Cells of the NS Flashcards
What is the ratio of glial:neurons in the entire brain?
1:1
What is the ratio of neurons:glial in the cortex?
1:4
What is the ratio of neurons:glial in the cerebellum?
4:1
What is the staining for white matter called?
Weigert stain
What is the staining for gray matter called?
Mulligan stain
What are the four morphological classes of neurons called?
Uni-, pseudouni-, bi- and multipolar
What is the staining for perikarya called?
Nissl stain
What is another (histological) staining for white matter called?
Klüwer-Barrera stain
What can you use to stain the whole neuron?
Silver-based bodian stain
How does the perikaryon differ in motorneurons to the skeletal muscles and to the autonomic system?
Bigger to the skeletal muscles
What are some of the classifications of NTs?
Small molecules: acetylcholine + aminoacids (GABA, glutamate)
Monoamines: dopa, NE, E, 5-HT
Peptides
What is NeuN?
A protein only found in neurons –> marker of neurons
What subtypes of glialcells are found in the CNS?
Astrocytes, oligodendrocytes, microglia and ependymal cells
What are the main function of oligodendocytes?
Forming the myelin sheaths around the axons
What are the main functions of astrocytes?
Mechanical support, transmitter metabolism, scar tissue following injury, and radial glial during development
What are the main function of microglia?
Immune cell of CNS
What are dopamin broken down to?
Melanin (why substansia nigra is called that)
What are you targeting, if you want to stain a specific type of neurotransmitter neuron?
Either the NT or the enzymes involved in the synthesis (it’s hard to produce NT ABs, as NTs are the same in all mammals, but the enzymes differ)
What are brain tumors made of?
Glial cells (neurons can’t proliferate)
What is choroid plexus?
A structure present in all ventricles, producing the cerebrospinal fluid
Where are ependymal cells found?
Lining the ventricles
What are the organs without a BBB called, and what are some examples of these?
Circumventricular organs: the pineal gland, the posterior pituitary
How many meninges covers the brain, and what are they called?
3:
- Dura (outer)
- Arachnoid
- Pia (inner)
(a 4th has been identified)
What are the function of the arachnoid meninx?
Bridging over surface irregularities
What are the function of the pia meninx?
Closely attacthed to brain surface
What are the space between the arachnoid and pia called, and what is it filled with?
Subrarachnoid space, filled with cerebrospinal fluid
What are the cells corresponding to oligodendrocytes in the PNS called?
Schwann cells
