CHAPTER 7

THE NERVOUS SYSTEM Central Nervous System

(brain and spinal cord)

Functions of the Nervous System

1. Sensory input—gathering information
 Sensory receptors monitor changes,
Peripheral Nervous System
called stimuli, occurring inside and
(cranial and spinal nerves)
outside the body
2. Integration
 Nervous system processes and
interprets sensory input and decides
whether action is needed
3. Motor output
 A response, or effect, activates Sensory Motor
muscles or glands (afferent) (efferent)

Sense Somatic
Autonomic
organs (voluntary)
(involuntary)
Skeletal
muscles Cardiac and
smooth muscle,
glands

Parasympathetic Sympathetic

Structural Classification
 Central nervous system (CNS)
 Organs
 Brain
 Spinal cord
Organization of the Nervous System  Function
 Nervous system classifications are based  Integration; command center
on:  Interprets incoming sensory
 Structures (structural classification) information
 Activities (functional classification)  Issues outgoing instructions
 Peripheral nervous system (PNS)
 Nerves extending from the brain and
spinal cord
 Spinal nerves—carry
impulses to and from the
spinal cord
 Cranial nerves—carry
impulses to and from the
brain
  Functions
 Serve as communication
lines among sensory organs,
the brain and spinal cord,
and glands or muscles
Functional Classification
 Sensory (afferent) division
 Nerve fibers that carry information to
the central nervous system
 Somatic sensory (afferent)
fibers carry information from
the skin, skeletal muscles,
and joints
 Visceral sensory (afferent)
fibers carry information from
visceral organs
 Motor (efferent) division
 Nerve fibers that carry impulses
away from the central nervous
system organs to effector organs
(muscles and glands)
 Motor (efferent) division (continued)
 Two subdivisions
 Somatic nervous system =
voluntary
 Consciously
(voluntarily) controls
skeletal muscles
 Autonomic nervous system =
involuntary
 Automatically controls
smooth and cardiac
muscles and glands
 Further divided into
the sympathetic and
parasympathetic
nervous systems
Nervous Tissue: Support Cells
 Support cells in the CNS are grouped
together as neuroglia
 General functions
 Support
 Insulate
 Protect neurons
Nervous Tissue: Structure and Function
 Nervous tissue is made up of two principal
cell types
 Supporting cells (called neuroglia, or
glial cells, or glia)
 Resemble neurons
 Unable to conduct nerve
impulses
 Never lose the ability to
divide
 Neurons
Nervous Tissue: Supporting Cells
 CNS glial cells: astrocytes
 Abundant, star-shaped cells
 Brace and anchor neurons to blood
capillaries
 Determine permeability and
exchanges between blood capillaries
and neurons
 Protect neurons from harmful
substances in blood
 Control the chemical environment of
the brain
Capillary
Neuron
Astrocyte
(a) Astrocytes are the most abundant and versatile neuroglia.
 CNS glial cells: microglia
 Spiderlike phagocytes
 Monitor health of nearby neurons
 Dispose of debris
Neuron
Microglial cell
(b) Microglial cells are phagocytes that defend CNS cells.
 CNS glial cells: ependymal cells
 Line cavities of the brain and spinal
cord
 Cilia assist with circulation of
cerebrospinal fluid

Fluid-filled cavity
 Nucleus with large nucleolus
Ependymal cells  Nissl bodies
 Rough endoplasmic
Brain or spinal reticulum
cord tissue  Neurofibrils
 Intermediate filaments that
maintain cell shape

(c) Ependymal cells line cerebrospinal fluid–filled cavities.

