Date 6 June 2013

Examination NEVR2010

There are two types of questions.

SHORT ANSWER QUESTIONS and TRUE or FALSE questions.

Each short answer question requires only a short answer and behind each question is
indicated how many points you will get in case of a correct answer. Simple questions will
yield 1 point and a higher number of points indicate that a more complex and/or elaborate
answer is required.

True or false questions always score 1 point. You are required to clearly indicate the right
answer by writing either True or False on your answer document. Do not add to the answer
in any way, because that may influence the mark you will get.

The exam comprises a total of 68 questions (100 points) on 6 pages (including the cover
page).

You have 6 hours to complete the exam.

Use of dictionaries and other tools of assistance. You are allowed ONE dictionary that
translates standard language from your mother tongue to English, i.e. French-English,
German-English etc. NO SPECIALIZED DICTIONARIES WILL BE ALLOWED, such
as English-English dictionaries that provide definitions, or medical dictionaries of any
description. Native English or Norwegian speakers are not allowed any dictionary.

Side 1 av 5
40 SHORT ANSWER QUESTIONS

1. Where in the central nervous system do we find the three main groups of neurons that
originate the parasympathetic component of the autonomic nervous system? (3)

2. Give a short but complete definition of what is meant by primary motor cortex. (2)

3. Give the name of the cranial nerve that carries somatosensory information from the
face to the brain. (1)

4. What is the name of the specific thalamic nucleus that receives somatosensory
information? (1)

5. Describe the pathways that directly connect the retina to the primary visual
cortex and indicate where in the brain signals from the left and right retina are
really integrated. (4)

6. Give a short definition of a motor unit. (1)

7. There are three types of light-sensitive elements in the retina. Give the names of all
three and describe the main characteristic differences between the three elements. (3)

8. What is actually measured with BOLD fMRI? (1)

9. Describe the main mechanisms that are responsible for the resting membrane potential
(ca. – 65 mV) in neurons. (2)

10. Which two main types of receptors exist in the central nervous system? (2)

11. Why does an axon potential normally travel only in one direction that is away from the
soma? (2)

12. We know a lot about functions in the brain due to the study of patients that have
lesions. Describe two examples briefly, indicating the location of the lesion and the
resulting behavioral deficit. (4)

13. Where in the cortex of the telencepahlon brain is the main representation of olfactory
information localized? Describe or make a drawing (1)

14. A similar morphology of olfactory sensory neurons has been found across various
species. Make a drawing of a typical olfactory sensory neuron and name the most
important sub-structures. (2)

15. What is the name of the system particularly devoted to processing information about
pheromones? (1)

Side 2 av 5
16. The perceptual thresholds for detecting bitter and sweet substances are substantially
different. Which one of these basic tastes has the highest threshold? (1)

17. Where in the telencephalic cortex do we find the representation of taste information
(gustatory cortex)? Describe or make a drawing. (1)

18. Name the two main transmitters in the brain and describe how they differ from each
other in their functional outcome. (2)

19. Which two receptors are most commonly involved in the effects of anesthesia? (1)

20. What is the functional relevance of the stapedius reflex? (1)

21. What is the name of the main structure in the brain responsible for our circadian
rhythm? Describe the overall functional organization of this structure and its
relationships to other parts of the central nervous system. (4)

22. Within the ascending pathways of the spinal cord that carry somatosensory
information to the brain, two different components are differentiated. Describe the
main differences between these two with respect to type of information carried by
them and their routes by which they reach the somatosensory cortex. (4)

23. Describe the pathways from the retina that are involved in the pupillary light reflex.
(3)

24. Name three metals which may cause neurodegenerative effects. (1)

25. What is the shared neurotoxic mechanism of malathion and parathion? (1)

26. What is meant by the statement that the visual cortex is retinotopically organized? (1)

27. Different frequencies of sound are represented at different positions along the basilar
membrane. Where do we find low frequency representations, closer to the apex or
closed to the oval window? (1)

28. Give a brief description or drawing of the main connectivity of the hippocampus. (3)

29. Give the names of two of the three cranial nerves involved in oculomotor control. (2)

30. Where in the cerebral cortex is the main location of our attention system? (1)

31. In the central nervous system, oligodendrocytes lay down myelin; what are the cells
called that have a similar function in the peripheral nervous system? (1)

32. What is the name of the sulcus that provides the divide between the sensory (afferent)
and the motor (efferent) domains of the cerebral cortex? (1)

33. Give a definition of the enteric nervous system. (1)

Side 3 av 5
 34. Where precisely in the central nervous system do we find the cell bodies that innervate
the muscles of the body? (1)

35. During the formation of the neural tube, a number of embryonic cells differentiate into
the so-called neural crest. Name two derivatives of neural crest cells. (2)

36. The developing neural tube initially differentiates into four different plates that
eventually form the final functional components seen in the spinal cord and brainstem.
Name the plate from which motor neurons in the spinal cord derive. (1)

37. The rhombencephalon of the vertebrate brain differentiates into two brain parts
(secondary brain vesicles). What are these two secondary brain vesicles called? (2)

38. What is meant by the statement that an animal habituates? (1)

39. What is neurophilosophy? (3)

40. Describe a neural correlate of consciousness. (2)

28 TRUE or FALSE QUESTIONS (each question is 1 point; total points for this part:
28)

41. The sympathetic cell bodies that provide the major sympathetic innervations of the
gonads are located in the spinal cord at sacral levels. True or False

42. Motorneurons in the brain stem derive from the neural crest. True or False

43. The membrane of a presynaptic element of a chemical synapse does contain receptor
molecules. True or False

44. Oligodendrocytes are gliacells that are specific for the peripheral nervous system. True
or False

45. With Nodes of Ravier we indicate the branching points of neuronal dendrites. True or
False

46. Acetylcholine is a neurotransmitter. True or False

47. The cerebral cortex of the brain is defined as the outer portion that is covered by
meningeal layers. True or False

48. The depolarization phase of an action potential is characterized by the opening of Na+
channels in the membrane. True or False

49. Extracellular sodium increase leads to inhibiton of the neuron. True or False

Side 4 av 5
50. Overexpression of beta-amyloid is a hallmark of Alzheimer’s disease. True or False

51. Cytochrome c oxidase is affected in hydrogen sulfide neurotoxicity. True or False

52. Neuronal activity as detected with BOLD fMRI correlates best with spiking activity.
True or False

53. The two internal carotid arteries are the main blood supply of the forebrain. True or
False

54. The citric acid cycle is a process that takes place in the cell membrane. True or False

55. The mammillary bodies of the hypothalamus are involved in maintaining postural
balance. True or False

56. Ketamine is an anaesthetic that selective targets GABA receptors. True or False

57. Amacrine neurons in the retina are light sensitive. True or False

58. Spinal cord segments at the cervical level contain neurons that originate part of the
parasympathetic nervous system. True or False

59. The notochord or chorda forms the ventral portion of the neural tube. True or False

60. The pituitary develops solely as a derivative of the neural tube. True or False

61. The pineal gland or epiphysis is the main site for the production of adrenalin. True or
False

62. Energy is needed to maintain the resting membrane potential. True or False

63. The olfactory bulb is the target area of the olfactory nerve. True or False

64. All neurons in the hippocampus are place cells. True or False

65. The facial muscles on the left side are innervated by neurons in the right facial
nucleus. True or False

66. The primary auditory cortex is tonotopically organized. True or False

67. Bitter substances bind specifically to the T2R receptor. True or False

68. All sensory information reaches the cerebral cortex by way of a synaptic relay in the
thalamus. True or False

Side 5 av 5