Structure and Function of Neurons

Cellular Neurochemistry and
Neural Membranes
Chem 2390
Prepared by:
Dr. Danila S. Paragas
Professor VI
sensory input
motor input
sensory receptor
effector
integration
Central Nervous System (CNS)
• brain
• spinal cord
Peripheral Nervous System (PNS)
• cranial nerves
• spinal nerves
dendrite
cell body
Myelin
Synapse
sheath axon
Nodes of Ranvier
Schwann
Axon Cells
What is Myelin?
• lipid-rich (fatty) substance
• surrounds nerve cell axons (the nervous
system's "wires")
• insulate the axon and increase the rate
at which electrical impulses
(called action potentials) are passed
along the axon
Where is myelin formed?
• Myelin is formed in the central nervous

system by glial cells called
oligodendrocytes
– (CNS; brain, spinal cord and optic nerve)
• In the peripheral nervous system (PNS)
by glial cells called Schwann cells.
Illustration of the four different types
of glial cells found in the central
nervous system: ependymal cells
(light pink), astrocytes (green),
microglial cells (dark red), and
oligodendrocytes (light blue).
Function of Myelin
• to increase the speed at

which
electrical impulses propagate
along the myelinated fiber
– myelinated fibers, they "hop"
or propagate by saltatory
conduction.
• In unmyelinated fibers,
electrical impulses (action
potentials) travel as
continuous waves.
Clinical significance
• Demyelination is the loss of the myelin
sheath insulating the nerves, and is the
hallmark of some neurodegenerative
autoimmune diseases:
– multiple sclerosis,
– acute disseminated encephalomyelitis,
– neuromyelitis optica,
– transverse myelitis,
– chronic inflammatory demyelinating polyneuropathy,
– Guillain–Barré syndrome,
– central pontine myelinosis
Myelin repair
• Research to repair damaged myelin

sheaths is ongoing. Techniques
include surgically
implanting oligodendrocyte
precursor cells in the central
nervous system and inducing myelin
repair with certain antibodies.
unipolar bipolar multipolar
Dorsal root eye, ear, & olfactory most abundant type in CNS
ganglion cells
sensory
neuron
interneuron sensory
receptors
effector
motor
neuron
• A Simple Nerve Circuit – the Reflex Arc.
– A reflex is an autonomic response.
• Measuring Membrane Potentials.
– An unstimulated cell usually have a resting

potential of -70mV.
• Ungated ion channels allow ions to diffuse
across the plasma membrane.
– These channels are always open.
Nerve impulses propagate
themselves along an axon
• The action potential is repeatedly
regenerated along the length of the axon.
– An action potential achieved at one region of the
membrane is sufficient to depolarize a
neighboring region above threshold.
• Thus triggering a new action potential.
• The refractory period assures that impulse conduction
is unidirectional.
• Saltatory conduction describes the
way an electrical impulse skips from
node to node down the full length of
an axon, speeding the arrival of the
impulse at the nerve terminal in
comparison with the slower continuous
progression of depolarization spreading
down an unmyelinated axon.
• Saltatory conduction in unmyelinated
axons: clustering of Na+ channels on
lipid rafts enables micro-saltatory
conduction in C-fibers.
• C-fibers are one class of nerve fiber
found in the nerves of the somatic
sensory system.
• They are afferent fibers, conveying input
signals from the periphery to the central
nervous system.
• Saltatory conduction.
– In myelinated neurons only unmyelinated
regions of the axon depolarize.
• Thus, the impulse moves faster than in unmyelinated
neurons.
Ca2+ Presynaptic
neuron
Postsynaptic
membrane
Synaptic vesicles
containing
neurotransmitters
Neural integration occurs at the
cellular level
• Excitatory postsynaptic potentials (EPSP)
depolarize the postsynaptic neuron.
– The binding of neurotransmitter to postsynaptic
receptors open gated channels that allow Na+ to
diffuse into and K+ to diffuse out of the cell.
• Inhibitory postsynaptic potential (IPSP)
hyperpolarize the postsynaptic neuron.
– The binding of neurotransmitter to postsynaptic
receptors open gated channels that allow K+ to
diffuse out of the cell and/or Cl- to diffuse into the
cell.
• Acetylcholine- slows heart rate; PNS
• Glutamate- most prevalent neurotransmitter in the brain
• Aspartate- in CNS
• GABA- inhibitory neurotransmitter
• Glycine- inhibitory neurotransmitter
• Norepinephrine- awakening from deep sleep
• Epinephrine- increase heart rate tyrosine
• Dopamine- movement of skeletal muscles
• Seratonin- sensory perception, temp regulation, mood,
sleep
• Nitric oxide- may play a role in memory and learning
• Enkephalin- inhibit pain impulses by suppressing release
of substance P
• Substance P- enhances perception of pain

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Cellular Neurochemistry and

• Myelin is formed in the central nervous

• to increase the speed at

• Research to repair damaged myelin

– An unstimulated cell usually have a resting

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