2. The Control of Movement
- Three categories of vertebrate muscles include:
-
- Smooth muscles -control the digestive system and other
organs
-
- Skeletal muscles/striated muscles -control movement of the body
in relation to the environment.
-
- Cardiac muscles -heart muscles that have properties of skeletal
and smooth muscles
3. Fig. 8-1, p. 233 4. The Control of Movement
- Muscles are composed of many individual fibers.
-
- The fewer muscle fibers an axon innervates, the greater the
precision of movement.
- A neuromuscular junction is a synapse where a motor neuron axon
meets a muscle fiber.
-
- In skeletal muscles, axons release acetylcholine which excite
the muscle to contract.
5. The Control of Movement
- Movement requires the alternating contraction of opposing sets
of muscles calledantagonistic muscles .
- Aflexor muscleis one that flexes or raises an appendage.
- Anextensor muscleis one that extends an appendage or
straightens it.
6. Fig. 8-3, p. 233 7. The Control of Movement
- Myasthenia gravisis an autoimmune disease in which the immune
system forms antibodies that attack the acetylcholine receptors at
neuromuscular junctions.
-
- Causes the progressive weakness and rapid fatigue of the
skeletal muscles.
8. The Control of Movement
- Skeletal muscle types range from:
-
- Fast-twitch - fibers produce fast contractions but fatigue
rapidly.
-
- Slow-twitch - fibers produce less vigorous contraction without
fatiguing.
- People vary in their percentage of fast-twitch and slow-twitch
muscles.
9. The Control of Movement
- Slow-twitch fibers areaerobicand require oxygen during movement
and therefore do not fatigue.
-
- Nonstrenuous activities utilize slow-twitch and intermediate
fibers.
- Fast-twitch fibers areanaerobicand use reactions that do not
require oxygen, resulting in fatigue.
-
- Behaviors requiring quick movements utilize fast-twitch
fibers.
10. The Control of Movement
- The human anatomy is specialized for endurance in running.
-
- Reflected in the shape of our toes, leg bones, muscles and
tendons and the high percentage of slow-twitch muscles in our
legs.
-
- Extensive sweat glands and reduced body hair improve
temperature regulation.
11. The Control of Movement
- Proprioceptorsare receptors that detect the position or
movement of a part of the body and help regulate movement.
- Amuscle spindleis a kind of proprioceptor parallel to the
muscle that responds to a stretch.
-
- causes a contraction of the muscle .
- Stretch reflexoccurs when muscle proprioceptors detect the
stretch and tension of a muscle and send messages to the spinal
cord to contract it.
-
- allows fluidity of movement.
12. Fig. 8-5, p. 235 13. The Control of Movement
- TheGolgi tendon organis another type of proprioceptor that
responds to increases in muscle tension.
- Located in the tendons at the opposite ends of the muscle.
- Acts as a brake against excessively vigorous contraction by
sending an impulse to the spinal cord where motor neurons are
inhibited.
14. The Control of Movement
- Reflexesare involuntary, consistent, andautomatic responses to
stimuli.
- Infants have several reflexes not seen in adults:
-
- Grasp reflex -grasps objects placed in the hand.
-
- Babinski reflex -extends big toe and fans others when the sole
of the foot is stroked.
-
- Rooting reflex -turns head and sucks when cheek is
stimulated.
15. Fig. 8-6, p. 236 16. The Control of Movement
- Few behaviors are purely reflexive or non-reflexive and
movements vary in their sensitivity to feedback.
- Ballistic movementsare movement that once initiated can not be
altered or corrected.
-
- Example: stretch reflex, dilation of the pupil.
17. The Control of Movement
- Many behaviors consist of rapid sequences of individual
movements.
- Central pattern generatorsare neural mechanisms in the spinal
cord or elsewhere that generate rhythmic patterns of motor
output.
-
- Example: wing flapping in birds.
18. The Control of Movement
- Amotor programrefers to a fixed sequence of movements that is
either learned or built into the nervous system.
-
- once begun, the sequence is fixed from beginning to end.
-
- Automatic in the sense that thinking or talking about it
interferes with the action.
-
- Example: Mouse grooming itself, skilled musicians playing a
piece, or a gymnasts routine.
19. Brain Mechanisms of Movement
- Theprimary motor cortexis located in theprecentral gyrus
located in the frontal lobe.
- Axons from the precentral gyrus connect to the brainstem and
the spinal cord which generate activity patterns to control the
muscles.
