Nueroanatomy Flashcards
Central Nervous System (CNS)
Consists of the brain and the spinal cord. Integrating and command center of the nervous system: receives incoming sensory signals, interprets the signals, and dictates motor responses.
Peripheral Nervous System (PNS)
Part of nervous system outside of CNS:
- Cranial nerves
- Spinal nerves
- Ganglia
Ganglia
PNS
collection of cell bodies
Sensory input
Afferent
Receive signals and gather information
Integration
Integrate incoming signals (to determine whether or not the information should be passed along)
Motor output
Efferent
Communicate signals to target cells (other neurons or muscles or glands)
Dendrite
Receiving and processing end of neuron
Cell body
Synthesizes information and proteins. Decides whether or not to send information down the line.
Axon
Sending end of neuron.
Arises from the cell body at a specialized area called the axon hillock. Axons are covered with myelin, which helps them convey the nerve impulse rapidly.
Somatic sensory
General: touch, pain, pressure, vibration, from skin, body wall and limbs.
Special: hearing, equilibrium, vision
Visceral sensory
General: stretch, pain, temperature, chemical changes, nausea, hunger.
Special: taste and smell
Somatic motor
Motor innervation to skeletal muscles
Visceral motor
Motor innervation to smooth muscle, cardiac muscle and glands
Multipolar neuron
many processes extend from the cell body; all are dendrites except for a single axon
Bipolar neuron
two processes extend from the cell body: one is a fused dendrite; the other is an axon
Unipolar (psuedounipolar)
one process extends from the cell body and forms central and peripheral processes, which together comprise an axon.
Where are bipolar neurons found?
rare, sensory neurons found in some special sensory organs (olfactory, eye, ear). Visual input from eye to brain.
Where are multipolar neurons found?
most abundant in body, major neuron type in the CNS. Most are interneurons that conduct impulses within the CNS, some are motor that conduct impulses from CNS to effector ( muscle/gland).
Where are unipolar (psuedounipolar) neurons found?
mainly in the PNS. Common only in the dorsal root ganglia of the spinal cord and sensory ganglia of cranial nerves.
What is it called when one neuron connects up to another neuron?
a chemical event
What is a reflex arc?
simple chains of neurons that cause our simplest, reflexive behaviors and reflect the basic structural plan of the nervous system.
What is a neuron?
a nerve cell
What is a nerve fiber?
a long axon
What is a nerve?
a collection of axons in the PNS