PSYA01H3 Chapter Notes - Chapter 3: Myelin, Saltatory Conduction, Functional Electrical Stimulation
Document Summary
The resting and action potential neurons have a natural electric charge called a resting potential. The myelin sheath, which is made up of glial cells that coat and insulate the axon, facilitates the transmission of the action potential. Myelin doesn"t cover the entire axon; rather, it clumps around the axon with little break points between clumps, looking kind of like sausage links. Ranvier, after french pathologist louis-antoine ranvier, who discovered them. When an electric current passes down the length of a myelinated axon, the charge seems to. Jump from node to node rather than having to traverse the entire axon. This process is called saltatory conduction, and it helps speed the flow of information down the axon. Myelin is formed by a type of glial cell, and it wraps around a neuron"s axon to speed the transmission of the action potential along the length of the axon. Breaks in the myelin sheath are called the nodes of.
