1. What happens to the GFR if systemic blood pressure decreases, if BP increases?

2.  Describe hormonal influence on the volume and concentration of urine.

Describe how an action potential propagates along a myelinated and an unmyelinated axon, including how the potential is spread along the membrane. How are these two processes similar and how are they different? What two benefits do myelinated axons have over unmyelinated ones? Provide one way in which a myelinated axon is similar to an electrical wire and one way in which an axon is different than a wire. Why does multiple sclerosis (MS) prevent transmission in myelinated axons (that is, why can’t these axons just propagate the action potential in the same way that an unmyelinated axon does)? Finally, what if a drug 3 was developed that allowed M.S. patients to use continuous propagation for all of their neurons all the time; what would be the impact of such a drug?

As humans grow from babies to adults, our brains become less and less able to repair themselves after brain injury. Though our brains retain an amazing capacity for change, they no longer are able to repair injuries caused by a stroke, head trauma, or neurological disease. Why do you think is? Provide an explanation for why this occurs. Your explanation can be either evolutionary (that is why hasn’t evolution led to humans whose adult brain can repair itself?) or physiological (what important changes might cause this transition from babies to adults?)

1.The central nervous system (CNS) is composed of billions of discrete cells that are not directly connected but are instead connected by synapses, which require neurotransmitters to pass a signal between cells. Why is this an advantage over a CNS in which all the cells are directly connected? That is, what do we gain by having our brains made up of individual cells that don’t automatically fire an action potential when they are stimulated? What are the drawbacks of the chemical synaptic nervous system? Can you think of an idea of how to organize a nervous system that might improve upon the one we already have?

2. What are the consequences of a spinal injury in the thoracic region of the spinal cord if the damage is to the gray matter? What about a complete transection of the white matter in the thoracic region? What body regions and functions that would be disrupted? Why is a white matter injury in the upper cervical region worse than one lower down in the cord? Is the same true of gray matter injuries? How do white matter injuries affect reflexes? How do gray matter injuries affect reflexes? Finally, what is your idea of why the spinal cord is organized in the way it is (white matter surrounding gray matter)?

Explain the reason that the resting potential for neurons is around -70mV. Be sure to include the roles of the K+ and Na+ concentration gradients, electrical forces, passive ion channels and the relative permeabilities of K+ and Na+. Now, say that an alien race was discovered from a distant galaxy. Their cells have a higher concentration of Na+ inside than outside their cells and a higher concentration of K+ outside than inside. If this race’s neurons otherwise had the same relative permeability to K+ and Na+ at rest that Earth organisms have, what might an approximate value of the resting potential of these alien’s cells be? Why?

Describe what happens to people who have Parkinson’s disease. What cells are affected and where do they project to? What is the consequence on motor behavior and why? How does PD relate to Huntington’s disease (aka Huntington’s chorea)? How is PD different than other movement disorders like ALS and polio? One experimental treatment for PD involves injecting stem cells that produce a particular neurotransmitter into the brain: what neurotransmitter do you think it is and where do you think surgeons implant the cells? If you could design the perfect treatment for PD, what would it be?

A) Put the following events associated with fertilization in the correct order.

- binding of ZP3 receptors in sperm to ZP3

- formation of zygote

- acrosome reaction

- release of intracellular Ca2+ in the ovum

- resumption of meiosis

B) What effect would blocking intracellular calcium release have on an ovum immediately after fertilization?

*Select one or more:*

a. Meiosis II would not occur

b. The sperm would not release phospholipase C-zeta into the cytoplasm

c. MPF levels would not decrease

d. Cortical granules would not be released

C) List all the differences that exist in the control of sexual motivation or sex drive in female rodents and primates. Choose ALL correct answers.

a. Female rodents only engage in sexual behavior around the time of ovulation whereas female primates engage in sexual behavior throughout their reproductive cycles.

b. Sexual motivation in female primates is less dependent on hormones released by their ovaries than is sexual behavior in female rodents.

c. Blocking estrogen synthesis around the time of ovulation would decrease sexual motivation in female primates but not in rodents.

d. Sexual behavior in female rodents is dependent on being exposed to estradiol and then 48 hours later to testosterone, while sex drive in female primates is increased by being exposed first to estradiol and then 48 hours later to progesterone.

Answer the following questions as they relate to the process of myocardial disease.

           Be specific.

• What is happening during the myocardial disease process? What does increased resistance in arterial blood vessels result in?
  • Differentiate between stable and unstable angina.
• What kind of compensation occurs as cardiac output initially goes down as heart tissue becomes more and more hypoxic?
• Describe what happens to the myocardial cells over time.
• How is the renin-angiotensin system involved?            

Discuss in detail chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).

• Compare and contrast chronic bronchitis and emphysema (include manifestations, etiologies, diagnosis and treatment).
• Describe the pathophysiology of COPD (include heart, kidney, respiratory muscle compensations, pH discussion, ventilation/perfusion mismatching)
• What is the significance of the central chemoreceptors in the brainstem in relation to the body's response to these conditions. Why may it be dangerous to give patients high flow oxygen?

Provide some examples of applications of different tests and hedonic sensory tests. (Analytical tests, triangle test, duo-trio test)

Would lowering a neurons intracellular (k) by 1 mMs have the same effect on resting membrane potential as raising the extracellular fluid (k) by 1mM?

What cranial nerves are responsible for movement of the eyeballs?

TRUE OR FALSE

1. In the primary immune response, there is no antibody production in the the lag phase, only B cell proliferate and differentiate.

2.Rh factor is an antibody found on the red blood cells of Rh positive people.

3.In the process of hemostasis, formation of platelet plugs and fibrin clots occur simultaneously.

4..Neutrophils are a critical component of the response to a parasitic infection.

5.Helper T cells are critical for proper activation of both CD8 T cells and plasma cells during adaptive immune responses.

6. The thymus is the site of maturation of B cells.