The Nerve Cell

Science 10 Third Quarter

Every person's body contains
billions of nerve cells (neurons).
There are about 100 billion in the
brain and 13.5 million in the
spinal cord. The body's neurons
take up and send out electric and
chemical signals
(electrochemical energy) to other
neurons.
What are nerve cells?
 It is the basic unit of the nervous system.
 Nerve cells are also called neurons.
 They are cells with special ability to carry signals and impulses.
 They send messages all over the body to allow us to do everything
from breathing to talking, eating, walking, thinking and many body
functions that are carried by a nerve impulse .
What are the basic parts of a Neuron?
 Dendrites
 Cell body
 Axon
Cell body
 The main part of a nerve cell.
 It contains the main control
center of the cell, the nucleus.
 The cell body controls the cell’s
functions.
Dendrites
 Are the finger-like cells present on the end of a
neuron. They are short, branching fibres extending
from the cell body of the nerve cell.
 It carry impulses towards the cell body.
 Axon
 It carry impulses away from the cell body.
 Itpass impulses to the dendrites of other neurons or
cell body muscles.
 Axons can be grouped together into cable-like
bundles called nerves.
Types of Neurons

There are different types of

neurons, including motor,
sensory, and interneurons.
Motor Neurons
Motor neurons transmit electrical impulses and
information from the CNS to muscles in the body.
Motor neurons control all of our body movements.

There are two main motor neurons

subtypes:

Upper motor neurons: Send data from the

brain to the lower motor neurons.

Lower motor neurons: Send data from the

upper motor neurons to muscles in the body.
Sensory Neurons
 Sensory neurons are neurons that allow us to
feel sensation. For example, if you stub your
toe, sensory neurons will send chemical and
electrical impulses back through the nervous
system to tell your brain that you feel pain in
your toe.

 Sensory neurons can be activated physically,

such as feeling touch, or chemically, such as
tasting a piece of cake. All five of our senses—
sound, sight, touch, smell, and taste—are
impacted by sensory neurons.
Interneurons

 Interneurons are nerve cells that

connect between motor neurons
and sensory neurons. Interneurons
can also send information to and
from other interneurons.
 Nerve Impulse
 An electrical signal that travels
along a nerve fiber in response to a
stimulus and serves to transmit a
record of sensation from a
receptor or an instruction to act to
an effector.
 Is a combination of an electrical
charge and chemical reaction.
 It is not a flow of electricity, but
an electrochemical signal moving
along a neuron.
 A nerve impulse cannot jump from one neuron to another.
When a nerve impulse comes to the end of an axon, it
produces the chemical, called Neurotransmitter, to be
released.

What are
•neurotransmitters?
They are the body’s chemical
messengers. They carry messages
from one nerve cell across a
space to the next nerve, muscle
or gland cell.
The chemical crosses the space between neurons called
synapse and stimulates the nerve impulse to start in the
next dendrite.
Once at the end of the axon the signal will be transmitted
to the next neuron. No two neurons touch each other. A
space called the synaptic gap separates the dendrites of
one neuron from the axon of another neuron.
Messages do not travel in both directions along the same
neuron. Only the axon of the neuron releases
neurotransmitters that cross the space between neurons.
 The nervous system is assisted by five sense
organ- the eyes, ears, nose, tongue, and skin.
 These sense organs are constantly receiving
information from the environment and sending
messages to the brain.
 These senses aid in the survival of human
beings.
What body functions do nerves and neurotransmitters
help control?
 Heartbeat and blood pressure.
 Breathing.
 Muscle movements.
 Thoughts, memory, learning and
feelings, Sleep, healing and aging.
 Stress response.
 Hormone regulation.
 Digestion, sense of hunger and
thirst.
 Senses (response to what you see,
hear, feel, touch and taste).
Summary
 Nerve cells also called neurons is the basic unit of the nervous system.
 They are cells with special ability to carry signals and impulses.
 Most neurons have three parts, including a cell body, which contains the
nucleus and the cytoplasm, an axon, which transmits information away
from the nucleus, and dendrites, which receive messages from other
neurons.
 Neurons are essential to human life. They allow our body and brain to
communicate and enable us to think, feel, and move.
 The main types of neurons include motor neurons, which transmit
information to our muscles, sensory neurons, which transmit
information to enable our senses, and interneurons, which aid
transmission between motor and sensory neurons.