Neural Mechanisms In Eating Behaviour

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  • Created by: Abw97
  • Created on: 12-10-15 10:24
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  • Neural Mechanisms In Eating beheaviour
    • Homeostasis
      • Mechanisms which both detect and correct the state of the internal environment to its optimal state.
      • The body has 2 systems: one for turning on eating = Lateral hypothalamus and one for turning off eating: ventromedial hypothalamus
    • Lateral hypothalamus
      • Part of brain to turn on eating due to decrease in glucose levels. If damaged causes aphagia (stop eating). Stimulation to LH elicits eating.
        • Wickens - neuropeptide Y is important in turning on eating. NPY injected into rats causes immediate eating even when satiated.
          • Problems with LH as on switch
            • 1. Damage to LH causes deficits in other behaviour aspects e.g. thirst and sex not just hunger.
            • 2. Eating behaviour is controlled by neural circuits throughout the brain, not just the hypothalamus.
            • Sakurai - 3. Although LH is plays an imortant role in controlling eating, it is not the brains eating centre.
    • Ventromedial hypothalamus
      • Part of brain to turn off eating due to high glucose levels. If damaged causes hyperphagia (cant stop eating) Stimulation stops feeding.
        • Gold - The PVN detects the food our body needs so is responsible for craving.
          • Damage to nerve fibres in VMH also damage the paraventricular nucleus. Damage to this alone causes hyperphagia.
          • Gold - Damage to VMH alone did not cause hyperphagia. Overeating only happened when other areas were damaged aswell (PVN)
            • However research failed to supports Golds findings ... animals which had damage to the VMH were more likely to gain weight.
      • Damage to nerve fibres in VMH also damage the paraventricular nucleus. Damage to this alone causes hyperphagia.
    • The role of cognitive factors.
      • Amygdala = the selection of foods based on previous experiences
        • Rolls and Rolls = surgically removing the amygdala in rats caused them to eat both familiar and unfamilar foods. Rats wit hamygdala would avoif unfamiliar foods.
          • Kluver-Bucy Sydrome could be explained by damage to prefrontal cortex and amygdala. Patients with this sydrome show increased appetite and even attempts to eating non food items.
            • Kolb and Whishaw = due to odours influences the taste of food, damage to the prefrontal cortex will decrease eating because of decline in sensory repsonce to food smell and taste.
      • Inferior frontal cortex = recieves messages from the olfactory bulb (part of brain responsible for smell.
        • Kolb and Whishaw = due to odours influences the taste of food, damage to the prefrontal cortex will decrease eating because of decline in sensory repsonce to food smell and taste.
    • IDA
      • Reductionist - doesn't involve other explanations such as social.
      • Nature/ Nurture approach

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