Exam 1 Flashcards
(204 cards)
what are the 2 distinct classes of cells?
- Neurons (nerve cells)
* Glia (supporting cells)
What are the parts of the neuron?
- Dendrites
- Cell body
- Axon hillock
- Axons
- Presynaptic terminal
What is the axon hillock?
Where the axon meets the cell body before it synapses
*The closer they are to this then the more likely they are to get the neuron to fire
What is the Node of Ranvier?
*The gap between the myelin sheath and its important bc Na+ will go in and K+ will go out and cause depolarization. It’s quicker bc of saltatory conduction. With an unmyelinated neuron you have to do the Na+/K+ exchange all the way down the neuron instead of just in the places you’d like.
What types of neurons are there?
- Bipolar (interneuron)
- Unipolar (sensory)
- Multipolar (motorneuron)
- Pyrimidal cell
What are the glial cells?
- Schwan cells (PNS)
- Oligodendrocytes (CNS)
- Astrocytes (CNS)
- Microglia (CNS)
What is the function of a purkinje cell?
- Takes sensory info from all over the body (through dendritic arborization) to help the body with coordination. It does sensory integration
- There are many dendrites to one axon
What are the 4 main functions of glial cells?
- Provides structure for the neurons
- surrounds neurons and holds them in place - Forms the (lipid) myelin sheath
- Speeds NCV
- Insulates one neuron from another - Supplies nutrients and oxygen to neurons
- Destroys pathogens and removes dead neurons
What are the characteristics of a Schwann cell?
- Usually only myelinates one neuron
- Myelin spirals around axon to form the myelin sheath
- at Nodes of Ranvier
- NCV= 100 m/s for myelinated neuron, and 1 m/s for unmyelinated
What are the characteristics of oligodendrocytes?
- One cell myelinates many CNS neurons
- Insulates and protects nerves
- Increase NCV
- Involved in pathologies such as alzheimers disease and multiple sclerosis
What are the characteristics of Astrocytes?
- Supporting cells in the CNS
- Most common glia
- Fill most of brain space not occupied by neurons
What are the functions of astrocytes?
- Provide structural support and insulating neurons from each other
- Maintenance of the blood brain barrier
- During inflammation and injury, they divide and wall off damaged areas
- Acts as scavengers by removing neurotransmitters from synaptic cleft
- Clean up other debris during both early development and during recovery after injury
What do Microglia do?
*They contain branched cytoplasmic processes and play an important phagocytic role?
What are the protective roles of Microglia?
- Activated and mobilized after injury, infection or disease
- Important during brain development
- Function as phagocytes (Ingest and destroy bacteria, cells and other materials)
What are the destructive roles of microglia?
- In diseases such as Alzheimer’s and aging
- release of toxic compounds into the neural environment
- HIV/AIDS can activate microglia and stimulate a cascade of cellular breakdown
What is Multiple Sclerosis (MS)?
- Autoimmune disease in which the oligodendrocytes are attacked by the person’s own antibodies
- Produce patches of demyelination = plagues in the white matter
What are the signs of LMN injury?
- Atrophy
- Weakness or paralysis
- Hypotonic DTRs
- Decreased muscle tone
- Fasiculations
- In a peripheral nerve distribution
What are the signs of UMN injury?
- Spasticity
- Hypertonic or hypotonic DTRs
- Clonus
- Babinski or Hoffman’s reflexes
- Weakness
- Synergistic movement patterns
- Effects one or both sides of body
What is a fasciculation?
- Rapid, fine, painless or painful contraction of groups of muscle fibers
- Visible but not strong enough to move limbs
- Commonly seen in anterior horn cell disorders (ex. ALS)
If a stroke occurs in the pre-central gyrus what would the symptoms be?
*you would have motor loss
If a stroke occured in the post-central gyrus what would the symptoms be?
- Glove/sock like sensory loss
* Sensory loss in general
If you have an UMN injury in the brain what can be the signs and symptoms?
- Motor/sensory loss of body part
- Glove/sock like sensory loss
- Hypo/hypertonic reflexes
If you have an UMN injury in the spinal cord what can be the signs?
- Motor loss: mytotome or loss below level of injury
- Sensory loss: dermatome or loss below level of injury
- Hypo/hypertonic reflexes
If you have a LMN injury at the nerve root what can be the signs?
- Motor loss: myotome
- Sensory loss: dermatome
- Reflexes: Hypotonic