THE

NERVOUS
SYSTEM
UNIT 3:
LIVING THINGS AND THEIR ENVIRONMENT
 The learners demonstrate an
understanding of:

• organisms as having feedback

mechanisms, which are
coordinated by the nervous
and endocrine systems
Content • how these feedback
mechanisms help the
Standards organism maintain
homeostasis to reproduce and
survive
Performance
Standards
 The learners should be able to…

Learning • describe how the nervous

system coordinates and
Competency regulates these feedback
mechanisms to maintain
homeostasis
Nervous System

It connects all the body parts and transmits

signals from one part to another.

It is a system of cells, tissues, and organs that

regulates the body’s responses to internal and
external stimuli.
Major Divisions of the Nervous System

1. Central Nervous System (CNS)

- serves as the main processing

center for the entire nervous system
- consists of brain and spinal cord
Major Divisions of the Nervous System

2. Peripheral Nervous System (PNS)

- connects the central nervous

system to the organs and limbs through
the nerves that extend from it
 Central
Nervous
Peripheral System
Nervous
System
Central Nervous System
BRAIN
- located within the skull
- weighing about 3 pounds in the
average adult
- about 60% fats and 40% water,
proteins, carbohydrates and salts
- contains blood vessels and
nerves, including neurons and
glial cells.
Central Nervous System
- controls every process that
regulates our body
- functions as organizer and
distributor of information for
the body
PARTS OF THE BRAIN
Cerebrum
- large, upper part of the brain
that controls activity and
thought.

https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/health/conditions-and-diseases/anatomy-of-the-brain
PARTS OF THE BRAIN
Cerebellum
– the part under the cerebrum
that controls posture, balance,
and coordination
PARTS OF THE BRAIN
Brain Stem
– the part that connects the
brain to the spinal cord and
controls automatic functions
such as breathing, digestion,
heart rate, and blood pressure.
3D Model of the Brain
Central Nervous System
SPINAL CORD
- extends from the bottom of the
medulla and through a large
opening in the bottom of the skull
and supported by the vertebrae,
- serves as channel for signals
between the brain and the rest of
the body
- controls simple musculoskeletal
reflexes without input from the
brain
Model of the Spinal Cord
Peripheral Nervous System
Somatic Nervous System
- associated with the voluntary control of body movements

a. Spinal Nerves
– carry motor and sensory signals between the spinal cord
and the body
b. Cranial Nerves
– carry information into and out of the brain stem
Peripheral Nervous System
Autonomic Nervous System
- associated with the involuntary control of body movements
a. Sympathetic
- it is activated when the body is in a dynamic role or
stress. (e.g., increased heart rate and breathing, dilation of pupil,
sweating, etc.)
b. Parasympathetic
- it maintains body functions and restores the body to normal
or relaxed mode.
 A diagram
summarizing the
sympathetic and
parasympathetic
nervous systems’
effects on different
organs.
 Nervous System

Central Peripheral
Nervous Nervous
System System

Spinal Somatic Autonomic

Brain Nervous Nervous
Cord
System System

Spinal Cranial
Cerebrum Cerebellum Brain Stem Sympathetic Parasympathetic
Nerves Nerves
 • called as neurons
• basic unit of the nervous
system
Nerve Cell • Parts of a Neuron
1. Cell Body
2. Dendrites
- carry impulses towards the
cell body
3. Axons
- carry impulses away from
the cell body
The Structure of a Neuron

Cell Body (Soma)

Myelin Sheath

Axon Terminals
Pathway of the Nerve Impulse Through a Neuron

dendrite axon
cell body axon
s terminal
Types of Neuron
Type of Neuron Sensory Relay Motor
Function They transmit They are found They transmit
impulses from in the central impulses from
receptor to the nervous system relay neurons to
effectors.
central nervous and transmit
system. impulses from
sensory
neurons to the
motor neuron.
Nerve Impulse
• a combination of electrical and chemical reaction
• a flow of an electrochemical signal moving along a neuron

Neurotransmitter
A neurotransmitter is a
chemical substance that is
released from an axon terminal
of a neuron to stimulate a nerve
impulse in the following
neuron.
 Synapse

Synapse
- the space between
neurons

Transmission Neurotransmitters Through a Synapse

Stimulus • any factor in the environment that influences behavior

Response • a reaction to a condition or stimulus

Receptor • a specialized structure in the body that detects a stimulus

Effector • the part of a body that carries out a response to a stimulus

Reflex • an involuntary action in response to a stimulus

Reflex Arc • a neural pathway that controls a reflex

Reflex Arc

Sensory Neuron Relay Neuron

Motor Neuron
Spinal Cord
 Sensory Neuron

STIMULUS RECEPTOR
Brain
RESPONSE
Relay Neuron and
Spinal
Cord
EFFECTOR
Motor Neuron
Summary
• What is a neuron ?
• What are the parts of a neuron?
• How does an impulse travel through a neuron?
• What are the three types of neuron?
• Can you explain the pathway of signal during a reflex action?
Concept Check
1. What do you call the basic unit of the nervous system?
2. Which structure carry the impulse towards to cell body?
3. Which structure carry the impulse away from the cell body?
4. What are the functions of each type of neuron?
5. What is the pathway of the nerve impulse through a neuron?
 1

2 4

5
 Axon
Dendrites Cell Body Axon
Terminal
1 2 3
1. 2. 3.

4. Relay Neuron

6. 5.