 CNS glial cells: oligodendrocytes

 Wrap around nerve fibers in the
central nervous system
 Produce myelin sheaths

 PNS glial cells

 Schwann cells
 Form myelin sheath around
nerve fibers in the PNS
 Satellite cells
 Protect and cushion neuron
cell bodies

 Processes (fibers)
 Dendrites—conduct impulses toward
the cell body
 Neurons may have hundreds
of dendrites
Nervous Tissue: Neurons  Axons—conduct impulses away
 Neurons = nerve cells from the cell body
 Cells specialized to transmit  Neurons have only one axon
messages (nerve impulses) arising from the cell body at
 Major regions of all neurons the axon hillock
 Cell body—nucleus and  End in axon terminals, which
metabolic center of the cell contain vesicles with
 Processes—fibers that neurotransmitters
extend from the cell body  Axon terminals are separated
 Cell body is the metabolic center of the from the next neuron by a
neuron gap
 Processes (fibers) (continued)  White matter—collections of
 Synaptic cleft—gap between axon myelinated fibers (tracts)
terminals and the next neuron  Gray matter—mostly unmyelinated
 Synapse—functional junction fibers and cell bodies
between nerves where a nerve  Functional classification
impulse is transmitted  Sensory (afferent) neurons
 Myelin  Carry impulses from the
 White, fatty material covering axons sensory receptors to the CNS
 Protects and insulates fibers  Receptors include:
 Speeds nerve impulse transmission  Cutaneous sense
 Myelin sheaths organs in skin
 Schwann cells—wrap axons in a  Proprioceptors in
jelly roll–like fashion (PNS) to form muscles and tendons
the myelin sheath
 Neurilemma—part of the
Schwann cell external to the
myelin sheath
 Nodes of Ranvier—gaps in
myelin sheath along the axon
 Oligodendrocytes—produce myelin
sheaths around axons of the CNS
 Lack a neurilemma

 Terminology
 Nuclei—clusters of cell bodies in the
CNS
 Ganglia—collections of cell bodies
outside the CNS in the PNS
 Tracts—bundles of nerve fibers in
the CNS
 Nerves—bundles of nerve fibers in
the PNS
  Structural classification
 Based on number of processes
extending from the cell body
 Multipolar neurons—many
extensions from the cell body
 All motor and interneurons
are multipolar
 Most common structural type

 Structural classification (continued)

 Bipolar neurons—one axon and one
dendrite
 Located in special sense
organs, such as nose and
eye
 Rare in adults

 Structural classification (continued)

 Functional classification (continued)
 Motor (efferent) neurons
 Carry impulses from the
central nervous system to
viscera and/or muscles and
glands
 Interneurons (association neurons)
 Cell bodies located in the
CNS
 Connect sensory and motor
neurons
 Unipolar neurons—have a short
single process leaving the cell body
 Sensory neurons found in
PNS ganglia
 Conduct impulses both
toward and away from the
cell body
 Functional properties of neurons
 Irritability
 Ability to respond to a
stimulus and convert it to a
nerve impulse
 Conductivity
 Ability to transmit the impulse
to other neurons, muscles, or
glands
 Electrical conditions of a resting neuron’s
membrane
 The plasma membrane at rest is
 Action potential initiation and generation
inactive (polarized)
(continued)
 Fewer positive ions are inside the
neuron’s plasma membrane than  A graded potential (localized
outside depolarization) exists where the
 K+ is the major positive ion inside of the membrane is more
inside the cell positive and the outside is less
 Na+ is the major positive ion positive
outside the cell  If the stimulus is strong enough and
 As long as the inside of the sodium influx great enough, local
membrane is more negative (fewer depolarization activates the neuron
positive ions) than the outside, the to conduct an action potential (nerve
cell remains inactive impulse)

