regions, including the septal region, substantia innominata, and the amyglada nuclei, to higher neocortical regions.


  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cortical_column - also called hypercolumn, macrocolumn or sometimes cortical module, is a group of neurons in the cortex of the brain that can be successively penetrated by a probe inserted perpendicularly to the cortical surface, and which have nearly identical receptive fields. Neurons within a minicolumn encode similar features, whereas a hypercolumn "denotes a unit containing a full set of values for any given set of receptive field parameters". A cortical module is defined as either synonymous with a hypercolumn (Mountcastle) or as a tissue block of multiple overlapping hypercolumns.

It is still unclear what precisely is meant by the term, and it does not correspond to any single structure within the cortex. It has been impossible to find a canonical microcircuit that corresponds to the cortical column, and no genetic mechanism has been deciphered that designates how to construct a column. However, the columnar organization hypothesis is currently the most widely adopted to explain the cortical processing of information

Limbic system
  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Limbic_system - a complex set of brain structures located on both sides of the thalamus, right under the cerebrum. It is not a separate system but a collection of structures from the telencephalon, diencephalon, and mesencephalon. It includes the olfactory bulbs, hippocampus, amygdala, anterior thalamic nuclei, fornix, columns of fornix, mammillary body, septum pellucidum, habenular commissure, cingulate gyrus, parahippocampal gyrus, limbic cortex, and limbic midbrain areas.
  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:Limbic_system - the collective name for structures in the human brain involved in emotion, motivation, and emotional association with memory. The limbic system operates by influencing the endocrine system and the autonomic nervous system.


  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dorsal_raphe_nucleus - located on the midline of the brainstem and is part of the raphe nucleus, consisting of the rostral and caudal subdivisions. An increased number of cells in the lateral aspects of the dorsal raphe is characteristic of humans and other primates. The dorsal raphe is the largest serotonergic nucleus and provides a substantial proportion of the serotonin innervation to the forebrain. The dorsal raphe nucleus is rich in pre-synaptic serotonin 5-HT1A autoreceptors, and it's believed that the action of the selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) in this region is responsible for the latency of their antidepressant effect.

Starts fight-or-flight response if not overridden by the vmPFC




  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adrenal_gland - also known as suprarenal glands, are endocrine glands that produce a variety of hormones including adrenaline and the steroids aldosterone and cortisol. They are found above the kidneys. Each gland has an outer cortex which produces steroid hormones and an inner medulla. The adrenal cortex itself is divided into three zones: zona glomerulosa, the zona fasciculata and the zona reticularis. The adrenal cortex produces three main types of steroid hormones: mineralocorticoids, glucocorticoids, and androgens.
  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adrenal_medulla - art of the adrenal gland. It is located at the center of the gland, being surrounded by the adrenal cortex. It is the innermost part of the adrenal gland, consisting of cells that secrete epinephrine (adrenaline), norepinephrine (noradrenaline), and a small amount of dopamine in response to stimulation by sympathetic preganglionic neurons.
  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adrenal_cortex - Situated along the perimeter of the adrenal gland, the adrenal cortex mediates the stress response through the production of mineralocorticoids and glucocorticoids, such as aldosterone and cortisol, respectively. It is also a secondary site of androgen synthesis. Recent data suggest that adrenocortical cells under pathological as well as under physiological conditions show neuroendocrine properties; within the normal adrenal, this neuroendocrine differentiation seems to be restricted to cells of the zona glomerulosa and might be important for an autocrine regulation of adrenocortical function.
Endocrine system
  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Endocrine_system - refers to the collection of glands of an organism that secrete hormones directly into the circulatory system to be carried toward a distant target organ. The major endocrine glands include the pineal gland, pituitary gland, pancreas, ovaries, testes, thyroid gland, parathyroid gland, hypothalamus, gastrointestinal tract and adrenal glands. The endocrine system is in contrast to the exocrine system, which secretes its hormones using ducts. Examples of exocrine glands include the sweat glands, salivary glands, mammary glands, and liver. The endocrine system is an information signal system like the nervous system, yet its effects and mechanism are classifiably different. The endocrine system's effects are slow to initiate, and prolonged in their response, lasting from a few hours up to weeks. The nervous system sends information very quickly, and responses are generally short lived. In vertebrates, the hypothalamus is the neural control center for all endocrine systems. The field of study dealing with the endocrine system and its disorders is endocrinology, a branch of internal medicine.


