Lecture (9): Histology

Assistant Professor Dr. Imad Taher Abdulla

Nervous tissue
The nervous tissue is widely distributed in the body & is associated
with most other tissues.

Neurons (nerve cells):

Neurons are functional units for nervous tissue that modified to
receive & transmit stimuli.
Neurons are associated with other cell called neuroglia.
Neurons & neuroglia constitute nervous tissue.
The neuroglia provide:
1. protection
2. nutrition
3. structural integrity to nervous tissue.

Anatomically, the nervous system can be divided into two parts:

1) The central nervous system (CNS)
Consisting of the Brain & Spinal cord
2) The peripheral nervous system (PNS)
Consisting of the Peripheral nervous include (spinal nerves &
cranial nerves), nervous ganglia & autonomic nervous system.

Functionally, the nervous system is divided into:

- Sympathetic
- Parasympathetic with central & peripheral divisions.

Classification of the neurons (nerve cells)

According to the number of protoplasmic processes, nerve cells can
classified to:

1) Unipolar neuron
It has one process which divide close to the cell body into two
branches, axon & dendrite.
2) Bipolar neuron
It has one axon & one dendrite.
3) Multipolar neuron
It has one axon & two or more dendrites.

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4) Pseudounipolar neuron
It has one process which divides directly from the cell body into
two branches.

The neuron or nerve cell:

The typical neuron consists of:
1) Cell body (Perikaryon or Soma)
2) Protoplasmic processes, which consist of:
1. Axon. 2. Dendrons or Dendrites.

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 1) Cell body (Perikaryon or Soma)
1. The Perikaryon, formed by the nucleus & surrounding cytoplasm,
has a receptive function.

2. The Perikaryon is large, up to 135 microns (μm) in diameter.

3. Shape depends on the number & orientation of cell processes for

example (being globular in pseudounipolar cells, elongated & spindle in
bipolar cells, varying from stellate to pyramidial to globular in multipolar
cells.

4. In most nerve cells, the nucleus is large up to 20 μm in diameter,

spherical & centrally situated in the soma.
Centrioles are not prominent in nerve cells. Nerve cells are incapable
of cell division.

Cell body contains numerous mitochondria, large Golgi apparatus

arranged as a network arround the nucleus, RER & Free ribosomes that
appear with light microscope as basophilic areas called Nissl bodies,
lysosomes, microtubles, neurofilaments, vesicles & inclusions (melanin,
lipofusin, iron & glycogen).

Neurofilaments (Neurofibrils):
Intermediate filaments with a diameter of 10nm, are abundant in
perikaryons & cell processes.
2- Protoplasmic processes:
Are cytoplasmic extensions of the nerve cell body, developed to
provide conduction pathways & to provide greater surface areas for
contact.

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 Protoplasmic processes consist of:
1) Axon
- The axon is a single, cylindrical process arising from the nerve cell
body at a region called axon hillock.
- Axon generally have a smooth contour & are of uniform diameter.
- Usually more slender, longer & straighter than dendrites, varying
from less than a micrometer to several micron in diameter, & from a
fraction of a millimeter to more than a meter in length.
- Axons usually terminate in twig-like branching the telodendria which
contact the perikaryon dendeites, or axon of one or more neurons at
synapses.
At their termination, the axonal twigs show small swelling called
boutons terminaux.
- Efferent fiber is carried the information from the cell body to another
neuron, or effectors organs (muscles or glands).
- The axon in the CNS is surrounded by a myelin sheaths.
In PNS, it may or may not be myelinated.
If it is not myelinated, it is surrounded by a schwann cell.
The plasma membrane of the axon is called the axolemma.
The cytoplasm of the axon is called the axoplasm.
- Axon contains all organelles except the nucleus & Nissle bodies.

2) Dendrites:
- Afferent fibers are carried information to the cell body.
- Most dendrites show branching, the branches being of smaller
diameter than main stem.
- A prominent feature is the presence of many neurotubules &
neurofilaments.
- The dendrites covered by numerous, small, spin- like processes called
dendritic spines that are specialized for synaptic contacts.
- Contain all organelles except the nucleus.
- Myelin sheath is not associated with dendrites.

Synapses:
The specialized membranous contact between the axon of one neuron
& dendrite or body or axon of another neuron, synapses are the sites of
transneuronal transmission of a nerve impulse.
The synapse consist of three parts:
1) Presynaptic knob:
The terminal part of the axon of one neuron that terminate on the second
neuron, as bouton or as calyx or as small fibers (synapse of passage).
Presynaptic knob contains mitochondria, smooth endoplasmic

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 reticulum, neurofilaments,& synaptic vesicles that contain
neurotransmitter substances such as acetylcholine.

2) Synaptic cleft:
The narrow extracellular space between the presynaptic neuron & post
Synaptic neuron.Synaptic cleft contains glycoproteins, glycolipid,
carbohydrates & fine transverse filaments.
3) Postsynaptic membrane:
The recepter membrane of the second neuron.

The synapse is classified according to the position into:

(1) Axodendritic→ an axon forms a synapse with a dendrite.
(2) Axosomatic → an axon form a synapse with a cell body.
(3) Axoaxonic → an axon form a synapse with an axon.

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Types of synapses:
1. Electrical synapses:
The electrical signal may be passed directly to adjacent cell by a low
resistance gap junction.
(( impulse is transmitted from cell to cell by a neurotransmitter
substance)).

2. Chemical synapses:
Use chemical messengers.
The function of the synapse is to convert an electrical signal (impulse
from the presynaptic cell into a chemical signal that acts on the
postsynaptic cell.