 Action potential initiation and generation

 A stimulus changes the permeability
of the neuron’s membrane to sodium
ions
 Sodium channels now open, and
sodium (Na+) diffuses into the
neuron
 The inward rush of sodium ions
changes the polarity at that site and
is called depolarization
 Propagation of the action potential
 If enough sodium enters the cell, the
action potential (nerve impulse)
starts and is propagated over the
entire axon
 All-or-none response means the
nerve impulse either is propagated
or is not
 Fibers with myelin sheaths conduct
nerve impulses more quickly
 Repolarization
 Membrane permeability changes
again—becoming impermeable to
sodium ions and permeable to
potassium ions
 Potassium ions rapidly diffuse out of
the neuron, repolarizing the
membrane
 Repolarization involves restoring the
inside of the membrane to a
negative charge and the outer
surface to a positive charge
 Repolarization (continued)
 Initial conditions of sodium and
potassium ions are restored using
the sodium-potassium pump
 This pump, using ATP, restores the
original configuration
 Three sodium ions are ejected from
the cell while two potassium ions are
returned to the cell
 Until repolarization is complete, a
neuron cannot conduct another
nerve impulse
 Transmission of the signal at synapses
 Step 1: When the action potential
reaches the axon terminal, the
electrical charge opens calcium
channels
 Step 2: Calcium, in turn, causes the
tiny vesicles containing the
neurotransmitter chemical to fuse
with the axonal membrane
 Step 3: The entry of calcium into the
axon terminal causes porelike
openings to form, releasing the
neurotransmitter into the synaptic
cleft
 Step 4: The neurotransmitter
molecules diffuse across the
synaptic cleft and bind to receptors
on the membrane of the next neuron
 Step 5: If enough neurotransmitter is
released, a graded potential will be
generated
 Eventually an action potential
(nerve impulse) will occur in the
neuron beyond the synapse
 Step 6: The electrical changes
prompted by neurotransmitter
binding are brief
 The neurotransmitter is quickly
removed from the synapse either by
reuptake or by enzymatic activity
 Transmission of an impulse is
electrochemical
 Transmission down neuron is
electrical
 Transmission to next neuron
is chemical
  Example: pulling your hand away
from a hot object
 Autonomic reflexes
 Regulate the activity of smooth
muscles, the heart, and glands
 Example: regulation of smooth
muscles, heart and blood pressure,
glands, digestive system
 Five elements of a reflex arc
 Sensory receptor—reacts to a
stimulus
 Sensory neuron—carries message
to the integration center
 Integration center (CNS)—
processes information and directs
motor output
 Motor neuron—carries message to
an effector
 Effector organ—is the muscle or
gland to be stimulated

 Two-neuron reflex arcs

 Simplest type
 Example: patellar (knee-jerk) reflex

 Reflexes are rapid, predictable, and

involuntary responses to stimuli
 Reflexes occur over neural pathways called
reflex arcs
 Two types of reflexes
 Somatic reflexes
 Autonomic reflexes
 Three-neuron reflex arcs
 Somatic reflexes  Consists of five elements: receptor,
 Reflexes that stimulate the skeletal
sensory neuron, interneuron, motor
muscles neuron, and effector
 Involuntary, although skeletal
 Example: flexor (withdrawal) reflex
muscle is normally under voluntary
control
Central Nervous System (CNS)
 Functional anatomy of the brain
 Brain regions
 Cerebral hemispheres
 Diencephalon
 Brain stem
 Cerebellum
Functional Anatomy of the Brain
 Cerebral hemispheres are paired (left and
right) superior parts of the brain
 Include more than half of the brain
mass
 The surface is made of ridges (gyri)
and grooves (sulci)
 Fissures are deeper grooves
 Lobes are named for the cranial
bones that lie over them
 Three main regions of cerebral hemisphere
 Cortex is superficial gray matter
 White matter
 Basal nuclei are deep pockets of
gray matter