Exocrine system
to sort


Metencephalon
  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Metencephalon - composed of the pons and the cerebellum; contains a portion of the fourth ventricle; and the trigeminal nerve (CN V), abducens nerve (CN VI), facial nerve (CN VII), and a portion of the vestibulocochlear nerve (CN VIII).
  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cerebellum - (Latin for "little brain") is a region of the brain that plays an important role in motor control. It may also be involved in some cognitive functions such as attention and language, and in regulating fear and pleasure responses; its movement-related functions are the most solidly established. The cerebellum does not initiate movement, but it contributes to coordination, precision, and accurate timing. It receives input from sensory systems of the spinal cord and from other parts of the brain, and integrates these inputs to fine tune motor activity. Cerebellar damage does not cause paralysis, but instead produces disorders in fine movement, equilibrium, posture, and motor learning.



  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Terminal_nerve - or cranial nerve zero, found very close to (and often confused for a branch of) the olfactory nerve, the terminal nerve is not connected to the olfactory bulb, where smells are analyzed. This fact suggests that the nerve is either vestigial or may be related to the sensing of pheromones. This hypothesis is further supported by the fact that the terminal nerve projects to the medial and lateral septal nuclei and the preoptic areas, all of which are involved in regulating sexual behavior in mammals.
  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Olfactory_nerve - typically considered the first cranial nerve, or simply CN I. It contains the afferent nerve fibers of the olfactory receptor neurons, transmitting nerve impulses about odors to the central nervous system, where they are perceived by the sense of smell (olfaction). Derived from the embryonic nasal placode, the olfactory nerve is somewhat unique among cranial nerves because it is capable of some regeneration if damaged. The olfactory nerve is sensory in nature and originates on the olfactory mucosa in the upper part of the nasal cavity. From the olfactory mucosa, the nerve (actually many small nerve fascicles) travels up through the cribriform plate of the ethmoid bone to reach the surface of the brain. Here the fascicles enter the olfactory bulb and synapse there; from the bulbs (one on each side) the olfactory information is transmitted into the brain via the olfactory tract.
  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Optic_nerve - also known as cranial nerve II, is a paired nerve that transmits visual information from the retina to the brain. The optic nerve is derived from optic stalks during the seventh week of development and is composed of retinal ganglion cell axons and glial cells. In humans, the optic nerve extends from the optic disc to the optic chiasm and continues as the optic tract to the lateral geniculate nucleus, pretectal nuclei, and superior colliculus. The optic nerve is the second of twelve paired cranial nerves and is technically part of the central nervous system, rather than the peripheral nervous system because it is derived from an out-pouching of the diencephalon (optic stalks) during embryonic development. As a consequence, the fibers of the optic nerve are covered with myelin produced by oligodendrocytes, rather than Schwann cells of the peripheral nervous system, and are encased within the meninges. Peripheral neuropathies like Guillain–Barré syndrome do not affect the optic nerve. However, most typically the optic nerve is grouped with the other eleven cranial nerves and considered to be part of the peripheral nervous system.
  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oculomotor_nerve - the third cranial nerve. It enters the orbit via the superior orbital fissure and innervates muscles that enable most movements of the eye and that raise the eyelid. The nerve also contains fibers that innervate the muscles that enable pupillary constriction and accommodation (ability to focus on near objects as in reading). The oculomotor nerve is derived from the basal plate of the embryonic midbrain. Cranial nerves IV and VI also participate in control of eye movement.
  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trochlear_nerve - also called the fourth cranial nerve or cranial nerve IV, is a motor nerve (a somatic efferent nerve) that innervates only a single muscle: the superior oblique muscle of the eye, which operates through the pulley-like trochlea. The trochlear nerve is unique among the cranial nerves in several respects: It is the smallest nerve in terms of the number of axons it contains; It has the greatest intracranial length; It is the only cranial nerve that exits from the dorsal (rear) aspect of the brainstem; It innervates a muscle, Superior Oblique muscle, on the opposite side (contralateral) from its origin. Homologous trochlear nerves are found in all jawed vertebrates. The unique features of the trochlear nerve, including its dorsal exit from the brainstem and its contralateral innervation, are seen in the primitive brains of sharks. The human trochlear nerve is derived from the basal plate of the embryonic midbrain.
  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trigeminal_nerve - the fifth cranial nerve, or simply CN V) is a nerve responsible for sensation in the face and motor functions such as biting and chewing. The largest of the cranial nerves, its name ("trigeminal" = tri-, or three and -geminus, or twin; thrice-twinned) derives from the fact that each trigeminal nerve (one on each side of the pons) has three major branches: the ophthalmic nerve (V1), the maxillary nerve (V2), and the mandibular nerve (V3). The ophthalmic and maxillary nerves are purely sensory, and the mandibular nerve has sensory (or "cutaneous") and motor functions. Sensory information from the face and body is processed by parallel pathways in the central nervous system. The motor division of the trigeminal nerve derives from the basal plate of the embryonic pons, and the sensory division originates in the cranial neural crest.
  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abducens_nerve - abducent nerve (the sixth cranial nerve, also called the sixth nerve or simply CNVI) is a somatic efferent nerve that, in humans, controls the movement of a single muscle, the lateral rectus muscle of the eye.
  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Facial_nerve - the seventh cranial nerve, or simply cranial nerve VII. It emerges from the brainstem between the pons and the medulla, controls the muscles of facial expression, and functions in the conveyance of taste sensations from the anterior two-thirds of the tongue and oral cavity. It also supplies preganglionic parasympathetic fibers to several head and neck ganglia.
  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Glossopharyngeal_nerve - the ninth cranial nerve (CN IX), is a mixed nerve that carries afferent sensory and efferent motor information. It exits the brainstem out from the sides of the upper medulla, just rostral (closer to the nose) to the vagus nerve. The motor division of the glossopharyngeal nerve is derived from the basal plate of the embryonic medulla oblongata, while the sensory division originates from the cranial neural crest.


