Brain development across the lifespan
In this section, we'll learn how the brain changes over the lifespan, from early neural development to adolescence to old age.
1) Start with these videos:
2) Watch this video for a quick refresher on early neural development:
3) Finally, answer these questions to test your understanding:
1. At around the fourth week of neural development, the neural tube expands into three bulges known as the:
- A. primary vesicles
- B. ventricles
- C. neural crests
- D. meninges
Show Answer
Correct answer: A
As the neural tube closes, bulges begin to appear and they gradually become more noticeable. During the fourth week, there are three of these bulges present. They are called the primary vesicles. They are the prosencephalon, the mesencephalon, and the rhombencephalon.
2. During early neural development, the prosencephalon gives rise to which secondary vesicles?
- A. mesencephalon and metencephalon
- B. diencephalon and telencephalon
- C. metencephalon and myelencephalon
- D. diencephalon and mesencephalon
Show Answer
Correct answer: B
The prosencephalon forms the diencephalon and telencephalon. The telencephalon will become the cerebral hemispheres, and the diencephalon will eventually consist of the thalamus, hypothalamus, epithalamus, and subthalamus.
3. Which specialized structure, derived from ectoderm, forms during early embryonic development and eventually gives rise to the neural tube?
- A. neural crest
- B. notochord
- C. somite
- D. neural plate
Show Answer
Correct answer: D
The neural plate is a thickened region of ectoderm that appears around week 3 of development. It folds inward to form the neural groove and neural folds, which then fuse to become the neural tube---the precursor to the brain and spinal cord.
4. This neural tube structure will eventually form the pons and cerebellum:
- A. prosencephalon
- B. diencephalon
- C. mesencephalon
- D. metencephalon
Show Answer
Correct answer: D
The pons and cerebellum form from the metencephalon, a secondary vesicle of the neural tube.
5. The delayed maturation of brain regions involved in impulse control and long-term planning has been linked in part to the continued development of which process?
- A. neurogenesis
- B. myelination
- C. apoptosis
- D. cell migration
Show Answer
Correct answer: B
Myelination in parts of the prefrontal cortex involved in impulse control, long-term planning, and decision-making continues through adolescence and is not typically complete until adulthood. As a result, the neural circuits that support these functions may operate less efficiently in adolescents than in adults, potentially contributing to some stereotypical aspects of teen behavior.