20. Fig. 8-7, p. 240 21. Brain Mechanisms of Movement
- Specific areas of the motor cortex are responsible for control
of specific areas of the body.
22. Fig. 8-9, p. 241 23. Fig. 8-10, p. 242 24. Brain Mechanisms
of Movement
-
- Direct contraction of specific muscles.
-
- Direct a combination of contractions to produce a specified
outcome.
25. Brain Mechanisms of Movement
- Other areas near the primary motor cortex also contribute to
movement:
- Posterior parietal cortex-respond to visual or somatosensory
stimuli, current or future movements and complicated mixtures of a
stimulus and an upcoming response.
-
- Damage to this area causes difficulty coordinating visual
stimuli with movement.
- Primary somatosensory cortex- integrates touch information and
movement.
26. Brain Mechanisms of Movement
- Cells in the following areas are involved in the preparation
and instigation of movement:
-
- Responds to lights, noises and other sensory signals that lead
to movement.
-
- Calculates predictable outcomes of actions and plans movement
according to those outcomes.
27. Brain Mechanisms of Movement
-
- is active during preparation for movement and receives
information about a target in space.
-
- integrates information about position and posture of the body
and organizes the direction of the movement in space.
- Supplementary motor cortex:
-
- Important for organizing a rapid sequence of movements.
28. Fig. 8-8, p. 241 29. Brain Mechanisms of Movement
- The conscious decision to move and the movement itself occur at
two different times.
- Areadiness potentialis a particular type of activity in the
motor cortex that occurs before any type of voluntary
movement.
-
- Begins at least 500 ms before the movement itself
-
- Implies that we become conscious of the decision to move after
the process has already begun.
30. Fig. 8-12, p. 246 31. The Control of Movement
- Damage to the primary motor cortex of the right hemisphere
leads to the inability to make voluntary movements with the left
side.
- Some individuals with this condition experienceanosognosiaand
insist they can and do make voluntary movements.
-
- In the absence of the motor cortex, the premotor cortex fails
to receive feedback if an intended movement was executed.
32. The Control of Movement
- Messages from the brain must reach the medulla and spinal cord
to control the muscles.
- Axons from the brain are organized into two pathways:
33. Brain Mechanisms of Movement
- Dorsolateral tract- a set of axons from the primary motor
cortex to surrounding areas and the red nucleus and allows control
of peripheral areas of the body. (hands, fingers, toes)
-
- Red nucleus -a midbrain area with output mainly to the arm
muscles.
- Axons extend directly to their target neurons in the spinal
cord and crosses from one side of the brain to the opposite side of
the spinal cord.
34. Fig. 8-13, p. 246 35. Brain Mechanisms of Movement
- Ventromedial tract -set of axons from the primary cortex,
supplementary motor cortex, and other parts of the cortex.
- Axons go to both sides of the spinal cord and allow control
of:
- Enables movements such as walking, turning, bending, standing
up and sitting down.
36. Brain Mechanisms of Movement
- The ventromedial tract also includes axons from the midbrain
tectum, reticular formation, and thevestibular nucleus.
-
- Vestibular nucleus -brain area that receives input from the
vestibular system.
37. Brain Mechanisms of Movement
- Thecerebellumis a structure in the brain often associated with
balance and coordination.
- Damage to the cerebellum causes trouble with rapid movement
requiring aiming and timing.
-
- Examples: clapping hands, speaking, writing, etc.
38. Brain Mechanisms of Movement
- Studies suggest that the cerebellum is important for the
establishment of new motor programs that allow the execution of a
sequence of actions as a whole.
-
- The cerebellum may be linked to habit forming and damage may
impair motor learning.
- The cerebellum also seems critical for certain aspects of
attention such as the ability to shift attention and attend to
visual stimuli.
39. Brain Mechanisms of Movement
- The cerebellum contains more neurons than the rest of the brain
combined and high capacity for information processing.
- Thecerebellar cortexis the surface of the cerebellum.
-
- The cerebellum receives input from the spinal cord, from each
of the sensory systems, and from the cerebral cortex and sends it
to the cerebellar cortex.
40. Brain Mechanisms of Movement
- Neurons in the cerebellar cortex are arranged in precise
geometrical patterns:
-
- Purkinje cellsare flat cells in sequential planes.
-
- Parallel fibersare axons parallel to one another and
perpendicular to the plane of Purkinje cells.
- The regular pattern of arrangement allows outputs of
well-controlled duration and the greater the number of excited
Purkinje cells, the greater their collective duration of
response.