  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vagus_nerve - the tenth cranial nerve or CN X, and interfaces with parasympathetic control of the heart, lungs and digestive tract. The vagus nerves are paired; however, they are normally referred to in the singular. It is the longest nerve of the autonomic nervous system in the human body.





Occipital lobe
  • V2 - stable image
  • V3 - colour, motion
  • V4 - simple geometry
  • V5 - object motion
  • V6 - ego motion




  • Entrainment to Video Displays in Primary Visual Cortex of Macaque and Humans - Cathode ray tubes (CRTs) display images refreshed at high frequency, and the temporal waveform of each pixel is a luminance impulse only a few milliseconds long. Although humans are perceptually oblivious to this flicker, we show in V1 in macaque monkeys and in humans that extracellularly recorded action potentials (spikes) and visual-evoked potentials (VEPs) align with the video impulses, particularly when high-contrast stimuli are viewed. Of 91 single units analyzed in macaque with a 60 Hz video refresh, 29 cells (32%) significantly locked their firing to a uniform luminance display, but their number increased to 75 (82%) when high-contrast stimuli were shown. Of 92 cells exposed to a 100 Hz refresh, 21 (23%) significantly phase locked to high-contrast stimuli. Phase locking occurred in both input and output layers of V1 for simple and complex cells, regardless of preferred temporal frequency. VEPs recorded in humans showed significant phase locking to the video refresh in all seven observers. Like the monkey neurons, human VEPs more typically phase locked to stimuli containing spatial contrast than to spatially uniform stimuli. Phase locking decreased when the refresh rate was increased. Thus in humans and macaques phase locking to the high strobe frequency of a CRT is enhanced by a salient spatial pattern, although the perceptual impact is uncertain. We note that a billion people worldwide manage to watch TV without obvious distortion of their visual perception despite extraordinary phase locking of their V1s to a 50 or 60 Hz signal.

Spinal chord

Peripheral nervous system

  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peripheral_nervous_system - the part of the nervous system that consists of the nerves and ganglia outside of the brain and spinal cord. The main function of the PNS is to connect the central nervous system (CNS) to the limbs and organs, essentially serving as a communication relay going back and forth between the brain and spinal cord with the rest of the body. Unlike the CNS, the PNS is not protected by the bone of spine and skull, or by the blood–brain barrier, which leaves it exposed to toxins and mechanical injuries. The peripheral nervous system is mainly divided into the somatic nervous system and the autonomic nervous system. In the somatic nervous system, the cranial nerves are part of the PNS with the exception of cranial nerve II, the optic nerve, along with the retina. The second cranial nerve is not a true peripheral nerve but a tract of the diencephalon. Cranial nerve ganglia originate in the CNS. However, the remaining ten cranial nerve axons extend beyond the brain and are therefore considered part of the PNS. The Autonomic nervous system is an involuntary control of smooth muscle. The connection between CNS and organs allows the system to be in two different functional states: sympathetic and parasympathetic.




  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ganglion - a nerve cell cluster or a group of nerve cell bodies located in the peripheral nervous system. Cells found in a ganglion are called ganglion cells, though this term is also sometimes used to refer specifically to retinal ganglion cells.

