The Nervous System Flashcards
What are the roles of the nervous system?
-sensory: to sense changes within the body and the outside environment
-integration: to interpret the changes
-homeostasis: initiating changes in the form of muscular contractions, glandular secretions and through motor movement
what makes up the CNS and what does it do?
the brain and the spinal chord, acts as a control centre and associates inputs with outputs
what makes up the PNS and what does it do?
made up of neurones and nerves that connect the CNS with receptors and effectors
-carries info from receptors and carries instructions to effectors
how is the brain protected?
-bone being the skull
-CSF for cushioning
-highly selective blood brain barrier
-mininges
what are the three layers of meninges?
-pia mater: thin, highly vascular and closely adhering
-arachnoid: delicate web like, transparent
-dura mater: tough and fibrous outermost layer
What are the cells in the CNS and give some features of these as a whole
Glial cells which consist of astrocytes, microglia and oligodendrocytes and they:
-make up 90% of the cells in the CNS
-do not initiate / conduct nerve impulses
-communicate with neurones and each other
-support neurones physically and metabolically
- homeostatically control the specialised extracellular environment for optimal neurone function
what are the functions of astrocytes?
-provide neurones with physical support as they act like a glue and hold them together
-act as scaffolding during foetal development
-neural scar formation
-absorb and degrade some of the neurotransmitters that are released in their area and so brings their actions to a stop
-nutrient transfer to neurones from the blood
-aid in the maintenance of optimal ions for neurone excitability
-provide chemical communication with neurones and each other via gap junctions/ glutamate receptors
what are the five sections of the spinal cord in their categorised limb?
fore limb: cervical nerves, thoracic nerves
hind limb: lumbar nerve, sacral nerve and the coccygeal nerve
be able to label the white and gray matter parts of the spinal cord
give the functional organisation of the spinal chord
-the dorsal horn where cell bodies of interneurons on which afferent neurones terminate
-the lateral horn which is the cell bodies of autonomic efferent nerve fibres
-ventral horn which is cell bodies of somatic efferent neurones
what is white matter and whats its two functions?
bundles of nerve fibres
-ascending tracts (SC to brain) transmit afferent input signals to the brain
-descending tracts (brain to SC) relays brain messages to effernet neurones
what perforates the dura mater?
the 12 cranial nerves of the brain
What nerves make up the PNS?
31 pairs of spinal nerves and 12 pairs of cranial nerves
what is the only cranial nerve that doesnt go to the head and neck?
the vagus nerve
why is there progressive nerve branching in the PNS?
-provides network of peripheral nerves
-allows supply to a particular/ specific regions of the body
give the sequence of organisation of the nervous system
- afferent division
- input to CNS from periphery goes to brain and spinal cord
3.output from CNS to periphery - efferent division
- transferred to either skeletal muscle or smooth muscle, cardiac muscle, exocrine glands or some endocrine glands
what division for:
cns to internal environment
internal environment to CNS
CNS to external environment
external environment to CNS
efferent
affernet
efferent
afferent
what is the functions of the afferent division of the CNS?
-detects, encodes and transmits peripheral signals to the CNS for processing
-have specialised neurone endings to detect changes in the internal and external environment
what are the two different types of afferents?
-visceral afferents= carry subconscious info from internal viscera
-sensory afferents = carry conscious/ sensory info