Neurons + Neurotransmitters Flashcards
What are neurons?
- Are nerve cells.
- Sense change in the environment.
- Communicate changes to other neruons.
- Control the body’s responses to these sensations.
What are neuroglia?
Are glial cells.
What are the functions of neuroglia?
- Insulate.
- Support.
- Nourish.
- Provide immunity.
What substructures make up a neuron?
- Dendrites.
- Cell body.
- Axon.
- Myelin sheath.
- Synapse.
What are dendrites?
Receive information.
What is the cell body?
Process infomation.
What is the axon?
Communicates infomation.
What is the purpose of the myelin sheath?
Increases conduction velocity.
What is a synapse?
A connection between 2 neurons.
What factors influence the velocity of conduction in neurons?
- Whether they’re myelinated or unmyelinated.
- Large or small in diameter.
How can conduction velocity be increased?
If neurons are -
- Myelinated.
- Have a large diameter.
How can conduction velocity be decreased?
If neurons are -
- Unmyelinated,
- Have a small diameter.
What substructures does a synapse consist of?
- Presynaptic neuron.
- Synaptic vesicles.
- Synaptic cleft.
- Neurotransmitters.
- Postsynaptic neuron.
- Postsynaptic receptors.
What are neurotransmitters?
- Proteins.
- Neural signalling molecules.
How can a neurotransmitter influence a neuron in 3 ways?
- Excitory.
- Inhibitory.
- Modulatory.
What receptors do neurotransmitters bind to?
Ionotropic receptors.
What are ionotropic receptors?
- Also known as ligand-gated gated ion channels.
- Open to allow sodium, potassium, calcium and chloride to enter the postsynaptic membrane.
- Convert the chemical message into a postsynaptic electrical signal.
What receptors do neuromodulators bind to?
Metabotropic receptors.
What are metabotropic receptors?
- Also known as G protein-coupled receptors.
- Slow-acting effect.
- Sensitise or densities of neurons by changing the strength of signal transmission.
- Modulate cell activity via a series of intracellular events.
