Psychopharmacology: Drugs, the Brain, and Behavior: Chapter 2 questions with correct answers

absolute refractory period - Answer Short period of time after an action potential characterized by the inability to open Na+ channels and the inability to respond to subsequent stimuli. action potential - Answer Rapid change in electrical signal that is transmitted down the axon. amygdala - Answer Part of the limbic system that helps to modulate emotional behavior. arachnoid - Answer Membrane consisting of a weblike sublayer that covers the brain and spinal cord. One of the three meninges. area postrema - Answer Area in the medulla of the brain stem that is not isolated from chemicals in the blood. It is responsible for inducing a vomiting response when a toxic substance is present in the blood. astrocytes - Answer Star-shaped cells of the nerve tissue that have numerous extensions and that modulate the chemical environment around neurons, metabolically assist neurons, and provide phagocytosis for cellular debris. axon - Answer Long tubular extention from the soma of the nerve cell that conducts electrical signals away from the cell body and toward the axon terminals.