3. Hard Cards

• Axon hillock


  At the junction between the soma and the axon, where action potential originates
• Active zone


  Subarea of the axon terminal that has a bunch of proteins important for neurotansmitter release embedded in its membrane
• Microtubules


  Function as a railway to the far-flung parts of the neuron to get them the proteins synthesized in the ER that they need, and have motor-like proteins carrying the necessary proteins to where they have to be down their length
• Neurofilaments


  Organelles made up of proteins in the axon that helps it keep it together. The older the cell, the more of these there are, so the thicker the axon
• Nodes of ranvier


  Space on the axon between myelin sections
• Unipolar cell


  Neurons with a single extension from the soma that is a giving and receiving end. In invertebrates, not humans
• Bipolar cells


  Neurons with one single dendrite and one single axon. Not very common, but do exist in humans in systems like the eye
• Multipolar cells


  Neurons with multiple dendrites and one axon. The most common and the ones depicted in most drawings of neurons
• Interneurons


  Relay between other neurons and the CNS, or between each other. They serve an important part in reflexes that never have to reach the brain for
• Glia


  Non-neuronal cells that are a part of the nervous system
• Glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP)


  Protein used as a determining marker of atrocytes from other cells
• Astrocytes


  Play a major role in maintaining the blood-brain barrier by having their endfeet release important bio compounds allowing the endothelial cells to stay healthy. They also have a very dense layer of proteins that help them soak up molecules to keep synapse signals clear, and produce trophic factors that guide neurons
• Trophic factors


  Helper molecular signals produced by astrocytes that tell a neuron whether it should keep on living, and guide them to form the right synapses with each other
• Tripartite synapse


  Phrase referring to the three components of a synapse; the presynaptic neuron, the postsynaptic neuron, and the astrocyte
• Ogliodendrocytes


  Glial cells that exist exclusively in the CNS whose main job is to myelinate the cells abound them. They have few dendrites, but have the highest metabolic rate out of the brain cells because of the insane amounts of membrane they have to drag around to myelinate so much
• Schwann Cells


  Glial cells found exclusively in the PNS that give myelin to PNS neurons, but unlike ogliodendrocytes can only provide a single section of myelin
• Schwann cells


  Glial cells found exclusively in the PNS that help regenerate injured axons by destroying the remaining myelin, which only gets in the way of regeneration, then guiding the axon back to its original position, which helps it regrow
• Microglia


  Glial cells that are more immune cells than neural, and serve to destroy clumps of protein and dead or dying cells so the nervous system can stay clean
• lba1


  Marker used to identify when microglia are reacting to an injury
• Ependymal cells


  Columnar glial cells with cilia that make up the lining of the ventricles and produce CSF
• Choroid plexus


  Network of cells and blood vessels that form a boundary between the CSF and the blood