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- Glossary
Dermatome
Describes an area of skin that is connected to exactly one spinal nerve (a nerve originating in the spinal cord).
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- Glossary
Diencephalon
The diencephalon (midbrain) includes the thalamus and hypothalamus, among other structures. Together with the cerebrum, it forms the forebrain. The diencephalon contains centers for sensory perception, emotion, and the control of vital functions such as hunger and thirst.
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- Glossary
diffusion tensor imaging
Diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) is a form of magnetic resonance imaging. It enables researchers and physicians to visualize how water distributes itself in space over time, allowing them to reconstruct nerve pathways in the brain, for example. Certain changes, such as those caused by a stroke, can be detected more effectively with diffusion tensor imaging than with conventional magnetic resonance imaging.
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- Glossary
Dopamine
Dopamine is an important neurotransmitter in the central nervous system that belongs to the catecholamine group. It plays a role in motor function, motivation, emotion, and cognitive processes. Disruptions in the function of this transmitter play a role in many brain disorders, such as schizophrenia, depression, Parkinson's disease, and substance dependence.
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- Glossary
dorsal
The positional term dorsal means "towards the back." In relation to the nervous system, it refers to a direction perpendicular to the neural axis, i.e., upwards towards the head or backwards.In animals that do not walk upright, the term is simpler, as it always means toward the back. Due to the upright posture of humans, the brain bends in relation to the spinal cord, making dorsal mean "upward."
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- Glossary
Dorsolateral PFC
The dorsolateral prefrontal cortex is the upper (dorsal) and lateral part of the frontal lobe. It is involved in the planning and regulation of complex motor and intellectual actions. According to one experiment, this also seems to include lying. The dorsolateral PFC regulates these and other abilities in coordination with many other areas of the brain with which it is closely linked.
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- Glossary
Duchenne smile
The kind of smile where not only the corners of the mouth turn upward, but the muscles around the eyes also create laugh lines. It is considered the only genuine, unfeigned smile. Named after the French physiologist of the same name.
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- Glossary
Dura mater
The outermost of the three membranes covering the brain and spinal cord. Consists of connective tissue.
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- Glossary
dysdiadochokinesia
Medical professionals understand dysdiadochokinesia to be the limitation of the ability to perform rapid successive movements. The disorder is usually accompanied by lesions in the cerebellum, caused, for example, by a stroke.
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- Glossary
EEG
An electroencephalogram, or EEG for short, is a recording of the brain's electrical activity (brain waves). Brain waves are measured on the surface of the head or using electrodes implanted in the brain itself. The time resolution is in the millisecond range, but the spatial resolution is very poor. The discoverer of electrical brain waves and EEG is the neurologist Hans Berger (1873−1941) from Jena.
