Nervous Tissue

Nervous tissues
- receive stimuli from the environment or from different
organs of the body
- transmit impulses to the brain and spinal cord
Properties of Nervous Tissues:
1. Irritability
- react to various stimuli
2. Conductivity
- transmit impulses
2 elements of nervous tissue:
1. Neurons
- structural and functional units
- receive and transmit impulses
2. Neuroglia
- glial cells
- specialized type of connective tissue
- non neuronal cells of the CNS and PNS
NEURON
- nerve cell (cell body and all processes)
- structural & functional unit of Nervous
System
Cell Body
- perikaryon
- nucleus (source of information for
protein synthesis)
Axon
- long cell process
- conduct impulses away from the
cell body
- surrounded by neuroglia (myelin
sheath) speeds up conduction of
impulses
Dendrites – short branching processes
 Nervous Tissue 400X

motor neuron

nucleus

processes cell body

neuroglial cells
multipolar neuron
Types of Neurons:
1. Multipolar neuron
- many dendrites and one axon
ex. neurons in the CNS
2. Bipolar neuron
- two processes
- one axon and one dendrite
ex. neurons in the retina of the eye
neurons in the nasal cavity
3. Unipolar neurons
- one process extending from the
cell body
- divides into two processes
- single axon
- small dendrite like extensions at
the periphery
 2 kinds of nerve fibers :

1. Myelinated nerve fibers

- enclosed by myelin
sheath
- prevents loss of nerve
impulse
- circular constrictions
(Nodes of Ranvier)
- internodal segments or
Schwann segments
2. Unmyelinated nerve fibers
- naked axons
- devoid of myelin sheath
- neurolemma
 Peripheral Nerve (cross section) 40X

epineurium

fascicles
perineurium
* Peripheral Nerve (cross section) 100X

epineurium

fascicle

perineurium
 5 types of Neuroglia

1. Astrocytes
- serve as major supporting
tisssue in the CNS
- anchor neurons to blood
vessels
2. Ependymal cells
- line the fluid-filled
cavities of the brain and
spinal cord.
- transport and
circulation
of the cerebrospinal
fluid.
3. Microglia
- phagocytic
- remove bacteria and cell
debris from the CNS
4. Oligodentrocytes
- produce the myelin sheath
in the CNS which insulates
and protects axons
5. Schwann cells
- neurolemmocytes
- produce the myelin sheath
surrounding the axon
- protect and insulate the
axon
- aids in regeneration of
nerve fibers
 Spinal Cord (dorsal ¼) 40X

white columns
of posterior
funiculus

gray matter
posterior horn

central canal lateral

commissures funiculus
Spinal Cord (ventral ¼) 40X

lateral
gray matter funiculus
anterior horn

white columns
of anterior
funiculus