14.

1: Nervous Control in
Humans
Objectives:

• State that electrical impulses travel along neurons

• Describe the mammalian nervous system in terms of: (a) the central nervous system (CNS) consisting of the brain
and the spinal cord (b) the peripheral nervous system (PNS) consisting of the nerves outside of the brain and spinal
cord
• Describe the role of the nervous system as coordination and regulation of body functions
• Identify in diagrams and images sensory, relay and motor neurones
• Describe a simple reflex arc in terms of: receptor, sensory neurone, relay neurone, motor neurone and effector
• Describe a reflex action as a means of automatically and rapidly integrating and coordinating stimuli with the
responses of effectors (muscles and glands)
• Describe a synapse as a junction between two neurons
• Describe the structure of a synapse, including the presence of vesicles containing neurotransmitter molecules, the
synaptic gap and receptor proteins
• Describe the events at a synapse as: (a) an impulse stimulates the release of neurotransmitter molecules from
vesicles into the synaptic gap (b) the neurotransmitter molecules diffuse across the gap (c) neurotransmitter
molecules bind with receptor proteins on the next neurone (d) an impulse is then stimulated in the next neurone
• State that synapses ensure that impulses travel in one direction only
Introduction

• Coordination is the way all organs and systems work efficiently together to keep the organism alive.

• Coordination is brought about by:

1. nervous system (by sending electrical impulses along nerves)
2. endocrine system (by releasing chemicals called hormones from endocrine glands)

• Ex, during exercise: - The brain sends electrical impulses to the diaphragm and intercostal muscles to
breathe faster, and to the heart to pump more rapidly.
- Excess glucose needed for energy comes form the conversion of glycogen to glucose in
the liver under the influence of hormones.
Nervous system Endocrine system

Very fast Can be slow

Electrical impulses travelling through nerves Chemical messengers travelling by blood

The area is localized i.e. confined to one area in the Usually noticed in many organs i.e. the response is
body widespread

Usually completed in seconds May take years before completed

Reflexes such as blinking, movement of limbs… Growth, development of sexual organs..

Nervous control in humans

• Nerve impulse: is an electrical signal that passes

along nerve cells called neurons.

• The two parts of the nervous system are:

1. Central nervous system consists of brain and spinal cord
2. Peripheral nervous system consists of all the nerves that connect the body to the central nervous system
• Nerves: carry electrical impulses from receptors in the sense organs to the central nervous system (sensory impulse), or
from the central nervous system to all parts of the body making muscles contract or glands produce hormones or
enzymes (motor impulse), or.

• A nerve appears white, tough, and stringy; it is made of bundles of nerve fibers (motor and sensory), so it carries many
different impulses travelling in one direction in sensory fibers and in the opposite direction in motor fibers.

• Glands and muscles are called effectors (take action when they receive nerve impulses).
ex, biceps muscle that flexes the arm.
salivary gland that releases saliva….
Neurons (nerve cells)

• Neurons: are nerve cells that make up the central and peripheral nervous systems.

• Structure of a neuron:
1. Cell body: containing a nucleus and some cytoplasm.
2. Dendrites: branching fibers from the cell body that carry the impulse towards the cell body.
3. Nerve fiber (axon): long filament of cytoplasm, surrounded by an insulating sheath (myelin sheath), that carry the
impulse away from the cell body.
• Cell bodies of neurons are mostly located in the brain or the spinal cord, and what runs in the nerves are the nerve
fibers (axons).

• Some nerve fibers are very long. A single nerve cell may have 1m long fibers.

• Cell bodies of the nerve fibers running to the foot are in the spinal cord, and all the fibers run to the skin of the toes or
muscles of the foot without a break
Neurons

• Types of neurons:
1. Sensory neurons (afferent neuron): carry impulses from sense organs to CNS.
2. Relay neurons (multi-polar, inter or connector neurons): make connections to other neurons inside CNS.
3. Motor neurons (efferent neuron): carry impulses from CNS to effector organs (muscles or glands)
Nerve Impulse

• Impulse: is a series of electrical pulses that travel down the fiber.

• Each pulse lasts about 0.001s , and travels at speeds of up to 100ms -1 .

• All nerve impulses are similar.

• Nerve fibers do not carry sensations like pain or cold, but those are felt when a nerve impulse reaches the brain.

• Impulses are carried to different parts of the brain from different sensory organs. Ex, nerves from the eye go to the part
of the brain concerned with sight, and the brain will process the information so that we can see things…..
Spinal cord
• It is made of thousands of nerve cells.

