Organization of the Nervous System Flashcards
What does the nervous system enable?
Perception and interaction with the environment
What is the structure and function of the nervous system?
- Enables detection of sensory input, process and make decisions
- Responds to body to generate motor output
Name the 5 regions of the nervous system
- Peripheral
- Spinal
- Brainstem
- Cerebellar
- Cerebral
Which nervous system is this?
- Neurons in the brain and spinal cord
- Parts encased in bone (skull and vertebral column)
Central Nervous System (CNS)
Which nervous system is this?
- All nervous system structures outside of the skull and vertebral column
- Vast network of nerves consisting of bundle of axons that link body to brain and spinal cord, sensory receptors and autonomic and dorsal root ganglion
Peripheral Nervous System (PNS)
What are the 5 subdivisions of the CNS?
- Spinal Cord
- Brainstem
- Cerebellum
- Diencephalon
- Cerebral Hemisphere
This nervous system recieves, integrates, processes and generates neural impulses that control bodily functions
The CNS
This nervous system controls intelligence, memory, learning cognition and emotion
The CNS
What part of the body does the following?
Sorts sensory information collected from the body and coordinates conscious and unconsious activity
controls thinking to understand matters, making judgements, problem-solving, emotion, and remembering
The Brain
Part of the CNS
What part of the body does the following?
Conducts 2-way signals between brain and body, governing basic muslce reflexes and movement patterns
conveys somatosensory and autonomic information to the brain and signals neurons that control movement and autonomic function
Spinal Cord
Part of the CNS
What is the following PNS division?
Sensory information from internal and external environment via sensory organs
Afferent (sensory) division
What is the following PNS division?
Has somatic motor and visceral motor divisions
Efferent (motor) divison
What is motor axons that connect brain and spinal cord to skeletal muscle
Somatic motor axons
What is system that inntervates smooth muscle, cardiac muscle and glands
Visceral Motor (autonomic nervous system)
What are sympathetic and parasympathetic divisons a part of?
Visceral motor (autonomic nervous system)
What is fight or flight; moblizes body systems during emergency situations
Sympathetic division
What is rest and digest; promotes non-emergency functions and restores energy
Parasympathetic division
What system is bidirectional communicaiton between brain and smooth muscle, cardiac muscle, and glands
Autonomic system
What system is transmiting information from skin and musculoskeletal system to the cerebral cortex?
Somatosensory System
What system is conveying information from the brain to skeletal muscle?
Somatic motor system
What is basic structure and functional units of nervous system
Building block of nervous system
Neurons
What is supporting and protecting neurons
Building blocks of nervous system
Glia cells
What is specalized to recieve information and to support electrical signals and synapse (communicating with other neuron or effector cells)
Part of neuron shape
Outer membrane
What is thin, branch processes; extends from cell body, serves as input site for neuron and recieving information from other neurons
Dendrite
What intergrates all information coming into neuron; provides metabolic support and contains cell nucleus
Cell Body
What is the tubular process arising from specialized area of cell body called axon hillock
function: transmitting ongoing electrical signals from neurons integrating center to target cells at the end of it
Axon
What is all input summed here and decision to propagate action potential encoded and transmitted down axon
Axon hillock
What releases neural transmitters in synaptic cleft, binds to receptors on post synaptic cell at synapse
Presynaptic Terminal
What is the first neuron that contains information to be communicated
Presynaptic Neuron
What is the second neuron that receives the information
Postsynaptic Neuron
What is the chemcial that is released when nerve impulses arrive at end of presynaptic neuron’s axon
Neurotranmitter
What synapse is between axon and presynaptic neuron and the cell body or soma of postsynaptic neuron
Type of synapse
Axosomatic Synapse
What synapse is between axon of a presynaptic neuron and dendrite of a postsynaptic neuron
Type of Synapse
Axodendritic Synapse
What is between axon of a presynaptic neuron and axon of postsynaptic neuron
Type of Synapse
Axoaxonic Synapse
What neuron conducts impulses out of CNS to effector organs (muscles and glands)
Motor (efferent) neuron
What is located within CNS between sensory and motor pathways; involved in signal integration
Interneuron
What conducts impulses from sensory receptors into CNS
Sensory (afferent) neuron
What is this neuron?
- multiple dendrites stem from many areas of the cell body
- single axon arises from axon hillock
- recieve and accomodate massive amounts of synpatic input to their dendrites
- found in brain and spinal cord
Multipolar
What is this type of neuron?
- 2 primary processes that extend from cell body: dendritic root and axon
Bipolar
What divides into multiple dendritic branches
Dendritic root
What is this type of neuron?
- single projection from cell body that divides into 2 axonal roots: peripheral and central axon
- no true dendrites
- one cell body supports both axons
Psuedounipolar
What axon conducts sensory information from periphery toward cell body
Peripheral Axon
What axon conducts information between cell body and the spinal cord
Central Axon
These are the functions for what type of cell?
- myelinating
- singaling/cleaning/nourishing
- defending
Glia cells
Name the 6 glia cells
- Satellite
- Schwann cells
- Oligodendrocytes
- Microglia
- Astrocytes
- Ependymal Cells
What cell is this?
- produces myelin sheath
- found in CNS
- each cell myelinates several axons from different neurons
Oligodendrocytes
What cell is this?
- produce myelin sheath
- found in PNS
- each cell myelinates one axon at a time
Schwann cells
What is recurring gaps in myelin sheath on axon to allow for ion passage
- enables salatory conduction
Nodes of Ranvier
What is node-to-node jumping of action potential down myelinated axon
Saltatory conduction
What cell is this?
- largest and most structurally elaborate glia cell
- directly singals neurons, microglia, oligodendrocytes
- regulates extracellular fluid by controlling ion levels, neurotransmitters and waste products
- spread waves of Ca2+ via gap junctions
- regulates nutrient transport to neurons via action on blood vessels
- serves as part of blood-brain barrier
- takes up extra K+ ions into extracellular environment
- removes chemical tranmitters from synaptic cleft
- cleans other debris in extracellular space
Astrocytes
What is this?
- essential to prevent pathogens and toxin to contact neurons
- selective permeability that seperates blood and extracellular fluid
- formed by tight junctions bewteen brain capillary endothelial cells and surrounding seal of astroctyes end feet
- allows only lipid-soluble molecules through
Blood-Brain barrier
What cell is this?
- functions as phagocytes
- cleans neural environment
- cleans debris of dying cells
- samples extracelluar environment for damage indicators
Microglia cells
What cell is this?
- covers soma in PNS
- regulates extracellular environment
- found in dorsal root ganglia, sympathetic ganglia, and parasympathetic ganglia
- key role in pathology of chronic pain
Satellite cells
What cell is this?
- lines ventricles and central canal of spinal cord
- production, regulation, and movement of cerebrospinal fluid through ventricular system
Ependymal Cells
What is composed of axons and myelin
- deep to cortical gray matter in brain
- surrounds gray matter in spinal cord
White Matter
What consists of cell bodies and neurons
- found in cortex on surface of forebrain and cerebellum, deep structures of forebrain (basal ganglia) and limbic system
- located centrally in spinal cord forming H shape
Gray Matter