Somatic nervous system

  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Somatic_nervous_system - associated with the voluntary control of body movements via skeletal muscles, consists of efferent nerves responsible for stimulating muscle contraction, including all the non-sensory neurons connected with skeletal muscles and skin.

Autonomic nervous system

  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Autonomic_nervous_system - visceral nervous system or involuntary nervous system, acts as a control system that functions largely below the level of consciousness to control visceral functions, including heart rate, digestion, respiratory rate, salivation, perspiration, pupillary dilation, micturition (urination), sexual arousal, breathing and swallowing. Most autonomous functions are involuntary but they can often work in conjunction with the somatic nervous system which provides voluntary control.





Sympathetic
Parasympathetic

CNs III, VII, IX, X

Enteric
Social

Medulla

CNs V, VII, IX, X, XI

to sort


  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Somatosensory_system also somatosensory nervous system) is a complex system of nerve cells that responds to changes to the surface or internal state of the body. Nerve cells called "sensory receptors" (including thermoreceptors, mechanoreceptors, chemoreceptors and nociceptors) send signals along a chain of nerve cells to the spinal cord where they may be processed by other nerve cells and then relayed to the brain for further processing. Sensory receptors are found in many parts of the body including the skin, epithelial tissues, skeletal muscles, bones and joints, internal organs, and the cardiovascular system.

Somatic senses are sometimes referred to as somesthetic senses, with the understanding that somesthesis includes the sense of touch, proprioception (sense of position and movement), and (depending on usage) also haptic perception. The mapping of the body surfaces in the brain is called a homunculus and plays a fundamental role in the creation of body image. This brain-surface ("cortical") map is not immutable, however. Dramatic shifts can occur in response to stroke or injury.








Default Mode Network

  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Default_mode_network - (DMN) is a network of brain regions that are active when the individual is not focused on the outside world and the brain is at wakeful rest. Also called the default network, default state network, or task-negative network, the DMS is characterized by coherent neuronal oscillations at a rate lower than 0.1 Hz (one every ten seconds). During goal-oriented activity, the DMN is deactivated and another network, the task-positive network (TPN) is activated. The DMN may correspond to task-independent introspection, or self-referential thought, while the TPN corresponds to action, and thus perhaps the DMN and TPN may be "considered elements of a single default network with anti-correlated components".




Systems


Cardiovascular



  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cardiac_conduction_system - CCS (also called the electrical conduction system of the heart) transmits the signals generated by the sinoatrial node – the heart's pacemaker, to cause the heart muscle to contract, and pump blood through the body's circulatory system. The pacemaking signal travels through the right atrium to the atrioventricular node, along the bundle of His, and through the bundle branches to Purkinje fibers in the walls of the ventricles. The Purkinje fibers transmit the signals more rapidly to stimulate contraction of the ventricles.


  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pacemaker_current - also called funny current, is an electric current in the heart that flows through the HCN channel or pacemaker channel. Such channels are important parts of the electrical conduction system of the heart and form a component of the natural pacemaker.

Integumentary

Skin


Fat


Musculoskeletal

Bone



Muscle

See also Activities#Manual therapy


  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Smooth_muscle - an involuntary non-striated muscle. It is divided into two subgroups; the single-unit (unitary) and multiunit smooth muscle. Within single-unit cells, the whole bundle or sheet contracts as a syncytium. Smooth muscle cells are found in the walls of hollow organs, including the stomach, intestines, urinary bladder and uterus, and in the walls of passageways, such as the arteries and veins of the circulatory system, and the tracts of the respiratory, urinary, and reproductive systems. These cells are also present in the eyes and are able to change the size of the iris and alter the shape of the lens. In the skin, smooth muscle cells cause hair to stand erect in response to cold temperature or fear.


  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cardiac_muscle - also called heart muscle or myocardium, is one of three types of vertebrate muscles, with the other two being skeletal and smooth muscles. It is an involuntary, striated muscle that constitutes the main tissue of the walls of the heart. The myocardium forms a thick middle layer between the outer layer of the heart wall (the epicardium) and the inner layer (the endocardium), with blood supplied via the coronary circulation. It is composed of individual heart muscle cells (cardiomyocytes) joined together by intercalated discs, encased by collagen fibres and other substances forming the extracellular matrix.


  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Striated_muscle_tissue - a muscle tissue that features repeating functional units called sarcomeres, in contrast with smooth muscle tissue which does not. The presence of sarcomeres manifests as a series of bands visible along the muscle fibers, which is responsible for the striated appearance observed in microscopic images of this tissue.


