LIMBIC SYSTEM

• The term limbic has been derived from the word

‘limbus’ which means a ring.
• It is applied for those parts of the cortex and
subcortical structures that form a ring around the
brain stem.
• Phylogenetically, limbic cortex is an older part of the cerebral
cortex (allocortex) having primitive histological structures.
• Limbic cortex is composed of:
– Orbitofrontal cortex,
– Subcallosal gyrus,
– Cingulate gyrus,
– Parahippocampal gyrus and
– Uncus
• Subcortical structures included in the limbic system are:
– Hypothalamus,
– Septum,
– Paraolfactory area,
– Anterior nuclei of thalamus
– Amygdala
– Portions of Basal Ganglia
– Hippocampus
Papez circuit
 Functions of limbic system
• 1. Autonomic functions
• 2. Regulation of feeding behaviour – Hypothalamus, Amygdala
• 3. Regulation of sexual behaviour and reproduction – Neural
control and Endocrinal control
• Neural Control:
– Role of neocortex and limbic cortex, Piriform cortex
overlying amaygdala
– Role of hypothalamus,
– Role of encephalization
• Endocrinal control Role of gonadal hormones:
• Role of pheromones:
Pheromones are chemicals which by their smell act as sex
attractants in animals.
• 4. Maternal behaviour:
• Maternal behaviour is the function of cingulate gyrus and
retrosplenial portion of the limbic cortex.
• In animals, maternal behaviour is primarily neurogenic, i.e. it
depends on the olfactory, auditory, visual and thermotactile
stimuli arising from the young ones.
• Prolactin and oxytocin, though absolutely not essential, have
been reported to facilitate maternal behaviour.
• 5. Emotional behaviour:
• 6. Motivational behaviour
• Kluver- Bucy Syndrome:
• Bilateral destruction of temporal lobe leads to destruction of
amydala leading to this condition. It is characterized by:
– Extreme orality- tendency to examine things with the
mouth
– Loss of fear
– Decreased aggressiveness
– Tameness
– Changes in eating behaviour
– Psychic blindness/ Visual Agnosia
– Excessive sexual drive
 COMPONENTS OF EMOTIONS
• Emotions refer to an aroused state involving intense feeling,
autonomic activation and related behaviour, which
accompany many of our conscious experiences.
• Emotions have two major components: Mental and Physical.
 I. Mental or sensory component
• Mental or sensory component of emotions comprises Cognition,
Affect and Conation.
• Cognition: It refers to a phenomenon by which one becomes aware
(sees) and recognizes a situation.
• For example, when an individual hears a sudden very loud noise
and from his experience recognizes it to be bomb blast. This is
called cognition.
• Affect: It is a German word which means development of a feeling.
In the above example, the person after cognizing the loud sound as
bomb blast is frightened; this feeling of frightening is called affect.
• Conation: It is the force which directs or urges to take some action.
For example, the desire to run away from the site of loud noise after
getting frightened is conation
 II. Physical or expressive component
• Physical or expressive of the emotions is motor side of
emotional behaviour.
• It consists of two subcomponents—
• The somatic and
• Autonomic.
• Somatic part of the physical component of emotions basically
comprises changes in the skeletal muscles.
• The accomplishment of the act of running away from the site
of noise in the above example constitutes the somatic part of
the physical component.
• Autonomic part of the physical component of emotions
involves the co-ordinated activity of sympathetic and
parasympathetic nervous system.
• For example, occurrence of tachycardia, raised blood
pressure, increased respiration rate, etc. after getting
frightened from the sudden loud noise constitutes the
autonomic part of the physical component.
 Physiology of Motivation
• Concept of reward and punishment
• Role of neurotransmitters:
• Neurotransmitters involved in the pathway that stimulate the
reward centre are:
• Catecholamines (norepinephrine and dopamine), Morphine and
Enkephalin.
• Drugs that increase stimulation of reward centre are those which
increase synaptic activity in catecholamine pathway,
e.g.Amphetamine, which causes increased release of dopamine,
• Nicotine and alcohol increase the amount of dopamine,
• Cocaine inhibits the reuptake of dopamine and norepinephrine.
• Drugs that decrease stimulation of reward centre are
those which lower synaptic activity in the
catecholamine pathway, e.g. chlorpromazine
hydrochloride (Largactil)
 PHYSIOLOGICAL BASIS OF PSYCHOTIC
DISORDERS
• 1. DEPRESSION:
• In a normal person the mood usually swings, i.e. with bad
news (e.g. failure in examination) the mood is down and with
good news (e.g. distinction in examination) the mood is
elated.
• However, when mood chronically remains down without any
specific reason then the condition is called as depression.
• Signs and symptoms are:
• Chronic depression of mood, Lack of interest, Suicidal
tendency and Excessive sleep and overeating.
• Causes: The physiological basis of this disorder is decreased
activity of either noradrenergic or serotoninergic fibres.
• The defect may be at the receptor level or there is deficiency
of neurotransmitters (noradrenaline, NA or serotonin).
• Treatment: Drugs that increase the excitatory effects of NA
are effective in treating depression, these include monoamine
oxidase inhibitors, tricyclic antidepressants and drugs that
enhance the action of serotonin.
• Manic-depressive conditions (bipolar disorder) can be
effectively treated by lithium compounds that diminish the
actions of NA and serotonin.
• 2. MANIA:
• In this condition, mood remains chronically elated without
any specific reason.
• It is due to overactivity of noradrenergic fibre activity.
• 3. SCHIZOPHRENIA :
• Schizophrenia is another common psychotic disorder in which
there is false perception of sensations (hallucinations) though
there is no anatomical lesion in the sensory pathway.
• Cause: Schizophrenia is thought to be associated with the
excessive activity of dopaminergic mesolimbic pathway.
• Evidence supporting this theory derives from the fact that
schizophrenic symptoms are reduced by drugs, such as
chlorpromazine and haloperidol that diminish dopamine
release at axon terminals
• Characteristic features of schizophrenia are:
– Hallucinations(auditory as well as visual)
– Delusions of grandeur,
– Intense fear, or paranoia
– Withdrawal from the society, i.e. patient prefers extreme
isolation
• Treatment:
• The drugs which decrease the dopamine concentration in the
central nervous system are used.
• But the main drawback of these drugs is that they cause
deficiency of dopamine which precipitates parkinsonism.