AP PSYCHOLOGY

BIOLOGICAL BASES OF BEHAVIOR

BIOLOGICAL PSYCHOLOGY

Question [CLICK ON ANY CHOICE TO KNOW THE RIGHT ANSWER]
Which neurotransmitter is involved in voluntary movement, emotional arousal, learning and reward?
A
Dopamine
B
GABA
C
Serotonin
D
Acetylcholine
Explanation: 

Detailed explanation-1: -Dopamine (DA) plays a vital role in reward and movement regulation in the brain. In the reward pathway, the production of DA takes place in the ventral tegmental area (VTA), in nerve cell bodies. From there, it is released into the nucleus accumbens and prefrontal cortex.

Detailed explanation-2: -Acetylcholine has different roles and functions at different synapses throughout the body. In the somatic nervous system, acetylcholine is used at the neuromuscular junctions, triggering the firing of motor neurons and affecting voluntary movements.

Detailed explanation-3: -In other words, dopamine (or, in this case, the activity of the cells that produce it) is just a “trigger” for voluntary movements. “Our most important result is that we showed, for the first time, that the change in neural activity is necessary to promote movement, ” says Alves da Silva.

Detailed explanation-4: -As a neurotransmitter, dopamine is involved in: Movement. Memory. Pleasurable reward and motivation.

Detailed explanation-5: -Dopamine has critical importance to the nervous system as it is proved to be helpful in movement, pleasure, attention, mood, and motivation. Dysfunction of dopamine in the brain may also result in certain neurological disorders such as Huntington’s disease.

There is 1 question to complete.