PSYC62H3 Chapter Notes - Chapter 4: Nmda Receptor, Axon Terminal, Axon Hillock
Document Summary
Chapter four: excitability and chemical signaling in nerve cells. The nervous system is divided into the cns (brain and spinal cord) and the pns (neurons outside the brain and spinal cord) Neurons transmit info by generating electrical charges in one part of the cell, conducting these electrical changes to distant parts of the cell, and then releasing chemical signals on to neighbouring neurons. They"re chemically active release signaling molecules (neurotransmitters) Info typically flows from dendrite to soma to axon. The enlarged region where the axon emerges from the soma axon hillock. A short distance from their origin, many axons have a coating called the myelin sheath, which is analogous to the insulation on a wire. Gaps in the myelin sheath, where the axon comes into direct contact with the extracellular fluid, are called the nodes of ranvier. The presence of these gaps allows for an increase in the rate of conduction down the axon.
