nervous system Flashcards
what is the nervous system responsible for
coordination of activities in the body… allows animal to respond to internal + external changes called stimuli
name the two parts the nervous system is divided into and name these giving an example of what each consists of
CNS- central nervous system consists of brain + spinal cord
PNS - peripheral nervous system consists of a vast network of nerves that carry messages between the CNS + rest of the body
name + describe the 4 processes involved in making a response to a stimulus
Reception: stimulus detected by neurons + nerve cells
Transmission: message passes along neurons in the PNS from receptors to the CNS, and then to effectors e.g muscles.
Integration: incoming messages are sorted, processed + response is decided upon… happens in the CNS, especially the brain
Response: carried out by effectors e.g muscles/glands when they are stimulated by neurons
define neuron
nerve cell… basic units of the nervous system
there are three types of neurons, name + describe each type
Sensory (afferent) neurons take messages from sense organs to the CNS
Motor (efferent) take messages from the CNS to muscles + glands causing them to respond
Interneurons: short neurons not enclsoed in a myelin sheath that carry information between sensory + motor neurons. found only in the CNS
define receptor
a group of cells that detect a stimulus
what is a nerve ending
connects sensory neurons to receptor cells or sensory organs
what is a dendrite
a fibre that carries impulses towards the cell body
what is an axon
carries impulses away from cell bodies
define Schwann cells and state where they are found
located along the length of neurons, make the myelin sheath
what is the myelin sheath
fat rich membrane that insulates electrical impulses
what is a ganglion
a group of cell bodies located outside the CNS
where are the cell bodies of sensory neurons found
outside the CNS
where are the cell bodies of motor neurons found
within the CNS
draw a labelled diagram of a sensory and motor neurons
draw a labelled diagram of an interneuron
what are neurotransmitter swellings and where are they found
ends of each axon breaks into many axon terminals. these small branches end in a swelling called a neurotransmitter swelling. these release chemicals that carry the impulse from one nerve cell to another. the chemicals are neurotransmitters and are stored in vesicles in the swellings
describe how nerve impulses are transmitted
a neuron receives a stimulus of sufficient strength (above the threshold). an impulse travels along the dendrite and axon to the neurotransmitter swellings. this movement involves the movement of ions (H+, K+, Na+). if the threshold isnt reached, nothing happens
what is the all or nothing rule
the the threshold is reached an impulse is carried. if the threshold is not reached, no impulse is carried
describe the terms threshold
the minimun stimulus needed to cause an impulse to be carried
what is a resting neuron
when a neuron is not carrying an impulse ions are pumped in and out of the axon. this results in a negative inside and a positive outside in the axon
describe the movement of impulse
once the threshold is reached the axon/dendron changes its permeability to ions. the inside of the axon becomes positive, outside is negative at the site of stimulation. this causes the next section to alter its permebility in a similar way. a chain reaction is set up. a movement of positive charge moves along the inside of the axon. ATP is needed to cause these changes . once the impulse has moved along, the area behind is restored to the resting state
describe the refractory period
a short timespan after a neuron has carried an impulse during which a stimulus fails to cause a response (motor neuron hasnt send the impulse to the effectors)
what is meant by the speed of an impulse
the speed at which an electrical impulse travels along a neuron