  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Skeletal_muscle - one of three major muscle types, the others being cardiac muscle and smooth muscle. It is a form of striated muscle tissue which is under the voluntary control of the somatic nervous system. Most skeletal muscles are attached to bones by bundles of collagen fibers known as tendons.

A skeletal muscle refers to multiple bundles (fascicles) of cells called muscle fibers. The fibres and muscles are surrounded by connective tissue layers called fasciae. Muscle fibres, or muscle cells, are formed from the fusion of developmental myoblasts in a process known as myogenesis. Muscle fibres are cylindrical, and have more than one nucleus. They also have multiple mitochondria to meet energy needs. Muscle fibers are in turn composed of myofibrils. The myofibrils are composed of actin and myosin filaments, repeated in units called sarcomeres, which are the basic functional units of the muscle fiber. The sarcomere is responsible for the striated appearance of skeletal muscle, and forms the basic machinery necessary for muscle contraction.


  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Intrafusal_muscle_fiber - skeletal muscle fibers that serve as specialized sensory organs (proprioceptors) that detect the amount and rate of change in length of a muscle. They constitute the muscle spindle and are innervated by two axons, one sensory and one motor. Intrafusal muscle fibers are walled off from the rest of the muscle by a collagen sheath. This sheath has a spindle or "fusiform" shape, hence the name "intrafusal".


  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Muscle_spindle - are stretch receptors within the body of a muscle that primarily detect changes in the length of the muscle. They convey length information to the central nervous system via afferent nerve fibers. This information can be processed by the brain to determine the position of body parts. The responses of muscle spindles to changes in length also play an important role in regulating the contraction of muscles, by activating motor neurons via the stretch reflex to resist muscle stretch.
  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Type_Ia_sensory_fiber - a type of afferent nerve fiber. It is the sensory fiber of a stretch receptor found in muscles called the muscle spindle, which constantly monitors how fast a muscle stretch changes. (In other words, it monitors the velocity of the stretch).
  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Golgi_tendon_organ - also called Golgi organ, tendon organ, neurotendinous organ or neurotendinous spindle, is a proprioceptive sensory receptor organ that senses changes in muscle tension. It lies at the origins and insertion of skeletal muscle fibers into the tendons of skeletal muscle. It provides the sensory component of the Golgi tendon reflex. The Golgi organ is different from the Golgi apparatus, which is an organelle in the eukaryotic cell, or the Golgi stain, which is a histologic stain for neuron cell bodies. All of these are named after the Italian physician Camillo Golgi.
  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Type_II_sensory_fiber - a type of sensory fiber, the second of the two main groups of stretch receptors. They are non-adapting, meaning that even when there is no change in muscle length, they keep responding to stimuli. In the body, Type II fibers are the second most highly myelinated fibers. Type II sensory neurons are pseudounipolar and their reside in ganglia either in the dorsal horn or the brainstem. The muscle's instantaneous length, or position, is directly proportional to their firing rate. This information would indicate the position of one's leg once it has stopped moving. They do not respond to rate of length changes as do the Ia fibers.



Trigger points
  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Myofascial_trigger_point - also known as trigger points, are described as hyperirritable spots in the fascia surrounding skeletal muscle. They are associated with palpable nodules in taut bands of muscle fibers. They are a topic of ongoing controversy, as there is limited data to inform a scientific understanding of the phenomenon. Accordingly, a formal acceptance of myofascial "knots" as an identifiable source of pain is more common among bodyworkers, physical therapists, chiropractors, and osteopathic practitioners. Nonetheless, the concept of trigger points provides a framework which may be used to help address certain musculoskeletal pain.

The trigger point model states that unexplained pain frequently radiates from these points of local tenderness to broader areas, sometimes distant from the trigger point itself. Practitioners claim to have identified reliable referred pain patterns which associate pain in one location with trigger points else... to explain how they arise and why they produce specific patterns of referred pain. Compression of a trigger point may elicit local tenderness, referred pain, or local twitch response. The local twitch response is not the same as a muscle spasm. This is because a muscle spasm refers to the entire muscle contracting whereas the local twitch response also refers to the entire muscle but only involves a small twitch, no contraction.

Among physicians, various specialists might use trigger point therapy. These include physiatrists (physicians specializing in physical medicine and rehabilitation), family medicine, and orthopedics. Osteopathic as well as chiropractic schools also include trigger points in their training.[3] Other health professionals, such as athletic trainers, occupational therapists, physiotherapists, acupuncturists, massage therapists and structural integrators are also aware of these ideas and many of them make use of trigger points in their clinical work as well.



