Dr. Curtis Cripe: How Does the Brain Impact Behavior?

 

Dr. Curtis Cripe: Understanding the Brain-Behavior Connection

Biopsychology, or behavioral neuroscience, explores how the brain influences behavior by delving into its structure, components, and systems. Key elements like neurons and neurotransmitters in the brain and nervous system play a vital role in impacting mental functions and overall well-being.

The Brain
According to Dr. Curtis Cripe, the human brain, despite its incredibly compact size, is the command center of a sophisticated network of neural pathways, tangles, and webs. It orchestrates our thoughts, emotions, and actions through a ballet of electrochemical signals that define our human experience. Each lobe—frontal, occipital, parietal, and temporal—plays a distinct role in this symphony, deduced largely from the areas of activity that light up on a brain scan when tasks are performed or emotions are experienced.

The frontal lobe, positioned at the front of the brain, serves as the center for executive functions, facilitating planning, orchestration, and engagement in higher cognitive tasks like problem-solving, memory, and language. Humans possess a notably larger frontal lobe compared to many other species, reflecting our exceptional capacity for complex activities.

The occipital lobe plays a vital role in processing visual sensory data, transforming light waves into meaningful visual stimuli for conscious perception. Situated at the top of the head, the parietal lobe integrates sensory information to help us understand the world, particularly influencing spatial perception, movement, and bodily awareness. In hearing and memory, the temporal lobe not only interprets auditory data but also collaborates with memory structures to encode and retrieve significant life events.

The Neurons
Neurons, also known as "nerve cells," serve as the architects of our brain's information superhighway. These remarkable cells meticulously receive, process, and transmit electrochemical messages that communicate within the nervous system. A neuron consists of a cell body, dendrites, and an axon. The dendrites act like tiny tree branches, receiving signals from sensory organs or neighboring neurons, while the axon, which can be quite lengthy, carries nerve impulses and extends from the cell body to bridge the synaptic cleft, the physical gap between neurons.

Dr. Curtis Cripe says neurons are a diverse group, each playing a unique role in our neural processes. Sensory neurons transmit information from our senses to the brain, allowing us to experience taste, touch, sight, sound, and smell. Motor neurons travel from the brain to muscles and glands, translating thoughts into actions and emotions into expressions. Interneurons act as mediators, facilitating communication between sensory and motor neurons to ensure smooth interactions within the nervous system.

The Neurotransmitters
Neurotransmitters play a crucial role in how neurons communicate with each other. These chemical messengers, known as neurotransmitters, cross the synaptic gap and bind to specific receptors on receiving neurons, either inhibiting or exciting their activity. This intricate process influences many of our cognitive and behavioral functions. Various neurotransmitters regulate our physiological and emotional well-being, each with significant roles in brain function.

For example, acetylcholine aids in learning, memory, and muscle contractions, while dopamine is involved in the reward system, affecting pleasure, motivation, and motor control. Epinephrine triggers the fight-or-flight response, preparing the body for action, and endorphins help modulate pain perception and mood. GABA acts as an inhibitor, promoting calmness and reducing anxiety, similar to a conductor in an orchestra. Serotonin plays a pivotal role in coordinating psychological and biological functions such as mood, sleep, and appetite.

The Communicating Systems
Our brain, although often the main focus, is intricately linked to a vast communication network, including the central nervous system (CNS), peripheral nervous system (PNS), and the associated endocrine system. Dr. Curtis Cripe explains that the CNS, which consists of the brain and spinal cord, processes sensory information and coordinates motor functions. Any disruption to the CNS, whether through injury or illness, can result in various neurological disorders impacting behavior and cognition significantly.

On the other hand, the PNS acts as an extension of the CNS, transmitting sensory data to the brain and neural signals from the brain to muscles and glands. Additionally, the PNS branches into the somatic and autonomic divisions, with the former governing voluntary movements and reflexes involving skeletal muscles, while the latter autonomously regulates the body's internal processes. Furthermore, the endocrine system, through hormone secretion into the bloodstream, provides an alternative form of communication that influences growth, reproduction, appetite, and other bodily functions over varying durations.

Learn more about NTL Group's research and development head Dr. Curtis Cripe and his work by clicking on this link.

Trauma and the Brain

 

How brain systems respond to traumatic events

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In most cases, people who experience a traumatic event are able to process the situation and move forward. Other times, the brain seems to work against us with symptoms of anxiety, hypervigilance, flashbacks, or insomnia after the event. These symptoms can persist for years, and sometimes for a lifetime.

Approximately 7.8% of the population will develop post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) at some point in their lives. As a neuropsychologist, Dr. Curtis Cripe looks at symptoms of PTSD from the perspective of the way brain networks interact. With advances in neuroimaging techniques, researchers have been able to study and identify how the brain structures change with PTSD. Dr. Curtis Cripe pointed out that the three areas of the brain involved with PTSD include the prefrontal cortex, the amygdala, and the hippocampus. Based on neuroimaging studies, we can see that each of these brain regions are impacted in people experiencing PTSD. As these three key brain regions interact, the symptoms of PTSD develop.

Amygdala

PTSD is commonly linked to high activity in the amygdala. This is a structure in the brain that is involved with fear circuitry and the fight-flight-freeze response. In people experiencing symptoms of PTSD, Dr. Curtis Cripe noted that the amygdala goes into over-drive. It's as if this region gets stuck.

In people with PTSD, the amygdala shows a heightened, or exaggerated response to emotional input. Sometimes this may be a trauma-related stimulus, like the sound of fireworks for a combat veteran. Other times, the stimulus may be unrelated to the person's trauma experience. For people dealing with PTSD, they know the constant fear and hypervigilance that results from these exaggerated response in the amygdala.

Hippocampus

When looking further at brain imaging studies, Dr. Curtis Cripe sees reduced activity in the hippocampus. This is the region of the brain involved with placing context around fear conditioning, as well as creating memories of experiences and facts (explicit memory).

Following a traumatic event, long-term exposure to stress hormones causes cell damage in the hippocampus. As a result, the hippocampus loses volume and becomes smaller. This structural change in the brain is due to PTSD.

The hippocampus interacts directly with the amygdala to form emotional memories. As the amygdala becomes hyper-active, it exaggerates the fear response. The hippocampus becomes hypo-active, and fails to create context for emotional information. This imbalance creates an interaction between brain systems where symptoms of PTSD emerge.

Prefrontal Cortex

People who have been diagnosed with PTSD consistently show low activity in the prefrontal cortex. This brain region is involved in important cognitive functions. When looking at PTSD, the prefrontal cortex works to regulate and make sense of emotional information. This is the area of the brain that would process and extinguish learned fear conditioning.

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The amygdala is creating an exaggerated response to emotional triggers. It doesn't have the context and facts that the hippocampus would normally provide. At the same time, Dr. Curtis Cripe points out that the prefrontal cortex fails to moderate and extinguish unnecessary fear responses.

The Solution

Dr. Curtis Cripe points out that the solution is strengthening and rebalancing these key brain regions. Through targeted interventions, he is able to track progress and bring the brain back online to work in a more healthy way to respond appropriately to external input. As the brain reaches that balance, the amygdala and hippocampus are able to take in experiences and create meaningful context to understand emotional information. The prefrontal cortex is able to process those emotional memories and make decisions about when a response is no longer needed.

Dr. Curtis Cripe, Ph.D. is the director of research and development at NTL Group, Inc. F or more information on his neuroengineering approach to improving brain function with PTSD, click here.

Ways Parents Can Nurture Their Child's Brain Development

The human brain is the most complex organ in the body, and its development begins early in the fetal development cycle. Dr. Curtis Cripe explains that as the brain continues to develop throughout infancy and childhood, it is crucial for parents to do what they can to promote and nurture brain development in their children.

During pregnancy, soon-to-be-mothers need to get enough nutrients, including folic acid and omega-3 fatty acids, which are essential for the developing brain. Dr. Curtis Cripe emphasizes the fact that brain development doesn't stop at birth. Once the baby is born, continued stimulation through activities such as reading, singing, and talking will help support healthy brain development.

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Below, Dr. Curtis Cripe shares some steps parents can take to promote their child's brain development.

Encourage reading from an early age: Reading with your child from an early age is a great way to stimulate their brain development. Not only will they learn new words and concepts, but they will also start to develop important reading skills.

Make time for play: Play is essential for healthy brain development in children. Making time for play allows children to practice essential social and motor skills and explore the world around them with a healthy curiosity.

Encourage positive discipline: It is important to encourage positive behavior in children from an early age. This means using techniques such as praise and rewards rather than punishment.

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Create a stimulating environment: The home environment can significantly impact a child's brain development. Creating a stimulating environment with plenty of toys and activities will help support healthy brain development.

Parents can find a variety of other sources by exploring resources such as the internet, libraries, and consulting with pediatric healthcare professionals. Dr. Curtis Cripe reminds parents that each child is different and will develop at their own pace.

Neuroengineer Dr. Curtis Cripe has a multi-disciplinary background that includes engineering, brain injury, child neurodevelopment, and software development, among others. Bookmark this page to read the latest posts from Dr. Cripe.

NTL Group: A Look Into the World of Neurology

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The work of neurologists, is to understand and treat people with diseases that affect the brain, spine, peripheral nerves, muscles, and autonomic nervous system. A neurologist assesses a patient's symptoms to determine certain conditions like tumors or epilepsy. A patient may be referred to a neurologist by their GP or another medical or specialist doctor. The referral letter from the GP will give details of the problem and what it is believed may be causing it. Dr. Curtis Cripe notes that neurologists also see children referred by a pediatrician because they have not reached their developmental milestones, for example, walking at an appropriate age. In addition, a neurologist may also see them if they have a learning disability.

A neurologist's work is mainly carried out in hospitals, but some do perform outpatient clinic appointments. Neurologists use testing and diagnostics to help determine certain issues based on findings.

A typical working day for a neurologist may involve consulting in a clinic or being on call to deal with emergencies. Dr. Curtis Cripe adds that the work is often demanding and requires good mental acuity.

Neurologists also help develop new treatments for conditions such as Parkinson's disease and movement disorders, which require cutting-edge research in genetics and stem cell research. Neurosurgeons working in neurology also may perform deep brain stimulation to alleviate symptoms of Parkinson's disease, essential tremor, and dystonia, as well as surgeries for epilepsy such as disconnecting the corpus callosum.

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Neurologists need a good understanding of their specialist field and some general knowledge from other medical professions. For example, they may require anatomy, physiology, and pathology knowledge.

A neurologist will also need excellent clinical skills to diagnose disease through examination, patient history, and investigations, including blood tests, X-rays, MRI scans, and lumbar puncture. It is not always easy to define what symptoms mean because the cause of the problem is not always clear.

Furthermore, Dr. Curtis Cripe mentions that neurologists have to evaluate the patient's quality of life and focus on improving it by identifying the root cause of the symptoms, which may require input from several other medical professionals.

Dr. Curtis Cripe is the founder and neuroengineer for NTL Group, a consortium of like-minded researchers and healthcare professionals whose primary object is to help those recovery addictions, traumatic brain injuries, and neurodevelopmental delays. For more updates like this, visit this blog.

What is brain plasticity and why does it matter?

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It’s been a while since scientists first noted that the brain is plastic. This doesn’t mean it’s made of plastic. Instead, neuroplasticity – or brain plasticity – is the ability of the complex organ to change throughout life. The central nervous system can adapt or change after some external stimulation, or the same principle used for restoring brain damaged areas and to heal from injury, according to neuroengineer Dr. Curtis Cripe.


Brain plasticity occurs at the beginning of life, a time when the young brain begins to organize itself. It also takes place during brain injury to compensate for lost functions or help remaining ones, and through your adult years whenever you learn or memorize something new. The scientific consensus is that the brain never stops changing via learning.

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Studies of neural connections also indicate that many damaged cells can lead to new connections based on a process known as synaptic reorganization, forming the basis for brain plasticity. Dr. Curtis Cripe noted that these concepts require the brain as well as the nervous system to be externally stimulated to make development or recovery – such as from trauma or addiction – to occur.

This emerges as a very important process in light of scientific findings that under the right circumstances, neuroplasticity can help an adult mind grow. While specific brain machinery can break down with age, people can still tap into plasticity and refresh this machinery. This can be done through targeted brain exercises as well as retraining the brain back to health at the onset of a cognitive condition such as schizophrenia and dementia.

Dr. Curtis Cripe is a neuroengineer with diverse multidisciplinary background that includes software development, bioengineering, addiction recovery, psychophysiology, psychology, brain injury, and child neurodevelopment. For similar reads, visit this page.

Exploring Neurological Disorders In Babies: Signs And Symptoms

Babies have the amazing ability to develop incredibly fast, going from helpless tiny humans to fast walkers in no time. But there are plenty of factors why they can fall behind and experience a number of congenital neurological problems. Here are some common disorders of this kind among infants.

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Asphyxia or oxygen deprivation can take place when a baby is deprived of oxygen before, during, or after birth. On the other hand, as a common neurological problem in both babies and children, seizures can range in severity, depending on the underlying cause. Hemorrhages can occur in different parts of an infant’s brain, too, and can also range in severity depending on the size of the brain area affected by bleeding.

More severe neurological conditions can be evident at birth, such as an abnormally large forehead or abnormally shaped skull. Some signs of brain damage include an unusually small skull, abnormal facial features, seizures, stiffness, difficulty focusing vision, and inability to feed. Poor muscle coordination could occur, too – doctors note that this problem and jerking in infant limbs may signal epileptic activity if it persists.

If at delivery the signs of neurological issues are already evident, the doctor will start working with the parents to set up a treatment plan and make sure the baby gets all the needed care. Milder cases are more difficult to identify, but if the baby is already falling behind in the developmental curve, it may be a chance to talk about potential causes and what could be done.

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Dr. Curtis Cripe has a diverse background in neuroengineering, aerospace engineering, psychology, psychophysiology, software development and programming, addiction recovery, brain injury, and child neurodevelopment. Read more about neurological diseases on this page.

Neuroengineering: A Quick Overview

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Neuroengineering marries the different fields of neuroscience, device development, computation, and mathematics, and is an exciting modern venture into science and technology. It has generated plenty of excitement not only for developing interfaces between the brain and computers but also for mostly untapped potential in developing treatments for neurological conditions such as strokes and epilepsy. It combines technologies and algorithms with experimental research to accomplish the following.

Develop devices and computing: This is to assist patients with neural disorders, which affects almost 1 billion people around the globe.

Reveal how neural systems perform computations: This is one of the biggest challenges that confront science today.

Inspire new technologies and algorithms: Through reverse engineering living neural systems, scientists in this field can produce more innovations, such as robotics.

Educate younger scientists and engineers: It can pave the way for transcending the traditional limits and boundaries of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM).

Perhaps one of most memorable examples of neural engineering is the bionic arm, where the DEKA Arm is currently underway in clinical trials out of hopes of providing amputated U.S. soldiers with an artificial limb that is way more advanced than the basic hook used since the World War II. The DEKA Arm recognizes signals coming from the brain and relays signal back to the human organ.

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A closer understanding of how neurons work could discover ways to stimulate or disrupt the neurocircuitry. This way, implantable devices akin to pacemakers could be used for controlling nervous system conditions such as depression and Parkinson’s disease.

With the diverse array of disciplines it incorporates, neuroengineering could offer pioneering insights into understanding further prevalent brain and nervous system disorders and other neurologic deficits affecting millions worldwide.

Dr. Curtis Cripe is the head of research and development at the NTL Group, which specializes in neuroengineering programs. For similar discussions, subscribe to this blog.