Archie Brooks

The Reflex Arc & Synapses

The diagram below shows a typical reflex arc through the spine.

Sensor

Sensory Neurone

Motor Neurone
Relay neurone

1 Add the 2 missing labels to the picture. [1]

2 How many synapses are involved in the reflex arc shown? [1] 2

3 The descriptions below shows some of the events which occur during the operation of this reflex arc,
but some details are missing. State the word(s) needed in place of the “?” in the right-hand column. [7]

Stage in sequence Missing word(s)

1. Sensor triggered by…… Stimuli

2. Impulses in sensory neurone. (n/a)

3. Vesicles in end of sensory neurone move to membrane and….. Motor neurone

4. ???????? released. Neurotransmitters
5. These then pass across synapse by….. Diffusion
6. They then bind to ?????? on the relay neurone. Specific receptors
7. ????? in relay neurone and then in motor neurone Impulses
8. Muscle stimulated, so it…….. Contracts

4 The knee-jerk reflex arc does not possess a relay Sensory neuron is directed straight to the
neurone. Why would this make it quicker than the motor neuron, making the reaction near
one shown on page 1? [1] instantaneous.

1
5 This table show some measurements taken from different neurones.

Axon circumference Cross-sectional area of

Axon Diameter (μm) Impulse speed (m/s)
(μm) axon (μm2)
2 6 3 12
4 13 13 28
8 25 50 46
12 38 113 68

Use the grid below to complete the plot of the suggested data. [5]

70

50
Y axis label
Impulse
speed (m/s)
30

10

0
0 20 40 60 80 100 120

Axon circumference (μm) or area (μm2)

/15 = %

Extension: A proportional relationship suggests two factors are directly related to each other. What does
the graph suggest about how impulses travel in axons/neurones?

Axons travel faster in axons with a larger circumference than axons with large areas.