Connective tissue

  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Connective_tissue - one of the four basic types of animal tissue, along with epithelial tissue, muscle tissue, and nervous tissue. It develops from the mesoderm. Connective tissue is found in between other tissues everywhere in the body, including the nervous system. In the central nervous system, the three outer membranes (the meninges) that envelop the brain and spinal cord are composed of connective tissue. They support and protect the body. All connective tissue consists of three main components: fibers (elastic and collagenous fibers), ground substance and cells. Not all authorities include blood or lymph as connective tissue because they lack the fiber component. All are immersed in the body water. The cells of connective tissue include fibroblasts, adipocytes, macrophages, mast cells and leucocytes. The term "connective tissue" (in German, Bindegewebe) was introduced in 1830 by Johannes Peter Müller. The tissue was already recognized as a distinct class in the 18th century.


  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Loose_connective_tissue - a category of connective tissue which includes areolar tissue, reticular tissue, and adipose tissue. Loose connective tissue is the most common type of connective tissue in vertebrates. It holds organs in place and attaches epithelial tissue to other underlying tissues. For example, it forms telae, such as the tela submucosa and tela subserosa, which connect mucous and serous membranes to the muscular layer. It also surrounds the blood vessels and nerves. Cells called fibroblasts are widely dispersed in this tissue; they are irregular branching cells that secrete strong fibrous proteins and proteoglycans as an extracellular matrix. The cells of this type of tissue are generally separated by quite some distance by a gelatinous substance primarily made up of collagenous and elastic fibers.


  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dense_connective_tissue - also called dense fibrous tissue, is a type of connective tissue with fibers as its main matrix element. The fibers are mainly composed of type I collagen. Crowded between the collagen fibers are rows of fibroblasts, fiber-forming cells, that generate the fibers. Dense connective tissue forms strong, rope-like structures such as tendons and ligaments. Tendons attach skeletal muscles to bones; ligaments connect bones to bones at joints. Ligaments are more stretchy and contain more elastic fibers than tendons. Dense connective tissue also make up the lower layers of the skin (dermis), where it is arranged in sheets.


  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Collagen - the main structural protein in the extracellular space in the various connective tissues in animal bodies. As the main component of connective tissue, it is the most abundant protein in mammals, making 25% to 35% of the whole-body protein content. Collagen consists of amino acids wound together to form triple-helices to form of elongated fibrils. It is mostly found in fibrous tissues such as tendons, ligaments and skin. Depending upon the degree of mineralization, collagen tissues may be either rigid (bone) or compliant (tendon) or have a gradient from rigid to compliant (cartilage). It is also abundant in corneas, blood vessels, the gut, intervertebral discs, and the dentin in teeth. In muscle tissue, it serves as a major component of the endomysium. Collagen constitutes one to two percent of muscle tissue and accounts for 6% of the weight of strong, tendinous muscles. The fibroblast is the most common cell that creates collagen. Gelatin, which is used in food and industry, is collagen that has been irreversibly hydrolyzed. Collagen also has many medical uses in treating complications of the bones and skin.

The name collagen comes from the Greek κόλλα (kólla), meaning "glue", and suffix -γέν, -gen, denoting "producing". This refers to the compound's early use in the process of boiling the skin and tendons of horses and other animals to obtain glue.


Ligament
  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ligament - the fibrous connective tissue that connects bones to other bones. It is also known as articular ligament, articular larua, fibrous ligament, or true ligament. Other ligaments in the body include the: Peritoneal ligament: a fold of peritoneum or other membranes, Fetal remnant ligament: the remnants of a fetal tubular structure, Periodontal ligament: a group of fibers that attach the cementum of teeth to the surrounding alveolar bone.

Ligaments are similar to tendons and fasciae as they are all made of connective tissue. The differences in them are in the connections that they make: ligaments connect one bone to another bone, tendons connect muscle to bone, and fasciae connect muscles to other muscles. These are all found in the skeletal system of the human body. Ligaments cannot usually be regenerated naturally; however, there are periodontal ligament stem cells located near the periodontal ligament which are involved in the adult regeneration of periodontal ligament.

The study of ligaments is known as desmology (from Greek δεσμός, desmos, "bond"; and -λογία, -logia).