• Grey matter (central region): consists of cell bodies

• White matter consists of nerve fibers
- some of these nerve fibers pass through the grey matter, and some others
run through the spinal cord connecting it to the brain.
• The spinal nerves divide into two roots at the point where it joins the spinal cord:
All sensory fibers enter through dorsal root
Both types of fibers are contained in the same spinal nerve.
All motor fibers leave through ventral root

• Cell bodies of the sensory fibers are found in the dorsal root and they make a bulge called ganglion.

The spinal cord is involved in: - reflex actions involving body structures below the neck.
- conducting sensory impulses form the skin to the brain.
- carrying motor impulses from the brain to the muscles of the trunk and limbs.
Reflex Action
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nn2RHLWST-k

• Reflex action is an quick automatic response to a stimulus (stimulus is a change in the internal or external environment
of an organism).
• It has a great protective and survival value.

• It is a rapid integration and coordination of a stimulus, with the response of the effector, without the need of thought or
decision.

• Ex, blinking if dust touches the cornea of the eye

coughing reflex if a particle of food touches the windpipe
contraction of the pupil as a bright light shines in the eye…
Steps of a reflex action:

1. A stimulus is received by the sensory receptor.

2. An impulse is generated and carried along the sensory neuron toward the spinal cord.
3. The impulse travels the spinal cord along the dorsal root.
4. The nerve endings of sensory neurons release a neurotransmitter that diffuses across the synapse
between sensory and relay neurons.
5. Another synapse links relay with motor neurons.
6. Response travels along the motor neuron away from the spinal cord and along the ventral root.
7. The nerve impulse travels from the motor neuron to reach the effector (muscle or gland).
8. Result: movement/ secretion of hormone (action) is done
• Reflex arc: is the nervous pathway of such reflexes.

• Ex, knee-jerk reflex

With stretch Spinal cord in

receptors
transverse section

synapse

(effector
muscle fibers)
• If the tendon just below the knee cap is tapped sharply, a reflex arc makes the thigh muscle contract and the lower
part of the leg swings forward.
1. Hitting a tendon stretches the muscle and stimulates a stretch receptor
2. Receptors generate an impulse in sensory neuron to the spinal cord along dorsal root
3. Interneurons pass the impulse across a synapse to a motor neuron
4. Motor neuron conducts the response back to the thigh muscle (effector)
5. The muscle contracts and this jerks the lower part of the limb forward

These Sensory impulses reach the brain, but nothing can stop it.
• So the sequence of events in a simple reflex arc is:

stimulus (tapping the tendon below the knee cap)

receptor (stretch receptor)

sensory neuron

coordinator (spinal cord)

motor neuron

effector (leg extensor muscle)

response (leg extensor muscle contracts, making the leg kick forward)
Withdrawal reflex of the arm

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wLrhYzdbbpE

• Incoming sensory fibers into the spinal cord

make synapses with relay neuron that passes
the impulse into motor neurons.

• Some sensory fibers make synapses with neurons that send impulses to the brain keeping it informed about events in
the body.

• Nerve fibers from the brain make synapses with neurons in the spinal cord so that commands from the brain can be
sent to muscles.
• So all these reflexes are spinal reflexes, where the brain is not needed for it to happen.

• Responses in the head like blinking, coughing, iris contraction… have their reflex arcs in the brain but may not be
consciously controlled.

• Ex, bright light stimulating the light-sensitive cells of the retina.

- nerve impulses from these receptors travel through the optic nerve to the brain where the fibers synapse
with relay then with motor fibers which carry impulses back through the optic nerve to the circular muscle
of the iris to contract.
Synapses
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WhowH0kb7n0&ab_channel=NeuroscientificallyChallenged

• Synapse: is a junction between two neurons.

• Ex, 3 neurons run from the fingertip to brain.

• Synaptic cleft: is the gap between two neurons at a synapse.

Events that occur at a synapse:

• As a neuron receives an impulse, vesicles containing

chemicals called neurotransmitters are released.

• Neurotransmitters diffuse through the synaptic cleft and Path of impulse

bind with receptor molecules on the membrane of the
other neuron.

• Several impulses are needed to release enough transmitters.

• Neurotransmitters are made on one side of the synapse,

and receptors are only on the other side of the synapse.

• So, the synapse control the direction of the impulse

in reflex arcs ensuring that impulses travel in one
direction only.
• As the impulse is passed to the post synaptic neuron, neurotransmitters could be either destroyed enzymatically, or
taken back to the terminal from which it came where it can be reused

• Advantages of synapsis: - make interconnections of neurons and increase the possible range of actions
- Ensure one-way conduction of impulses (prevents impulses traveling back)

• Disadvantages of synapsis: - delays the transmission of nerve impulses