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- Glossary
Melatonin
Melatonin is a hormone released by the pineal gland in the brain when it is dark. Melatonin levels are highest at night and then decrease throughout the day. This makes it an important messenger substance for the "internal clock" and it appears to play a particularly important role in regulating sleep.
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- Glossary
Membrane potential
The membrane potential is a voltage measured between the inside and outside of the cell membrane. It arises from the different distribution of electrically charged particles inside and outside the cell.
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- Glossary
Mental training
Originally a concept from sports psychology: athletes imagine movement sequences and optimize them in their minds. Although comparable methods are now also used in other areas of life, the effectiveness of mental training has been most thoroughly researched in athletes. According to research findings, mental imagery actually changes the brain. This works because imagining movement sequences activates similar areas of the brain as during actual training.
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- Glossary
Merkel cells
Merkel cells are slow-adapting mechanoreceptors in the skin. They respond to continuous pressure and are important for the perception of shape, edges, and fine details.
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- Glossary
Midbrain
The midbrain is the uppermost section of the brain stem. Its regions are located around the aqueduct, a canal filled with cerebrospinal fluid. Prominent structures include the tectum, tegmentum, and substantia nigra.
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- Glossary
Mesolimbic pathway
A system of neurons that use dopamine as a neurotransmitter and play a crucial role in emotion, reward, and substance abuse. The cell bodies are located in the subtegmental area and extend to the amygdala, the hippocampus, and – most importantly – the nucleus accumbens, where they have their terminal buttons.
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- Glossary
Migraine with aura
The symptoms at the onset of a classic migraine attack. About one in five migraine attacks is preceded by characteristic perceptual disturbances, such as patients only being able to see part of their field of vision or seeing blurry. These symptoms usually come on slowly and also disappear slowly. This does not cause any damage to the brain tissue.
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- Glossary
Microexpressions
Microexpressions are facial expressions that last only a fraction of a second. They cannot be consciously controlled and are rarely consciously perceived by others.
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- Glossary
Microglia
The smallest type of glial cell is part of the cellular immune system and is responsible, among other things, for removing dead neurons. Microglia can move in an amoeba-like manner.
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- Glossary
Microtubules
Microtubules are one of the main components of the cytoskeleton, which gives cells stability and support. They consist of many copies of the proteins alpha- and beta-tubulin, which pair up to form tubes with a diameter of 20 to 30 nanometers. In addition to their supporting function, microtubules play an important role in transporting messenger substances through the cell. In neurons, for example, vesicles filled with neurotransmitters move along them to the synapses. In the nerve cells of the brains of Alzheimer's patients, a protein called tau can no longer stabilize the microtubules properly. As a result, they disintegrate, which contributes significantly to the development of dementia.