 Cerebral cortex
 Primary somatic sensory area
 Located in parietal lobe
posterior to central sulcus
 Receives impulses from the
body’s sensory receptors
 Pain, temperature,
light touch (except for
special senses)
 Sensory homunculus is a
spatial map
 Left side of the primary
somatic sensory area
receives impulses from right
side (and vice versa)
 Cerebral areas involved in special senses
 Visual area (occipital lobe)
 Auditory area (temporal lobe)
 Olfactory area (temporal lobe)
 Cerebral cortex (continued)
 Primary motor area
 Located anterior to the
central sulcus in the frontal
lobe
 Allows us to consciously
move skeletal muscles
 Motor neurons form
pyramidal (corticospinal)
tract, which descends to
spinal cord
 Motor homunculus is a
spatial map
 Cerebral cortex (continued)
 Broca’s area (motor speech area)
 Involved in our ability to
speak
 Usually in left hemisphere
 Other specialized areas
 Anterior association area
(frontal lobe)
 Posterior association area
(posterior cortex)
 Speech area (for sounding
out words)
 Basal nuclei
 “Islands” of gray matter buried deep
within the white matter of the
cerebrum
 Regulate voluntary motor activities
by modifying instructions sent to
skeletal muscles by the primary
motor cortex
 Diencephalon
 Sits on top of the brain stem
 Enclosed by the cerebral
 Cerebral white matter hemispheres
 Composed of fiber tracts deep to the  Made of three structures
gray matter  Thalamus
 Corpus callosum connects  Hypothalamus
hemispheres  Epithalamus
 Tracts, such as the corpus
callosum, are known as
commissures
 Association fiber tracts
connect areas within a
hemisphere
 Projection fiber tracts
connect the cerebrum with
lower CNS centers

Diencephalon: thalamus
 Encloses the third ventricle
 Relay station for sensory impulses
passing upward to the cerebral
cortex
 Transfers impulses to the correct
part of the cortex for localization and
interpretation
 Diencephalon: hypothalamus
 Makes up the floor of the
diencephalon
 Important autonomic nervous
system center
 Regulates body temperature
 Regulates water balance
 Regulates metabolism
 Houses the limbic center for
emotions
 Regulates the nearby pituitary gland
 Houses mammillary bodies for
olfaction (smell)
 Diencephalon: epithalamus
 Forms the roof of the third ventricle
 Houses the pineal body (an
endocrine gland)
 Includes the choroid plexus—forms
cerebrospinal fluid
 Brain stem
 Attaches to the spinal cord
 Parts of the brain stem
 Midbrain
 Pons
 Medulla oblongata
 Brain stem: midbrain
 Extends from the mammillary bodies
to the pons inferiorly
 Cerebral aqueduct (tiny canal)
connects the third and fourth
ventricles
 Two bulging fiber tracts, cerebral
peduncles, convey ascending and
descending impulses
 Four rounded protrusions, corpora
quadrigemina, are visual and
auditory reflex centers
 Brain stem: pons
 The rounded structure protruding
just below the midbrain
 Mostly composed of fiber tracts
 Includes nuclei involved in the
control of breathing
 Brain stem: medulla oblongata
 The most inferior part of the brain
stem that merges into the spinal
cord
 Includes important fiber tracts
 Contains important centers that
control:
 Heart rate
 Blood pressure
 Breathing
 Swallowing
 Vomiting
 Fourth ventricle lies posterior to
pons and medulla
 Brain stem: reticular formation
 Diffuse mass of gray matter along
the brain stem
  Involved in motor control of visceral  Double-layered external
organs covering
 Reticular activating system (RAS)  Periosteum—
 Plays a role in awake/sleep attached to inner
cycles and consciousness surface of the skull
 Filter for incoming sensory  Meningeal layer—
information outer covering of the
brain
 Folds inward in several areas
 Falx cerebri
 Tentorium cerebelli
 Meninges (continued)
 Arachnoid layer
 Middle layer
 Weblike extensions span the
subarachnoid space to attach
it to the pia mater
 Subarachnoid space is filled
with cerebrospinal fluid
 Arachnoid granulations
protrude through the dura
mater and absorb
 Cerebrum cerebrospinal fluid into
 Two hemispheres with convoluted venous blood
surfaces  Pia mater
 Outer cortex of gray matter and  Internal layer
inner region of white matter  Clings to the surface of the
 Controls balance brain and spinal cord
 Provides precise timing for skeletal
muscle activity and coordination of
body movements