41. Fig. 8-14, p. 248 42. The Control of Movement
- Thebasal gangliais a group of large subcortical structures in
the forebrain important for initiation ofbehaviors.
- Comprised of the following structures:
43. The Control of Movement
- Caudate nucleusandputamenreceive input from the cerebral cortex
and send output to the globus pallidus.
- Globus pallidusconnects to the thalamus which relays
information to the motor areas and the prefrontal cortex.
- Basal ganglia selects the movement to make by ceasing to
inhibit it.
44. The Control of Movement
- The learning of new skills requires multiple brain areas
involved in the control of movement.
-
- Basal ganglia is critical for learning motor skills, organizing
sequences of movement, and learning automatic behaviors.
-
- Relevant neurons in the motor cortex also increase their firing
rate and the pattern of activity becomes more consistent as the
skill is learned.
45. Fig. 8-15, p. 249 46. Disorders of Movement
- Parkinsons diseaseis a neurological disorder characterized by
muscle tremors, rigidity, slow movements and difficulty initiating
physical and mental activity.
- Associated with an impairment in initiating spontaneous
movement in the absence of stimuli to guide the action.
- Symptoms also include depression and memory and reasoning
deficits.
47. Disorders of Movement
- Caused by gradual and progressive death of neurons, especially
in the substantia nigra.
- Substantia nigra sends dopamine-releasing axons to the caudate
nucleus and putamen.
- Loss of dopamine leads to less stimulation of the motor cortex
and slower onset of movements.
48. Fig. 8-17, p. 255 49. Disorders of Movement
- Studies suggest early-onset Parkinsons has a genetic link.
- Genetic factors are only a small factor to late on-set
Parkinsons disease (after 50).
50. Fig. 8-18, p. 255 51. Disorders of Movement
- Exposure to toxins are one environmental influence.
-
- MPTP is converted to MPP which accumulates and destroys neurons
that release dopamine.
-
- MPTP found in some illegal drugs and pesticides.
52. Disorders of Movement
- Cigarette smoking and coffee drinking are related to a
decreased chance of developing Parkinsons disease.
- Research suggests marijuana use increases the risk of
Parkinsons disease.
- Damaged mitochondria of cells seems to be common to most
factors that increase the risk of Parkinsons disease.
53. Disorders of Movement
- The drugL-dopais the primary treatment for Parkinsons and is a
precursor to dopamine that easily crosses the blood-brain
barrier.
-
- Often ineffective and especially for those in the late stages
of the disease.
- Does not prevent the continued loss of neurons.
- Enters other brain cells producing unpleasent side
effects.
54. Disorders of Movement
- Other possible treatments for Parkinsons include:
-
- Drugs that stimulate dopamine receptors or block
glutamate.
-
- Drugs that decrease apoptosis.
-
- High frequency electrical stimulation of the globus
pallidus.
-
- Transplant of neurons from a fetus.
55. Disorders of Movement
- Implantation of neurons from aborted fetuses remains
controversial and only partially effective.
- Most patients show little or no benefit a year after
surgery.
- Patients with only mild symptoms showed the benefit of failing
to deteriorate further.
- Stem cellsare immature cells grown in tissue culture that are
capable of differentiating and are an attractive alternative.
56. Disorders of Movement
- Huntingtons diseaseis a neurological disorder characterized by
various motors symptoms.
-
- affects 1 in 10,000 in the United States
-
- usually appears between the ages of 30 and 50.
- Associated with gradual and extensive brain damage especially
in the caudate nucleus, putamen, globus pallidus and the cerebral
cortex.
57. Disorders of Movement
- Initial motor symptoms include arm jerks andfacial
twitches.
- Motors symptoms progress to tremors and writhing that affect
the persons walking, speech and other voluntary movements.
- Also associated with various psychological disorders:
-
- Depression, memory impairment, anxiety, hallucinations and
delusions, poor judgment, alcoholism, drug abuse, and sexual
disorders.
58. Disorders of Movement
- Presymptomatic testscan identify with high accuracy who will
develop the disease.
-
- Controlled by an autosomal dominant gene on chromosome #4.
-
- The higher the number of consecutive repeats of the combination
C-A-G, the more certain and earlier the person is to develop the
disease.
- No treatment is effective in controlling the symptoms or
slowing the course of the disease.
59. Fig. 8-22, p. 260 60. Disorders of Movement
- A variety of neurological diseases are related to C-A-G repeats
in genes.
- For a variety of disorders, the earlier the onset, the greater
the probability of a strong genetic influence.
61. Fig. 8-23, p. 260