Introduction to the nervous system

Question 1

What is the nervous system made of?

Answer 1

• neurones (nerve cells)
• glia (supporting cells)

~100 billion neurones in the human brain alone!

Question 2

What are the structures found in neurones?

Answer 2

• soma (cell body)
• axon
• dendrites
• terminals
• organelles (nucleus, mitochondria, ER, golgi, ribosomes etc.)

Question 3

How do neurones work?

Answer 3

Neuronal activity must be coordinated by:

• electrical activity within the neurone
• synaptic transmission between neurones (and other cells)

Question 4

How is the nervous system organised?

Answer 4

• peripheral vs central (brain and spinal cord)
• sensory (afferent) vs motor (efferent)
• somatic vs autonomic

Question 5

What does the nervous system do?

Answer 5

Everything! ie. movement, learning, consciousness, autonomic control