Protection of the Central Nervous System

 Meninges
 Cerebrospinal fluid (CSF)
 Blood-brain barrier
 Cerebrospinal fluid
 Meninges (continued)
 Similar to blood plasma in
 Dura mater
composition
 Outermost leathery layer
 Formed continually by the choroid
plexuses
  Choroid plexuses—
capillaries in the ventricles of
the brain
 CSF forms a watery cushion to
protect the brain and spinal cord
 Circulated in the arachnoid space,
ventricles, and central canal of the
spinal cord
 Cerebrospinal fluid circulation
 CSF is produced by the choroid
plexus of each ventricle
 CSF flows through the ventricles and
into the subarachnoid space via the
median and lateral apertures. Some
CSF flows through the central canal
of the spinal cord
 CSF flows through the subarachnoid
space
 CSF is absorbed into the dural
venous sinuses via the arachnoid
villi

 Blood-brain barrier
 Includes the least permeable
capillaries of the body
 Allows water, glucose, and amino
acids to pass through the capillary
walls
 Excludes many potentially harmful
substances from entering the brain,
such as wastes
 Useless as a barrier against some
substances

Brain Dysfunctions
 Traumatic brain injuries
 Concussion
 Slight brain injury
 Typically little permanent
brain damage occurs
 Contusion
 Marked nervous tissue
destruction occurs
 Coma may occur
  Death may occur after head blows
due to:
 Intracranial hemorrhage
 Cerebral edema
 Cerebrovascular accident (CVA), or stroke
 Results when blood circulation to a
brain area is blocked and brain
tissue dies
 Loss of some functions or death may
result
 Hemiplegia—one-sided
paralysis
 Aphasia—damage to speech
center in left hemisphere
 Transient ischemic attack (TIA)
 Temporary brain ischemia
(restriction of blood flow)
 Numbness, temporary paralysis,
impaired speech
Spinal Cord
 Extends from the foramen magnum of the
skull to the first or second lumbar vertebra
 Cauda equina is a collection of spinal
nerves at the inferior end
 Provides a two-way conduction pathway to
and from the brain
 31 pairs of spinal nerves arise from the
spinal cord
 Gray matter of the spinal cord and spinal
roots
 Internal gray matter is mostly cell
bodies
 Dorsal (posterior) horns house
interneurons
 Receive information from
sensory neurons in the
dorsal root; cell bodies
housed in dorsal root
ganglion
 Anterior (ventral) horns house motor
neurons of the somatic (voluntary)
nervous system
 Send information out ventral
root
 Gray matter surrounds the central
canal, which is filled with
cerebrospinal fluid
 White matter of the spinal cord
 Composed of myelinated fiber tracts
 Three regions: dorsal, lateral, ventral
columns
 Sensory (afferent) tracts conduct
impulses toward brain
 Motor (efferent) tracts carry impulses
from brain to skeletal muscles
Peripheral Nervous System (PNS)
 PNS consists of nerves and ganglia outside
the CNS
Structure of a Nerve
 Nerves are bundles of neurons found
outside the CNS
 Endoneurium is a connective tissue sheath
that surrounds each fiber
  Perineurium wraps groups of fibers bound 1. Optic
into a fascicle 2. Olfactory
 Epineurium binds groups of fascicles 3. Vestibulocochlear
Cranial Nerves Mnemonic Device
 Oh – Olfactory
 Oh – Optic
 Oh – Oculomotor
 To – Trochlear
 Touch – Trigeminal
 And – Abducens
 Feel – Facial
 Very – Vestibulocochlear
 Green – Glossopharyngeal
 Vegetables – Vagus
 A – Accessory
 H – Hypoglossal

 Mixed nerves
 Contain both sensory and motor
fibers
 Sensory (afferent) nerves
 Carry impulses toward the CNS
 Motor (efferent) nerves
 Carry impulses away from the CNS

Cranial Nerves
 12 pairs of nerves serve mostly the head
and neck
 Only the pair of vagus nerves extends to
thoracic and abdominal cavities
 Most are mixed nerves, but three are
sensory only
  Formed by the combination of the
ventral and dorsal roots of the spinal
cord
 Named for the region of the spinal
cord from which they arise

 Spinal nerves divide soon after leaving the

spinal cord into a dorsal ramus and a
ventral ramus
 Ramus—branch of a spinal nerve;
contains both motor and sensory
fibers
 Dorsal rami—serve the skin and
muscles of the posterior trunk
 Ventral rami (T1–T12) —form the
intercostal nerves that supply
muscles and skin of the ribs and
trunk
 Ventral rami (except T1–T12)—form a
complex of networks (plexus) for the
anterior

