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Anatomy & Physiology: Nervous System and Special Senses

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Terms in this set (30)

  • Sensory input

    Information gathered by sensory receptors about internal and external changes.

  • Integration

    Processing and interpretation of sensory input to decide on a response.

  • Motor output

    Activation of effector organs (muscles and glands) to produce a response.

  • Central nervous system (CNS)

    Brain and spinal cord; acts as integration and control center interpreting sensory input and dictating motor output.

  • Peripheral nervous system (PNS)

    Portion of nervous system outside CNS; consists mainly of nerves extending from brain and spinal cord.

  • Somatic nervous system

    Voluntary nervous system controlling conscious skeletal muscle movements.

  • Autonomic nervous system (ANS)

    Involuntary nervous system regulating smooth muscle, cardiac muscle, and glands; has sympathetic and parasympathetic divisions.

  • Astrocytes

    Most abundant glial cells; support neurons, control chemical environment, and participate in brain information processing.

  • Microglial cells

    Small cells that monitor neurons and can transform to phagocytize microorganisms and debris.

  • Oligodendrocytes

    Glial cells that form myelin sheaths around CNS nerve fibers.

  • Schwann cells

    Glial cells in PNS that form myelin sheaths and aid regeneration of damaged peripheral nerve fibers.

  • Myelin sheath

    Whitish, protein-lipid covering that protects and electrically insulates axons, increasing nerve impulse speed.

  • Resting membrane potential

    State where the inside of a neuron is negatively charged relative to the outside.

  • Depolarization

    Decrease in membrane potential making inside less negative, increasing chance of impulse.

  • Hyperpolarization

    Increase in membrane potential making inside more negative, decreasing chance of impulse.

  • Action potential

    Principal way neurons send signals; involves opening voltage-gated channels and does not decay over distance.

  • Saltatory conduction

    Fast nerve impulse conduction in myelinated axons where impulses jump between nodes of Ranvier.

  • Synapse

    Junction where neurons communicate with other neurons or effector cells.

  • Cerebral cortex

    Gray matter layer enabling awareness, communication, memory, understanding, and voluntary movement.

  • Basal nuclei

    Brain structures that regulate muscle movements, filter inappropriate responses, and influence cognition and emotion.

  • Hypothalamus

    Main visceral control center regulating homeostasis, autonomic nervous system, body temperature, hunger, thirst, and sleep-wake cycles.

  • Meninges

    Protective coverings of CNS consisting of dura mater, arachnoid mater, and pia mater.

  • Blood-brain barrier

    Selective barrier that protects brain by controlling substances passing from blood to neurons.

  • Cranial nerves

    Twelve pairs of nerves that carry sensory, motor, or both types of information to and from the brain.

  • Parasympathetic division

    Part of ANS that promotes maintenance functions and conserves energy.

  • Sympathetic division

    Part of ANS that mobilizes the body during activity or stress.

  • Cholinergic receptors

    Receptors that bind acetylcholine; include nicotinic (always stimulatory) and muscarinic (excitatory or inhibitory).

  • Adrenergic receptors

    Receptors responding to epinephrine and norepinephrine; include alpha (a1, a2) and beta (B1, B2, B3) subtypes with varied effects.

  • Photoreceptors in retina

    Rods detect dim light and peripheral vision; cones detect bright light and color, concentrated in fovea centralis.

  • Olfactory epithelium

    Organ of smell located in the roof of the nasal cavity containing olfactory sensory neurons.