SPECIALIZED CELLS
OF NERVOUS SYSTEM
Course Outline
Nerve Cells and Nerve Impulse
Cells of Nervous System-their anatomy
and functions
Action Potential
Synapse and Neurotransmitters
Nature of Chemical Transmission at
Synapse
Neurotransmitters – nature and types
Neurotransmitters and human behavior
Nervous system is composed of two
types of cells.
Nerve Cells (receive from and transmit
information to other cells)
Glia (supporting cells)
Neurons (Nerve Cells)
The brain is a collection of about 10
billion interconnected neurons. Each
neuron is a cell that uses biochemical
reactions to receive, process and transmit
information.
Having four parts
Cell body
Dendrites
Axon
Presynaptic terminal (terminal button)
Cell Body
The cell body, or soma contains the
nucleus, ribosomes, mitochondria, and
other structures found in most cells.
the neural cell body is specialized to
participate in the information processing
and communication functions of the
neuron
Dendrites
Dendrites are branching fibers that get narrower near their
ends.
These tiny protrusions receive information from other
neurons and transmit electrical stimulation to the soma
The dendrite’s surface is lined with specialized synaptic
receptors, at which the dendrite receives information from
other neurons.
The greater the surface area of a dendrite, the more
information it can receive.
Some dendrites branch widely and therefore have a large
surface area.
The receptor sites interact with molecules of neurochemicals
released by adjacent neurons that float across the synaptic
gap, a fluid-filled space between the transmitting and
receiving neurons, or with molecules of neurochemicals that
diffuse from other parts of the nervous system.
Dendrite Characteristics
Most neurons have many dendrites
Short and highly branched
Transmits information to the cell body
AXON
The axon is the information sender of the
neuron, conveying an impulse toward other
neurons or an organ or muscle.
A neuron can have any number of dendrites,
but no more than one axon, which may have
branches.
Axons can range to a meter or more in length,
as in the case of axons from your spinal cord
to your feet.
The axon is a thin fiber of constant diameter,
in most cases longer than the dendrites.
axon terminal The swelling at the tip of
an axon collateral specialized for the
release of neurochemicals
myelin The fatty insulating material
covering some axons that boosts the
speed and efficiency of electrical
signaling
synaptic vesicles A small structure in
the axon terminal that contains
neurochemicals.
Many vertebrate axons are covered with an
insulating material called a myelin sheath
with interruptions known as nodes of
Ranvier.
An axon has many branches, each of which
swells at its tip, forming a presynaptic
terminal, also known as an end bulb or
bouton (French for “button”). This is the
point from which the axon releases chemicals
that cross through the junction between one
neuron and the next.
Glia
Neurons constitue about half the volume of the CNS and glial
cells make up the rest.
Glial cells provide support and protection for neurons. They are
thus known as the "supporting cells" of the nervous system.
The four main functions of glial cells are:
to surround neurons and hold them in place,
to supply nutrients and oxygen to neurons,
to insulate one neuron from another,
and to destroy and remove the waste of dead neurons (clean up).
The three types of CNS supporting cells are
Astrocytes (wrap around Presynaptic terminals, remove waste,
dilate blood vessels)
Microglia (remove waste products, immune system)
Oligodendrocytes (form myelin Sheath in CNS)
The supporting cells of the PNS are known as Schwann Cells
NERVE IMPULSE
Nerve impulse
The movement of action potential along
a nerve fiber in response to a stimulus
(such as touch, pain, heat or cold).
The membrane of a neuron maintains an electrical
gradient, a difference in electrical charge between the
inside and outside of the cell.
In the absence of any outside disturbance, the membrane
maintains an electrical polarization, meaning a
difference in electrical charge between two locations.
The neuron inside the membrane has a slightly negative
electrical potential with respect to the outside, primarily
because of negatively charged proteins inside the cell.
This difference in voltage in a resting neuron is called the
resting potential i.e. -70mV.
The resting potential is mainly the result of negatively
charged proteins inside the cell.
When the membrane is at rest, the
sodium channels are closed, preventing
almost all sodium flow.
When the membrane is at rest,
potassium channels are nearly but not
entirely closed, so potassium flows
slowly.
Forces acting on Sodium
(Na )
+
Two forces act on sodium, both tending to push it
into the cell.
First, consider the electrical gradient. Sodium is
positively charged and the inside of the cell is
negatively charged. Opposite electrical charges
attract, so the electrical gradient tends to pull
sodium into the cell.
Second, consider the concentration gradient, the
difference in distribution of ions across the
membrane. Sodium is more concentrated outside
than inside, so just by the laws of probability,
sodium is more likely to enter the cell than to leave
it.
An action potential is a short-lasting event
in which the electrical membrane potential
of a cell rapidly rises and falls, following a
consistent trajectory.
An action potential has 2 main phases called
depolarisation (decrease in the amount of
usual negative charge inside the cell)
Repolarisation (restoration of usual charge in
the cell)
Hyperpolarization (exaggeration of the usual
negative charge within the cell)
At rest, the inside of the neuron is
slightly negative due to a higher
concentration of positively
charged sodium ions outside the
neuron. Membrane is in polarized
state.
When stimulated past threshold
(about –30mV in humans), sodium
channels open and sodium rushes
into the axon, causing a region of
positive charge within the axon.
This is called depolarisation
The region of positive charge
causes nearby voltage gated
sodium channels to close. Just
after the sodium channels close,
the potassium channels open
wide, and potassium exits the
axon, so the charge across the
membrane is brought back to its
This process continues
as a chain-reaction along
the axon. The influx of
sodium depolarises the
axon, and the outflow of
potassium repolarises
the axon.
The
sodium/potassium
pump restores the
resting
concentrations of
sodium and
potassium ions
All or none law
The amplitude and velocity of an action
potential are independent of the intensity
of the stimulus that initiated it.
For a given neuron, all action potentials
are approximately equal in amplitude
(intensity) and velocity under normal
circumstances. This is the all-or-none
law.
Action potential occurs only when
stimulus reaches the threshold level.
The Resting Membrane Potential
When a neurone is not sending a signal, it is at ‘rest’. The
membrane is responsible for the different events that occur in a
neurone. All animal cell membranes contain a protein pump
called the sodium-potassium pump (Na+K+ATPase). This uses
the energy from ATP splitting to simultaneously pump 3 sodium
ions out of the cell and 2 potassium ions in.
The Sodium-Potassium Pump (Na+K+ATPase)
Three sodium ions from inside the cell first bind to the transport
protein. Then a phosphate group is transferred from ATP to the
transport protein causing it to change shape and release the
sodium ions outside the cell. Two potassium ions from outside the
cell then bind to the transport protein and as the phospate is
removed, the protein assumes its original shape and releases the
potassium ions inside the cell.
If the pump was to continue unchecked
there would be no sodium or potassium
ions left to pump, but there are also
sodium and potassium ion channels in
the membrane. These channels are
normally closed, but even when closed,
they “leak”, allowing sodium ions to leak
in and potassium ions to leak out, down
their respective concentration gradients.
Refractory period
While the electrical potential across the membrane is
returning from its peak toward the resting point, it is
still above the threshold. Why doesn’t the cell produce
another action potential during this period?
Immediately after an action potential, the cell is in a
refractory period during which it resists the
production of further action potentials.
In the first part of this period, the absolute
refractory period, the membrane cannot produce an
action potential, regardless of the stimulation.
During the second part, the relative refractory
period, a stronger than usual stimulus is
necessary to initiate an action potential.