Physio Psy Module 8

Subject: Physiological Psychology
Topic: Movement
THE CONTROL OF MOVEMENT
Muscles and Their Movements

Vertebrate muscles fall into three categories:
1. Smooth Muscles - control movement of internal organs; found in the intestines and other organs; consists of
long, thin cells.
2. Skeletal/Striated Muscles - control movements of the body in relation to the environment; consists of long
cylindrical fibers with stripes.
3. Cardiac Muscles - have properties intermediate those of smooth and skeletal muscles; found in the heart;
consists of fibers that fuse together at various points; because of these fusions, cardiac muscles contract together, not
independently.
A given axon may innervate more than one muscle fiber (eg. Eye muscles have a ratio of about one axon per three
muscle fibers, and the biceps muscles of the arm have a ratio of one axon to more than a hundred fibers ).
Neuromuscular Junction - is a synapse where a motor neuron axon meets a muscle fiber.
- in skeletal muscles, every axon releases acetylcholine at the neuromuscular junction, and this substance always
excite the muscles to contract.
Antagonistic Muscles - opposing sets of muscles (flexor: muscle that flexes or raises it; extensor: muscle that extends or
straightens).
Any deficit of acetylcholine or its receptors in the muscles can greatly impair movement.
Myasthenia gravis - an autoimmune disease, in that the immune system forms antibodies that attack the individual’s own
body,
- the immune system attacks the acetylcholine receptors at neuromuscular junctions.
- symptoms include progressive weakness and rapid fatigue of the skeletal muscles.
- it can be treated with: drugs that suppress the immune system, thereby decreasing the autoimmune attack
on acetylcholine receptors; and drugs that inhibit acetylcholinesterase, the enzyme that breaks down
acetylcholine, thereby prolonging acetylcholine’s effects at the neuromuscular junction.
Fast and Slow Muscles

Fast-Twitch Fibers - produce fast contractions that fatigue quickly.
- they are anaerobic -- using reactions that do not require oxygen at the time.
- anaerobic muscles produce lactate and phosphate, which accumulate to give the experience of muscle
fatigue.
Slow-Twitch Fibers - produce less vigorous contractions without fatiguing.
- they are aerobic -- they use air (O2) during their movements.
Muscle Control Proprioceptors

Proprioceptor - is a receptor that detects the position or movement of a part of the body.
- muscle proprioceptors detect the stretch and tension of a muscle and send messages that enable the spinal
cord to adjust its signal.
- it controls important reflexes and provide the brain with information.
Kinds of Muscle Proprioceptors
1. Muscle Spindle - a receptor parallel to the muscle that responds to a stretch.
- when it is stretched, its sensory nerve sends a message to a motor neuron in the spinal cord,
which in turn sends message back to the muscles surrounding the spindle, causing contraction.
2. Golgi Tendon Organ - responds to increases in muscle tension; located in the tendons at opposite ends of a
muscle; it acts as a brake against excessively vigorous contraction.
- this proprioceptor detect the tension that results during a muscle contraction; its impulse travels
to the spinal cord, where it inhibits motor neurons.
*Reflex - are consistent automatic responses to stimuli.
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BRAIN MECHANISMS OF MOVEMENT
The Role of the Cerebral Cortex

Cerebral Cortex - is particularly important for complex actions; an area where information from the senses are processed.
Medulla (and other subcortical areas) - where all movements are controlled.
Primary Motor Cortex - has no direct connections to the muscles; some of its axons go to basal ganglia cells, which
feedback to control later movements; some go to the brainstem and spinal cord, which have the central pattern generators
to control the actual muscle movements.
- people with damage to the primary cortex or its axons suffer at least a temporary loss of fine
movements on the contralateral side.
Posterior Parietal Cortex - some neurons respond primarily to visual or somatosensory stimuli, some respond to a
complicated mixture of the stimulus and the upcoming response.
Primary Somatosensory Cortex - is the main receiving area for touch and other body information.
- it sends a substantial number of axons directly to the spinal cord and also provides the primary motor cortex
with sensory information.
Cells in the prefrontal cortex, premotor cortex and supplementary cortex actively prepare for a movement.
Prefrontal Cortex - responds to lights, noises, and other sensory signals that lead to a movement.
- it also calculates probable outcomes of various actions and the values of those outcomes.
- damage in this area has badly planned movements.
- inactive during dreams.
Premotor Cortex - is active during preparations for a movement and somewhat active during movement itself.
- it receives both information about target in space, to which the body is directing its movement, and
information about the current position and posture of the body itself.
- sends output to both the primary motor cortex and the spinal cord, organizing the direction of the
movements in space.
Supplementary Cortex - is most active just before a rapid series of movements in a particular order.
- damage to this area impairs the ability to organize smooth sequences of activities.
Connections from the Brain to the Spinal Cord