Fascia
  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fascia - a band or sheet of connective tissue, primarily collagen, beneath the skin that attaches, stabilizes, encloses, and separates muscles and other internal organs. Fascia is classified by layer, as superficial fascia, deep fascia, and visceral or parietal fascia, or by its function and anatomical location. Like ligaments, aponeuroses, and tendons, fascia is made up of fibrous connective tissue containing closely packed bundles of collagen fibers oriented in a wavy pattern parallel to the direction of pull. Fascia is consequently flexible and able to resist great unidirectional tension forces until the wavy pattern of fibers has been straightened out by the pulling force. These collagen fibers are produced by fibroblasts located within the fascia.Fasciae are similar to ligaments and tendons as they have collagen as their major component. They differ in their location and function: ligaments join one bone to another bone, tendons join muscle to bone, and fasciae surround muscles and other structures.
Tendon


Teeth





Microbiome

  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Microbiome - is "the ecological community of commensal, symbiotic, and pathogenic microorganisms that literally share our body space." Joshua Lederberg coined the term, arguing the importance of microorganisms inhabiting the human body in health and disease. Many scientific articles distinguish "microbiome" and "microbiota" to describe either the collective genomes of the microorganisms that reside in an environmental niche or the microorganisms themselves, respectively. However by the original definitions these terms are largely synonymous.

The human body contains over 10 times more microbial cells than human cells, although the entire microbiome only weighs about 200 grams (7.1 oz), with some weight estimates ranging as high as 3 pounds (approximately 48 ounces or 1,400 grams). Some regard it as a "newly discovered organ" since its existence was not generally recognized until the late 1990s and it is understood to have potentially overwhelming impact on human health. Modern techniques for sequencing DNA have enabled researchers to find the majority of these microbes, since the majority of them cannot be cultured in a lab using current techniques. The human microbiome may have a role in auto-immune diseases like diabetes, rheumatoid arthritis, muscular dystrophy, multiple sclerosis, fibromyalgia, and perhaps some cancers. A poor mix of microbes in the gut may also aggravate common obesity. Since some of the microbes in our body can modify the production of neurotransmitters known to be found in the brain, we may also find some relief for schizophrenia, depression, bipolar disorder and other neuro-chemical imbalances.

The microbes being discussed are generally non-pathogenic (they do not cause disease unless they grow abnormally); they exist in harmony and symbiotically with their hosts.

Researchers have learned that much of the population of microbes found in the human body are not bacteria but belong to a very old biological domain of single-celled organisms called archaea.

  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Human_microbiome - the aggregate of microorganisms, a microbiome that resides on the surface and in deep layers of skin (including in mammary glands), in the saliva and oral mucosa, in the conjunctiva, and in the gastrointestinal tracts. They include bacteria, fungi, and archaea. One study indicated they outnumber human cells 10 to 1. Some of these organisms perform tasks that are useful for the human host. However, the majority have been too poorly researched for us to understand the role they play, however communities of microflora have been shown to change their behavior in diseased individuals. Those that are expected to be present, and that under normal circumstances do not cause disease, but instead participate in maintaining health, are deemed members of the normal flora.

Though widely known as "microflora", this is, in technical terms, a misnomer, since the word root "flora" pertains to plants, and biota refers to the total collection of organisms in a particular ecosystem. Recently, the more appropriate term "microbiota" is applied, though its use has not eclipsed the entrenched use and recognition of "flora" with regard to bacteria and other microorganisms. Both terms are being used in different literature. Studies in 2009 questioned whether the decline in biota (including microfauna) as a result of human intervention might impede human health.

Most of the microbes associated with humans appear to be not harmful at all, but rather assist in maintaining processes necessary for a healthy body. A surprising finding was that at specific sites on the body, a different set of microbes may perform the same function for different people. For example, on the tongues of two people, two entirely different sets of organisms will break down sugars in the same way. This suggests that medical science may be forced to abandon the "one only" microbe model of infectious disease, and rather pay attention to functions of groups of microbes that have somehow gone awry







Gut




Skin

"Human sweat becomes more enticing to A.gambiae after it is incubated with skin bacteria for a few days. Even on their own, the bacteria can produce airborne chemicals that attract mosquitoes. ... People with lots of Staphylococcus or Variovorax were more attractive, while those rich in Pseudomonas, Leptotrichia, Delftia and Actinobacteria were not."

Brain?

