nervous system definitions Flashcards
Autonomic Nervous System (ANS)
Governs the brain’s involuntary activities (eg. stress heartbeat) and is self-regulating (ie. autonomous). It is divided into the sympathetic branch (fight or flight) and the parasympathetic branch (rest and digest)
Brain
That part of the CNS that is responsible for coordinating sensation, intellectual and nervous activity
CNS
Comprises of the brain and spinal cord. It receives information from the senses and controls the body’s responses
Peripheral nervous system
The part of the nervous system that is outside the brain and spinal cord
Somatic Nervous System
The part of the peripheral nervous system responsible for carrying sensory and motor information to and from the CNS
What 2 things make up the nervous system?
CNS and PNS
What 2 things make up the CNS?
Brain and spinal chord
What 2 things make up the PNS?
- Somatic nervous system
- Autonomic nervous system
What 2 things make up the autonomic nervous system?
- Sympathetic nervous system
- Parasympathetic nervous system
Spinal cord
A bundle of nerve fibres enclosed within the spinal column and which connects nearly all parts of the body with the brain
Motor neurons
form synapses with muscles and control their contractions
Neurotransmitter
Chemical substances that play an important part in the workings of the nervous system by transmitting nerve impulses across a synapse
Relay neurons
These neurons are the most common type of neuron in the CNS. They allow sensory and motor neurons to communicate with each other
Sensory neurons
carry nerve impulses from sensory receptors to the spinal cord and the brain
Synapse
The conjunction of the end of the axon of one neuron and the dendrite or cell body of another