All the messages from the brain must eventually reach the medulla and spinal cord, which control the muscles.
Various outputs from the brain organize into two paths:
1. Dorsolateral Tract - a set of axons from the primary motor cortex and its surround, and from the red
nucleus, a midbrain primarily responsible for control of arm muscles.
- in bulges of the medulla called pyramids, the dorsolateral tract crosses from one side of the brain
to the contralateral side of the spinal cord.
- it controls movement in peripheral areas, such as hands, fingers, and toes.
2. Ventromedial Tract - includes axons from the primary cortex and from many parts of the cortex.
- it also includes axons that originate from the midbrain tectum, the reticular formation, and the
vestibular nucleus.
- axons of this tract go to both sides of the spinal cord (not contralateral).
- controls bilateral movements near the midline of the body, mainly the muscles of the neck,
shoulders, and trunk.
Some Disorders of the Spinal Cord

Disorder Description Cause
Paralysis Lack of voluntary movement in part of the body. Damage to spinal cord motor neurons
or their axons.
Paraplegia Loss of sensation and voluntary muscle control in both legs. Cut through the spinal cord above the
Reflexes remain. Although no messages pass between the segments attached to the legs.
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brain and the genitals, the genitals still respond reflexively to
touch. Paraplegics have no genital sensations but they can still
experience orgasm.
Quadriplegia Loss of sensation and muscle control in all four extremities. Cut through the spinal cord above the
segments controlling the arms.
Hemiplegia Loss of sensation and muscle control in the arm and leg on Cut halfway through the spinal cord or
one side. (more commonly) damage to one
hemisphere of the cerebral cortex.
Tabes dorsalis Impaired sensation in the legs and pelvic region, impaired leg Late stage of syphilis. Dorsal roots of
reflexes and walking, loss of bladder and bowel movement. the spinal cord deteriorate.
Poliomyelitis Paralysis. Virus that damages cell bodies of motor
neurons.
Amyotrophic Gradual weakness and paralysis, starting with the arms and Unknown.
lateral sclerosis later spreading to the legs.
Both motor neurons and axons from the brain to the motor
neurons are destroyed.
The Role of Cerebellum

Cerebellum - is important for motor control, including learned motor responses.
- contains more neurons that the rest of the brain combined, and some of those neurons have broad branching
with an enormous number of connections.
- it receives information from the spinal cord, from each of the sensory systems by way of the cranial nerve nuclei,
and from the cerebral cortex.
- neurons are arranged in a very regular pattern that enables them to produce outputs of well-controlled duration.
- damage to this area results trouble with rapid, ballistic movement sequences that require accurate aim and
timing.
- one of its first brain areas that alcohol affects.
The Role of the Basal Ganglia

Basal Ganglia - group of large subcortical structures in the forebrain (caudate nucleus, putamen, and globus
pallidus); each of these areas exchanges information with the others and with the thalamus and cerebral cortex.
- information passes back and forth between basal ganglia and motor areas of the cortex.
- functions are: store sensory information, use stored information to guide movements, learn rules, and
organize sequences of movements into a smooth, automatic whole.
Caudate nucleus and putamen - are areas that receive input from the sensory areas of the thalamus and the
cerebral cortex.
Globus pallidus - is the output area, sending information to the thalamus, which in turn sends it to the motor
cortex and the prefrontal cortex.
DISORDERS OF MOVEMENT
1. Parkinson’s Disease - is characterized by impaired initiation of activity, slow and inaccurate movements, tremor,
rigidity, depression, and cognitive deficits.
- it is associated with the degeneration of dopamine-containing axons from the substantia nigra the
caudate nucleus and putamen.
- early onset has a strong hereditary basis, and the responsible gene has been identified; however,
heredity plays only a small role in the ordinary form of this disease, with onset after age 50.
- sometimes results from exposure to toxins; substance MPTP accumulates in, and destroys neurons
that release dopamine.
- most common treatment is L-dopa, which crosses the blood-brain barrier and enters neurons that
convert it into dopamine.
2. Huntington’s Disease - a hereditary condition marked by deterioration of motor control as well as depression, memory
impairment, and other cognitive disorders; age of onset is usually between 30 and 50.
- by examining one gene on chromosome 4, physicians can determine someone is likely to develop this
disease later in life.
- the gene responsible for this disease alters the structures of protein (huntingtin), which affects many
aspects of neural functioning.
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Physio Psy Module 8

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Subject: Physiological Psychology

THE CONTROL OF MOVEMENT

Muscles and Their Movements

Fast and Slow Muscles

Muscle Control Proprioceptors

The Role of the Cerebral Cortex

Connections from the Brain to the Spinal Cord

Some Disorders of the Spinal Cord

The Role of Cerebellum

The Role of the Basal Ganglia

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