Stress and the Neuroendocrine Response Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Stress and the Neuroendocrine Response - Essay Example Prolonged stress tends to impair the learning and memory ability of individuals, which is as a result of reduction or loss of the hippocampal volume. Chronic stress also impacts on the level of dopamine released, which blunts an individuals capacity for pleasure, and increases anxiety facilitating poor decision making (Amara & Kuhar, 1993). Â  Short-term stress in this article is described as stimulation. Transient and moderate stress that leave individuals feeling good. The effect of short-term stress on the brain is the increased activity of the cells in the hippocampus, the region responsible for learning and memory. Another effect of the stimulation has increased the release of dopamine, the neurotransmitter central to pleasure, hence the feel-good effect. Â  The hippocampus is a small region of the brain that is associated with learning, memory, and spatial navigation. It is placed in the middle of the temporal lobe just below the cortical surface. It is structured into two halves, lying on the right and left sides of the brain and has a curved shape. The hippocampus is associated with the formation of long-term memories and three-dimensional space navigation. The impairment of the region can cause memory loss. Hippocampal neurogenesis shows that production of new cells in the brain follows a procedure. During which, newborn cells have acquiesced to regulatory factors which influence cell proliferation, maturation, and survival. Situational and dispositional factors have the ability to control neurogenesis and impact on the hippocampal reliant learning and memory (Freund & Buzsaki, 1996).