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Nervous System
cells, tissues and organs of body are all working for organisms survival
need to integrate all body activities for homeostasis
need good communication and control:
Nervous System
Endocrine System
receptor Neuroendocrine
System
integration effector
Nervous System Structure
every cell in our body responds to stimuli by changing its metabolism in one
way or another
but cells of the nervous system are highly specialized for receiving stimuli and
conducting impulses to various parts of the body
in humans, these nerve cells have become organized into the most complex
and least understood of the body’s systems
the main functions of the nervous system then are to
1. code information from external and internal environment
(receptors, afferent)
2. process this information (CNS)
3. transmit an appropriate response (effectors)
communicates by:
electrochemical impulses (=nerve impulses)
cell-to-cell chemicals (=neurotransmitters)
CNS brain
spinal cord
PNS
cranial nerves
spinal nerves
Anatomy & Physiology: The Nervous System; Ziser 2004
sensory neuron
motor neurons
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