CASE 1 how is the brain organized? the start of new
insights
Learning goals:
1. How do we view the brain? (dorsal, ventral..)
2. Different structures of the brain? (lobes, ventricles, cerebellum…)
3. Different cell types of the brain? (neuron)
4. What is the function, structure and connection of the spinal cord?
5. Different functions of the brain?
6. How does the brain protect itself? (cerebrospinal fluid)
lecture 3, CNS and PNS
central nervous system CNS
- brain
- cerebrum: large brain
- brain stem
- cerebellum: small brain
- spinal cord
- the CNS consists of the brain and the spinal cord, that are protected by the skull and
the vertebral column
- basic function: responding to environment
- sensation
- monitors changes/events occurring in and outside the body. such
changes are known as stimuli and the cells that monitors them are
sensory neurons with receptors on their body surface and internally
- integration
- the parallel processing and interpretation of sensory information to
determine the appropriate response (reflexes, movements,
homeostasis)
- everything that we have learned from the past has to be integrated
with the information
- movement
- motor output
- the activation of muscles or glands, typically via the release of
neurotransmitters
- the whole body has to be engaged to the environment
- highly cellular organ
- ~100 billion neurons
- 1000-10.000 synapses/neuron
,peripheral nervous system PNS
- it consists of all the parts of the nervous system other than the brain and spinal cord
- visceral (autonomic, involuntary, vegetative)
- consists of neurons that innervate the internal organs, blood vessels and
glands
- afferent nerves (sensory)
- axons bring information about visceral function to CNS (pressure and
oxygen content of blood in arteries)
- the afferent neurons bring information towards brain
- efferent nerves (motor)
- command the contraction and relaxation of muscles that form the
walls of intestines and blood vessels (smooth muscle), the rate of
cardiac muscle contraction and the secretory function of various
glands
- efferent neurons emerge from the brain towards muscles or glands
- sympathetic
- action, emergency
- parasympathetic
- rest, housekeeping
, - somatic
- afferent nerves (sensory)
- carries signals signals from all over the body back to the CNS to be
decoded
- found in clusters: ganglia
- they innervate and collect information from the skin, muscles and
joints, enter the spinal cord via the dorsal roots
- the cell bodies of these neurons lie outside the spinal cord in clusters
called dorsal root ganglia
- efferent nerves (motor)
- carries signals from the CNS to cells all over the body to carry out the
body’s response to this information
- the neurons have long extensions (axons) that run from the CNS all
the way to the muscles they connect with (innervate)
- it derives from the ventral spinal cord and command muscle
contraction
- the cell bodies lie within the CNS, but their axons are mostly in the
PNS
- it consists of the spinal nerves that innervate the skin, joints and the muscles
that are under voluntary control
- the PNS is made up of nerves and ganglia (clusters of nerve cells)
- there is a dorsal root ganglia for each spinal cord
- the spinal cord runs inside the vertebral column
- axons enter and exit the spinal cord via the dorsal and ventral roots,
respectively. these roots come together to form the spinal nerves that course
through the body
CNS and PNS
- they work together to send information between the brain and the rest of the body
- nerves emerge from the CNS through the skull and vertebral column, using the PNS
to carry information to the rest of the body
- there are 12 pairs of cranial nerves that arise from the brain stem and innervate
(mostly) the head
- some of the cranial nerves are part of the CNS
- others are part of the somatic PNS
- others are part of the visceral PNS
- many cranial nerves contain a complex mixture of axons that perform different
functions.
, 1.How do we view the brain? (dorsal, ventral..)
- inspilateral: if structure A is one the same side as structure B
- contralateral: if structure A is on the other side as structure B
- proximal: if there is a small distance between structure A and B
- distal: if there is a large distance between structure A and B
- dorsal:
- ventral:
- coronal:
insights
Learning goals:
1. How do we view the brain? (dorsal, ventral..)
2. Different structures of the brain? (lobes, ventricles, cerebellum…)
3. Different cell types of the brain? (neuron)
4. What is the function, structure and connection of the spinal cord?
5. Different functions of the brain?
6. How does the brain protect itself? (cerebrospinal fluid)
lecture 3, CNS and PNS
central nervous system CNS
- brain
- cerebrum: large brain
- brain stem
- cerebellum: small brain
- spinal cord
- the CNS consists of the brain and the spinal cord, that are protected by the skull and
the vertebral column
- basic function: responding to environment
- sensation
- monitors changes/events occurring in and outside the body. such
changes are known as stimuli and the cells that monitors them are
sensory neurons with receptors on their body surface and internally
- integration
- the parallel processing and interpretation of sensory information to
determine the appropriate response (reflexes, movements,
homeostasis)
- everything that we have learned from the past has to be integrated
with the information
- movement
- motor output
- the activation of muscles or glands, typically via the release of
neurotransmitters
- the whole body has to be engaged to the environment
- highly cellular organ
- ~100 billion neurons
- 1000-10.000 synapses/neuron
,peripheral nervous system PNS
- it consists of all the parts of the nervous system other than the brain and spinal cord
- visceral (autonomic, involuntary, vegetative)
- consists of neurons that innervate the internal organs, blood vessels and
glands
- afferent nerves (sensory)
- axons bring information about visceral function to CNS (pressure and
oxygen content of blood in arteries)
- the afferent neurons bring information towards brain
- efferent nerves (motor)
- command the contraction and relaxation of muscles that form the
walls of intestines and blood vessels (smooth muscle), the rate of
cardiac muscle contraction and the secretory function of various
glands
- efferent neurons emerge from the brain towards muscles or glands
- sympathetic
- action, emergency
- parasympathetic
- rest, housekeeping
, - somatic
- afferent nerves (sensory)
- carries signals signals from all over the body back to the CNS to be
decoded
- found in clusters: ganglia
- they innervate and collect information from the skin, muscles and
joints, enter the spinal cord via the dorsal roots
- the cell bodies of these neurons lie outside the spinal cord in clusters
called dorsal root ganglia
- efferent nerves (motor)
- carries signals from the CNS to cells all over the body to carry out the
body’s response to this information
- the neurons have long extensions (axons) that run from the CNS all
the way to the muscles they connect with (innervate)
- it derives from the ventral spinal cord and command muscle
contraction
- the cell bodies lie within the CNS, but their axons are mostly in the
PNS
- it consists of the spinal nerves that innervate the skin, joints and the muscles
that are under voluntary control
- the PNS is made up of nerves and ganglia (clusters of nerve cells)
- there is a dorsal root ganglia for each spinal cord
- the spinal cord runs inside the vertebral column
- axons enter and exit the spinal cord via the dorsal and ventral roots,
respectively. these roots come together to form the spinal nerves that course
through the body
CNS and PNS
- they work together to send information between the brain and the rest of the body
- nerves emerge from the CNS through the skull and vertebral column, using the PNS
to carry information to the rest of the body
- there are 12 pairs of cranial nerves that arise from the brain stem and innervate
(mostly) the head
- some of the cranial nerves are part of the CNS
- others are part of the somatic PNS
- others are part of the visceral PNS
- many cranial nerves contain a complex mixture of axons that perform different
functions.
, 1.How do we view the brain? (dorsal, ventral..)
- inspilateral: if structure A is one the same side as structure B
- contralateral: if structure A is on the other side as structure B
- proximal: if there is a small distance between structure A and B
- distal: if there is a large distance between structure A and B
- dorsal:
- ventral:
- coronal:
