Does hippocampus mean seahorse?

Does hippocampus mean seahorse?

The hippocampus is found in the temporal lobe below the cerebral cortex. ... The term hippocampus comes from the Greek word for seahorse, because when it is removed from the brain, the hippocampus vaguely resembles a seahorse (see picture below).

What is a hippocampus in Greek mythology?

The term hippocampus (Greek; hippokampos, sea horse; derived from the shape of a mythical half-horse hippos plus half-fish sea monster kampos) was a sea horse with a fish tail instead of hind legs [1].

What is a seahorse in Greek mythology?

Poseidon, the Greek god of the sea, known as Neptune to the Romans, traveled in a chariot drawn by fierce seahorses with heads of a horse and tails of a fish. ... It is a beautiful, classic representation of a winged seahorse.

What color is a hippocampus?

As for the dark-colored European species, the short-snouted seahorse (Hippocampus hippocampus) changes to a shining white or silvery color, and the long-snouted Hippocampus guttulatus often switches to shades ranging from copper to light ochre or sulfur yellow, its body further adorned with tiny silver dots (Giwojna, ...

Can hippocampus damage be reversed?

Regeneration and repair Abstinence from alcohol will reverse hippocampal damage within 6 to 12 months. Antidepressants have been found to stimulate production of new brain cells (neurogenesis) and to gradually rebuild the structure of the hippocampus in depressed individuals.

Does the hippocampus regulate emotion?

The hippocampus is a small organ located within the brain's medial temporal lobe and forms an important part of the limbic system, the region that regulates emotions. ... The hippocampus is responsible for processing of long-term memory and emotional responses.

Does the hippocampus control fear?

Whereas the amygdala stores the memories of stimulus related to fear, the hippocampus seems to hold the contextual stimulus about fear. The functions of the structures indicate that the amygdala and hippocampus possess complementary roles in fear conditioning.

What is the difference between the hippocampus and the hypothalamus?

is that hypothalamus is (anatomy) a region of the forebrain located below the thalamus, forming the basal portion of the diencephalon, and functioning to regulate body temperature, some metabolic processes and governing the autonomic nervous system while hippocampus is (anatomy) a part of the brain located inside the ...

How is the hippocampus involved in anxiety?

The hippocampus is not only involved in cognitive functions but is also a key structure of the so-called emotional brain. This structure plays a major role in regulating affective states and has been particularly associated with the modulation of anxiety states.

What causes hippocampus damage?

Damage to hippocampus can occur through many causes including head trauma, ischemia, stroke, status epilepticus and Alzheimer's disease.

What causes atrophy of the hippocampus?

Abstract. Hippocampal atrophy (HA) is usually attributed to the neurofibrillary tangles and neuritic plaques of Alzheimer disease. However, the hippocampus is vulnerable to global ischemia, which may lead to atrophy.

Does the hippocampus store memory?

The hippocampus is a key region in the medial temporal lobe, and processing information through the hippocampus is necessary for the short-term memory to be encoded into a long-term memory. The long-term memory does not remain stored permanently in the hippocampus.

Can the brain run out of space?

In one sense, yes. Memory depends on forming new neural connections, and the brain has a finite number of neurones and a limited space in which to add more connections between them. Yet in another sense a healthy brain can never stop learning.

What does the hippocampus do in memory?

Hippocampus and memory The hippocampus helps humans process and retrieve two kinds of memory, declarative memories and spatial relationships. Declarative memories are those related to facts and events. Examples include learning how to memorize speeches or lines in a play.

Can the hippocampus repair itself?

Adult neurogenesis: Animal models to humans Since then, several studies have found signs of new neurons in the adult human hippocampus, leading many researchers to accept that this part of the brain could renew itself throughout life in people too.

What does a smaller hippocampus mean?

A small hippocampus makes you more vulnerable to stress's ill effects, including damage to the hippocampus. Particularly intriguing is the correlation the Reiss study found between high cortisol and progressive reductions in hippocampal volume over time.

What does a larger hippocampus mean?

It's normal for the hippocampus to shrink as we age, but it's much more pronounced in people with mild cognitive impairment or Alzheimer's disease. Scientists long believed that a bigger hippocampus meant a better memory until a 2004 study showed that its size does not always matter for memory in older adults.

At what age is your brain the sharpest?

Scientists have long known that our ability to think quickly and recall information, also known as fluid intelligence, peaks around age 20 and then begins a slow decline.

Can you make your hippocampus bigger?

There has never been an easier time to grow your hippocampus function. As well as more traditional methods such as exercising and changing your diet, technology has put brain training into overdrive! There are tons of stimulating apps for the brain these days.

Is it better to have a bigger hippocampus?

When it comes to certain parts of the brain, bigger doesn't necessarily equate to better memory. Scientists long believed that a bigger hippocampus meant a better memory until a 2004 study showed that its size does not always matter for memory in older adults. ...

Are big brains better?

Summary: Using a large dataset and controlling for a variety of factors, including sex, age, height, socioeconomic status, and genetic ancestry, scientists found that people with larger brains rated higher on measures of intelligence and educational attainment.

What does spatial memory mean?

Spatial memory, the storage and retrieval of information within the brain that is needed both to plan a route to a desired location and to remember where an object is located or where an event occurred.

What is hippocampal volume loss?

Stress causes a loss in total hippocampal volume as early as day3, which progresses with the 10-day chronic stress. The right hippocampal volume loss is evident only after chronic stress, but the left hippocampal volume loss is evident as early as day3 and progresses with the 10-day chronic stress paradigm.