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Medicine Notes Neurology Notes

Introduction To The Nervous System Notes

Updated Introduction To The Nervous System Notes

Neurology Notes

Neurology

Approximately 117 pages

These notes helped me achieve a mark of 76% in my neurology exam, which is the equivalent of a 1st. The notes are based on a series of 49 lectures on the subject. This is a very good, thorough and in depth review of the nervous system. They are very clearly laid out and easy to follow. They cut out unnecessary information on the topic, making the notes very concise, and fast to get through. Anyone studying medicine, or any other subject requiring knowledge of the nervous system (e.g. physiology o...

The following is a more accessible plain text extract of the PDF sample above, taken from our Neurology Notes. Due to the challenges of extracting text from PDFs, it will have odd formatting:

Lecture 1

Introduction to the Nervous System

  • Basic organisation of the NS

    • SENSORY PNS (all lead to CNS)

      • Sensory NS

        • Somatic and special sensory receptors on neurons

      • Afferent NS

        • Autonomic sensory receptors and neurons

      • Efferent NS

        • Sensory receptors in GI tract and enteric plexus

        • leads to motor neurons too

    • MOTOR PNS EFFECTORS

      • Somatic motor neurons (voluntary) Skeletal muscle

      • Autonomic motor neurons (involuntary) SNS & PSNS divisions

        • Smooth muscle, cardiac muscle, glands and adipose tissue

        • Enteric motor neurons (involuntary) in enteric plexuses (MOTOR PNS)

          • Smooth muscle, glands, and endocrine cells of GI tract

  • Synaptic transmission (sequence of events)

    • Action potential at axon terminal

    • Ca2+ channels openIncrease intracellular Ca2+ conc.= Neurotransmitter released

    • Neurotransmitter diffuses across synaptic cleft and binds to specific receptors

    • Postsynaptic potential generated

      • Na+= depolarisation= EPSP (Excitatory PostSynaptic Potential)

      • Cl-= hyperpolarisation= IPSP (Inhibitory PostSynaptic Potential)

    • Local currents spread along cell membrane

  • Comparison of nervous and endocrine systems

    • Mediator molecules

      • NS= Neurotransmitters released in response to nerve impulses

      • ES= Hormones delivered to tissues throughout body by blood

    • Cells affected

      • NS= Muscles, glands, other neurons

      • ES= Virtually all body cells

    • Time of onset of action

      • NS= Typically milliseconds

      • ES= Seconds to hours to days

    • Duration of action

      • NS= Generally brief

      • ES= Generally longer

  • Heterogeneity of chemical signals in the NS

    • Msec-Sec

      • Impulse conduction

      • Transmitter release

      • Fast synaptic transmission

    • Sec-Min

      • Slow synaptic transmission

      • Neuromodulation

    • Min-Hour-Day

      • Synaptic plasticity

      • Delayed pharmacological effects

      • Pharmacological tolerance

    • Day-Month/Year

      • Structural remodelling

    • Month/Year

      • Degeneration, regeneration and repair (limited in CNS)

  • Lesions

    • Destructive cortical lesions (right handed)

      • Frontal

        • Intellectual impairment; Personality change; Urinary incontinence; Mono/Hemiparesis

      • Frontal, left

        • Broca’s (expressive) aphasia

      • Tempero-Parietal, left

        • Acalculia (difficulty with simple math)

        • Alexia, Agraphia (no reading/writing)

        • Wernicke’s (receptive) aphasia

        • Right-left disorientation; Homonymous field defect

      • Temporal, right

        • Confusional states; Failure to recognise faces; Homonymous field...

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