Reproductive

Areas

Leg/pelvis

Back


Desks

Standing desks force you to face up existing posture tensions and imbalances of muscle strength.



next level?;



Feet

Socks

Shoes




Heels

Socks

Lacing

  • BullDog Laces - High quality replacement bootlaces for 8, 10, 14, 20 and 30+ hole boots. Free UK delivery, buy 4 pairs get 5th pair free
  • Ian's Shoelace Site - Bringing you the fun, fashion & science of shoelaces [44]
    • Shoe Lacing - Are all of your shoes, sneakers and boots still laced up the way they were when you bought them? This section presents some of the many fascinating ways of lacing, either for different functions or just for appearances. Why not take the plunge? Whip out those laces and re-do them to suit your needs or personality.
    • Ian Knot - Ian's Fast Shoelace Knot]
  • Ukrainian Lacing is a technique that fixes all major problems of conventional shoe lacing with no tails, at the same time doing a knot remains habitual.

Sprains and strains


Chronic

Tremors

Vision

  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phosphene - the phenomenon of seeing light without light entering the eye. The word phosphene comes from the Greek words phos (light) and phainein (to show). Phosphenes that are induced by movement or sound may be associated with optic neuritis. Phosphenes can be induced by mechanical, electrical, or magnetic stimulation of the retina or visual cortex, or by random firing of cells in the visual system. Phosphenes have also been reported by meditators (called nimitta), people who endure long periods without visual stimulation (the prisoner's cinema), or those who ingest psychedelic drugs.


Eyes

Glasses


SAD light

to sort

  • Be My Eyes - a free app that connects blind and low-vision people with sighted volunteers and company representatives for visual assistance through a live video call.

Voice


Jaw

  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jaw - any opposable articulated structure at the entrance of the mouth, typically used for grasping and manipulating food. The term jaws is also broadly applied to the whole of the structures constituting the vault of the mouth and serving to open and close it and is part of the body plan of humans and most animals.


  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trismus - commonly called lockjaw as associated with tetanus, is a condition of limited jaw mobility. It may be caused by spasm of the muscles of mastication or a variety of other causes.


  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bruxism - excessive teeth grinding or jaw clenching. It is an oral parafunctional activity; i.e., it is unrelated to normal function such as eating or talking. Bruxism is a common behavior; reports of prevalence range from 8% to 31% in the general population. Several symptoms are commonly associated with bruxism, including aching jaw muscles, headaches, hypersensitive teeth, tooth wear, and damage to dental restorations . Symptoms may be minimal, without patient awareness of the condition. If nothing is done, after a while many teeth start wearing down until the whole tooth is gone.

There are two main types of bruxism: one occurs during sleep and one during wakefulness . Dental damage may be similar in both types, but the symptoms of sleep bruxism tend to be worse on waking and improve during the course of the day, and the symptoms of awake bruxism may not be present at all on waking, and then worsen over the day.

The causes of bruxism are not completely understood, but probably involve multiple factors. Awake bruxism is more common in women, whereas men and women are affected in equal proportions by sleep bruxism. Awake bruxism is thought to have different causes from sleep bruxism. Several treatments are in use, although there is little evidence of robust efficacy for any particular treatment

Throat



Hearing





  • The eardrums move when the eyes move: A multisensory effect on the mechanics of hearing - The peripheral hearing system contains several motor mechanisms that allow the brain to modify the auditory transduction process. Movements or tensioning of either the middle ear muscles or the outer hair cells modifies eardrum motion, producing sounds that can be detected by a microphone placed in the ear canal (e.g., as otoacoustic emissions). Here, we report a form of eardrum motion produced by the brain via these systems: oscillations synchronized with and covarying with the direction and amplitude of saccades. These observations suggest that a vision-related process modulates the first stage of hearing. In particular, these eye movement-related eardrum oscillations may help the brain connect sights and sounds despite changes in the spatial relationship between the eyes and the ears. [50]


  • Open community platform for hearing aid algorithm research - Open community platform for hearing aid algorithm research funded by the National Institutes of Health (NIH Grant 1R01DC015429-01) aims at sustainable, focused research towards improvement and new types of assistive hearing systems.


Nose

Natural sea salt without anti-caking agent and non-iodised



Hair

Shaving

See also Making#Sharpening

No poo

rye flour

Female hygiene



Soap

Learning

See Learning


Herbology

Supplements



Toilet




  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bidet - a plumbing fixture or type of sink intended for washing the genitalia, perineum, inner buttocks, and anus of the human body. It may be located next to the toilet in the toilet room. Fixtures that combine a toilet seat with a bidet, which may be electronic, are available.


Other

DNA

Work

Pain

  • Pains Science - reviews your treatment options for many common painful problems, and explains the nature of the pain beast, with hundreds of articles and several especially huge self-help guides. The site is written mainly for patients, but it’s also heavily referenced for health care pros.
Retrieved from "https://wiki.thingsandstuff.org/index.php?title=Body&oldid=61605"