PSY 2104 - Chapter 2

Electrical communication between neurons is faster than chemical communication within neurons.

• True

• False

Most of the brain’s excitatory ionotropic synapses use the neurotransmitter glutamate.

• True

• False

The primary difference between an EPSP and an action potential (AP) is that ______.

• the magnitude of an AP decreases along the membrane

• EPSPs occur without sodium ions entering the cell

• APs are always hyperpolarizations

• EPSPs are subthreshold events that decay over time and space

Neuropeptides are synthesized in the _____?

• postsynaptic terminal

• presynaptic terminal

• cell body

• dendrites

Hormones exert their effects____.

• Similarly to metabotropic neurotransmitters

• Similarly to ionotropic neurotransmitters

• By attaching to special receptors on muscle fibres

• By being metabolized and converted via presynaptic cells

On the basis of what evidence were the properties of synapses first inferred?

• the electron microscope

• single-neuron recordings

• behavioral observations

• PET scans

After one frog's heart has been stimulated, an extract of fluid from that heart can make a second frog's heart beat faster. What conclusion did Otto Loewi draw from these results?

• Transmission at synapses is a chemical event.

• The sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous systems are antagonistic.

• Transmission at heart muscle synapses is electrical.

• Hormones facilitate the actions of the nervous system.

What provides the building blocks for synthesizing all neurotransmitters?

• proteins found in the diet

• breakdown products of DNA

• breakdown products formed from other transmitters

• methane and ethanol

The catecholamines include ____.

• epinephrine, norepinephrine, dopamine, and serotonin

• epinephrine, serotonin, and dopamine

• dopamine, serotonin, and acetylcholine

• epinephrine, norepinephrine, and dopamine

What happens when a neurotransmitter is released by a presynaptic cell?

• It causes calcium to rush into the presynaptic neuron.

• It causes calcium to rush into the postsynaptic neuron.

• The neurotransmitter passively spreads across the synaptic cleft.

• The neurotransmitter is actively transported across the synaptic cleft.