Neurophysiology

Dr Samy Saeed
BDS , MDSc , PhD

L e ct u re r o f Ora l & Ma xil l o fa cia l S u rg e r y

F a cu l t y o f D e nt a l Me d icine ( C a iro )

A l A z h a r Unive rsit y
 How
pain
can be
felt ?
 The
neuron
 The neuron
Dendrites
Axon terminals

Axon

Cell body
(Soma)
The neuron
Soma
 The neuron
Axon
Nodes of Ranvier

Myelin sheath Schwan cells

 The neuron
There are approximately 86 billion (86,000,000,000)
neurons in the human brain.

The dot made by this pencil is approximately 0.5 mm (500

microns) in diameter. Therefore, if you assume a neuron is 10
microns in diameter, you could squeeze in 50 neurons side-
by-side across the dot. However, you could squeeze in only 5
large (100 micron diameter) neurons.

While the cell body of a motor neuron is approximately 100 microns

(0.1 millimeter) in diameter, the axon is about 1 meter (1,000
millimeter) in length. So, the axon of a motor neuron is 10,000 times
as long as the cell body is wide.
 The neuron
(1) Classification according to presence or absence
of myelin sheath

Myelinated nerve fiber

 The neuron
Impulse propagation according to presence or
absence of myelin sheath
 The neuron
(2) Classification according to axon diameter
 The neuron
(3) Classification according to basic structure of the
neuron

Motor Sensory
neuron neuron

Efferent Afferent
neuron neuron
The neuron
The neuron
 Conduction
of nerve
impulses
how does this happen?
 Resting
Membrane
Potential
 The neuron Axon Axolemma

Cathode Ray Oscilloscope

Resting membrane potential
(RMP)

The electric potential of the neuron

during rest
Electric
potential
during
rest ?!
Outside

Polarized
membrane

Inside
Resting membrane potential (RMP)

1. Selective permeability of the axolemma

2. Sodium – potassium pump
Resting membrane potential (RMP)
 Does our
brain get in
rest ?
 Our brain never shuts off. Even when
we’re sleeping at night, the brain consumes
roughly as much energy as it does during
the day.

For the average adult in a resting state,

the brain consumes about 20 percent of the
body’s energy which is very, very
expensive in terms of energy use.
 About 25 % of the brain’s energy goes to
maintaining the neurons and glial cells
themselves to remain alive. The remaining
75 % is used for excitation and signaling

White matter uses about 20–25 % as much

energy as gray matter, which is made up of
dendrites, cell bodies, and the sites of synapses

The brain areas responsible

for auditory processing
require more energy than
the olfactory system or
the areas of the brain
responsible for memory
 What happens if
it is stimulated?
 Action
Potential
 Action potential (AP)
What happens if the nerve is stimulated ?

The impulse is
initiated
With a very rapid changes in membrane

potential in the form of an electric impulse

which then travels through the nerve fiber

Impulse propagation
 Electrophysiology of nerve conduction

Membrane potential is slowly decreased

Weak below -70 mV & then restored to normal
RMP (No impulse)

Stimulus

If the stimulus is strong enough to bring

Strong the membrane potential to -55 mV (the
firing threshold ), an AP is initiated
 Electrophysiology of nerve conduction

Weak impulses fail

to evoke an action
potential

RMP
Electrophysiology of nerve conduction

Slow
depolarization
Electrophysiology of nerve conduction

Very rapid
depolarization
(spike potential)

Followed by
Reversal of polarity
Electrophysiology of nerve conduction

repolarization

Followed by
hyperpolarization
Electrochemistry of nerve conduction
Electrochemistry of nerve conduction
 So
It’s all
about
Na ion
influx
 Once one segment of the axolemma is in action potential, it is
automatically acts as a stimulus for the neighboring segment & the
impulse is propagated through the nerve fiber either to the CNS
(afferent) or from it (efferent) with no need for consumption of
cell energy
 Impulse
propagation
 Impulse propagation according to presence or
absence of myelin sheath

Saltatory
conduction

Creeping
conduction
Nerve macroanatomy
Macroanatomy of peripheral nerve

Fascicle
 So,
how dose
local
anesthesia
stop pain
sensation?
Your questions are
welcomed