HES 319 Lecture Notes - University Of Manchester, Resting Potential, Inhibitory Postsynaptic Potential
Document Summary
There are two categories of cells: nerve cells (neurons) and glial cells. Neurons are excitable and carry out signaling in the nervous system. Astrocytes nourish and maintain the chemical environment for neurons. Microglia are involved in immune response and are mobilized after injury, infection, or disease. Schwann cells insulate neurons by wrapping themselves around neurons in the pns. Oligodendrocytes wrap processes around neurons in the cns. Production of myelin protein is encoded by genes. Defects in genes can reduce myelination of neurons. Reduced myelination results in substantial functional consequences for the animal. Dendrites receive vast numbers of excitatory or inhibitory inputs from other neurons via synapses. These inputs are summed at the axon hillock, where action potentials are initiated. An action potential travels down the axon extremely rapidly via salutatory conduction. Myelin serves to insulate the neuron from surrounding tissue and increase the conduction velocity of the action potential.
