CHAPTER – 7 Control and Coordination
Living organisms respond and react to various stimuli like heat, light, cold, touch, pressure etc.
Plants and animals both respond to stimuli but in different manner. Example : withdrawl of hand
on touching a hot object.
Control and Coordination in Animals
It is brought about in all animals with the help of two main systems :-
a) Nervous System b) Endocrine System
A] Nervous System :
Functions
i) To receive the information from environment
ii) To receive the information from various body parts. (Stimuli = Response)
iii) To act accordingly through muscles and glands.
➢ Stimulus : Any change in environment or within that bring about the reaction eg:
touching a hot plate.
➢ Response : The reaction of our body to these changes.
Responses are of three main types :-
Voluntary : Controlled by fore brain eg. Talking, Writing
Involuntary :Controlled by mid and hind brain eg. Heart beat, vomiting, regulation of heartbeat
Reflex action : controlled by spinal cord eg. Withdrawl of hand on touching a hot object.
How do we detect that we are touching a hot object?
➢ Receptors : Are specialised cells attached / innervated with tips of some nerve cells that
detect the information from the environment.
Receptors are present in our 5 Sense Organs
1 Audio/ phono receptor (Inner Ear) Hearing/ Balance of the body
2 Photo receptors (Eyes) Visual Stimulus
3 Touch/Mechano /thermo-receptor Pain Touch Heat
(Skin)
4 Olfactory Receptor (Nose) Smell Detection
5 Gustatory Receptor (Tongue) Taste Detection
STRUCTURAL UNIT OF NERVOUS SYSTEM
Neuron is the structural and functional unit of the nervous system.
• Each neuron has three main parts: dendrites, cyton/soma/cell body and axon.
• Dendrites receive impulses from other neurons.
• Cyton/soma processes the impulse.
• Axon transmits the impulse, either to another neuron or to muscles/glands, etc.
• Axon may be myelinated or non-myelinated.
• The impulse transmission is faster in myelinated neurons.
SYNAPSE : The point of contact between the terminal branches of axon of one neuron with the
dendrite of another neuron is called synapse.
It is the part where electrical signal is converted into chemical message for onward transmission
to next neuron by release of neurotransmitters.
Reflex Action:- A quick, sudden, immediate response of the body to the certain stimuli that
involves Spinal cord. eg. (not brain) withdrawal of hand, knee jerk etc.
Reflex arc:--The pathway taken by nerve impulses in a reflex action is called reflex arc.
MECHANISM OF REFLEX ACTION
➢ A reflex mechanism involves a receptor organ, an effector organ, and some type of
communication network.
➢ When a sensory receptor is stimulated, signals pass from it along a sensory neuron to the
spinal cord.
➢ The message travels out of the spinal cord along a motor neuron to the effector organ
(e.g., a muscle or a gland), which shows the response. Such a pathway is called a reflex
arc.
HUMAN NERVOUS SYSTEM
➢ The nervous system of vertebrates (including humans) is divided into the central nervous
system (CNS) and the peripheral nervous system (PNS).
I] Central nervous system
➢ The (CNS) is the major division and consists of the brain and the spinal cord.
➢ The spinal canal contains the spinal cord, while the cranial cavity contains the brain.
Human Brain : -
Human brain has three major parts or regions : (a) Fore-brain (b) Mid Brain (c) Hind Brain.
(a) Fore-brain (CEREBRUM):-Most complex/specialized part of the brain is Cerebrum or the
forebrain.
Functions :- 1. Thinking part of the brain
2. Control the voluntary actions.
3. Store information(Memory)
4. Centre associated with HUNGER
5. Receives sensory impulses from various body parts and integrates it.
Cerebrum is responsible for reasoning, logic, emotions, speech, memory, visual processing,
recognition of auditory and taste stimuli, etc.
(b) Mid Brain:- It connects the fore-brain with the hind-brain.
It is the portion of the central nervous system associated with vision, hearing, motor control,
sleep/wake, arousal (alertness), and temperature regulation.
(c) Hind-Brain
• Cerebellum regulates and coordinates body movements, posture and balance.
• Pons relays signals from hindbrain to forebrain.
• Medulla Oblongata controls all involuntary movements like vomiting, sneezing, yawning,
heartbeat, breathing, blood pressure, etc.
• Medulla oblongata continues as the spinal cord which runs through the vertebral column
and it controls reflex actions.
Ii] Peripheral nervous system
• The nerves given out by the brain and the spinal cord form the peripheral nervous system
(PNS).
• There are 12 cranial nerves and 31 spinal nerves in humans.
Somatic nervous system
• It forms a part of the PNS.
• The nerves of PNS that control the voluntary actions of the body form the somatic
nervous system.
III] Autonomic nervous system
• All the nerves of the PNS that control the involuntary actions in the body form the
autonomic nervous system.
• Two divisions of autonomic nervous system are: Sympathetic and Parasympathetic
nervous system.
• The sympathetic nervous system prepares the body for intense physical activity and is
often referred to as the fight-or-flight response, while the parasympathetic nervous
system has almost the exact opposite effect and relaxes the body and inhibits or slows
many high energy functions.
PROTECTION OF BRAIN AND SPINAL CORD:- Brain is enclosed in cranium (brain
box) and is protected by 3 main layers –
• The bony skull (cranium)
• The cerebrospinal fluid- shock absorbing fluid
• The meninges (Dura mater, Arachnoid and Pia mater).
Spinal Cord : Spinal Cord is enclosed in Vertebral column.