Spinal Nerves
 Spinal nerves
 31 pairs
 Plexus—networks of nerves serving motor
and sensory needs of the limbs
 Form from ventral rami of spinal nerves in
the cervical, lumbar, and sacral regions
 Four plexuses
1. Cervical
2. Brachial
3. Lumbar
4. Sacral
Autonomic Nervous System

 Motor subdivision of the PNS

 Consists only of motor nerves
 Controls the body automatically (and
is also known as the involuntary
nervous system)
 Regulates cardiac and smooth
muscles and glands
Somatic and Autonomic Nervous Systems
Compared
 Somatic nervous system
 Motor neuron cell bodies originate
inside the CNS
 Axons extends to skeletal muscles
that are served
 Autonomic nervous system
 Chain of two motor neurons
 Preganglionic neuron is in
the brain or spinal cord
 Postganglionic neuron
extends to the organ
 Has two arms
 Sympathetic division
 Parasympathetic division
 Sympathetic division is also known as the
thoracolumbar division
 Preganglionic neurons originate from T1
through L2
 Axons pass through a ramus
communicans to enter a sympathetic
trunk ganglion
 Sympathetic trunk, or chain, lies
near the spinal cord
 After synapsing at the ganglion, the axon
may synapse with a second neuron at the
same or different level
 Or, the preganglionic neuron may pass
through the ganglion without synapsing and
form part of the splanchnic nerves
 Splanchnic nerves travel to the
collateral ganglion
 Collateral ganglia serve the
abdominal and pelvic organs

Anatomy of the Parasympathetic Division

 Parasympathetic division is also known as

the craniosacral division
 Preganglionic neurons originate in:
 Cranial nerves III, VII, IX, and X
 S2 through S4 regions of the spinal
cord
 Preganglionic neurons synapse with
terminal ganglia; from there, postganglionic
axons extend to organs that are served
Autonomic Functioning
 Body organs served by the autonomic
nervous system receive fibers from both
divisions
 Exceptions: blood vessels,
structures of the skin, some glands,
and the adrenal medulla
 These exceptions receive only
sympathetic fibers
 When body divisions serve the same organ,
they cause antagonistic effects due to
different neurotransmitters
 Parasympathetic (cholinergic) fibers
release acetylcholine
 Sympathetic postganglionic
(adrenergic) fibers release
norepinephrine
 Preganglionic axons of both
divisions release acetycholine
 Sympathetic—“fight or flight” division
 Response to unusual stimulus when
emotionally or physically stressed or
threatened
 Takes over to increase activities
 Remember as the “E” division
 Exercise
 Excitement
 Emergency
 Embarrassment
 Parasympathetic—“housekeeping” activites
 “Rest-and-digest” system
 Conserves energy
 Maintains daily necessary body
functions
 Remember as the “D” division
 Digestion
 Defecation
 Diuresis
Developmental Aspects of the Nervous System
 The nervous system is formed during the
first month of embryonic development
 Any maternal infection can have extremely
harmful effects
 Oxygen deprivation destroys brain cells
 The hypothalamus is one of the last areas
of the brain to develop
 Severe congenital brain diseases include:
 Cerebral palsy
 Anencephaly
 Hydrocephalus
 Spina bifida
 Premature babies have trouble regulating
body temperature because the
hypothalamus is one of the last brain areas
to mature prenatally
 Development of motor control indicates the
progressive myelination and maturation of a
child’s nervous system
 Brain growth ends in young adulthood.
Neurons die throughout life and are not
replaced; thus, brain mass declines with
age
 Orthostatic hypotension is low blood
pressure due to changes in body position
 Healthy aged people maintain nearly
optimal intellectual function
 Disease—particularly cardiovascular
disease—is the major cause of declining
mental function with age
 Arteriosclerosis is decreased
elasticity of blood vessels